I was hoping that someone here who knows something about politics in Africa could confirm, deny, or otherwise comment on this story from The Mail. There has been some discussion of it on digg, but I'd like to hear from someone who knows more about the situation.

The article claims that "750,000 Chinese have settled in Africa over the past decade" in a concerted effort to strip the continent of all natural wealth, to gain near-exclusive access to its markets, and to use it as overflow space to accomodate Chinese people and pollution.

I’ll tell you who’s ba-bombing right now: John McCain. Sure, we still have to do a lot of work to prevent him from mounting a comeback, but barring big surprises, the odds are against him.

If Iran stays unbombed to Obama’s inauguration day, it will probably see only diplomatic pressure for the next four years. So any Strangelove in the administration must act fast if he wants to make sure that Iran receives its fair share of timely shock and awe. In this diary, I want to explore whether this is likely to happen in the waning months of the Bush presidency.

Almost everyone here thinks that the day when Bush is out of office couldn't come soon enough. Many of us agree that he committed genuine, impeachable crimes. I definitely sympathize on both counts. However, the fact that Dennis Kucinich decided to file articles of impeachment today, two days after our party got our presidential candidate, is pregnant with meaning. And it isn't good. It's not good for us, it's not good for our congressional candidates, and it's very bad for Barack Obama and his campaign for president.

There is a disturbing meme in the Democratic air tonight. Democrats admit that on one level, they are disgusted with the unfairness and pettiness of Hillary Clinton's attacks on Obama. And yet they profess an admiration for that very same quality in Clinton: Her sharp elbows might win her the general election. On the front page of TPM, a reader drew the analogy this way:

I'm reminded of people who hate lawyers because they're too contentious and sleazy and aggressive -- but when they get sued, they insist on getting the meanest bull dog of a lawyer they can find.

There is no doubt that Hillary is the meanest candidate that we Democrats can find this year. I'm troubled, however, by the logic that says that we should support her because she fights dirty. It seems to me perilously short-sighted. If Hillary can campaign without principles in the Democratic primary, then she can also govern without principles in the Presidency. This might not only be disastrous for our country, it might completely undo the Democratic revival that's currently sweeping the country.