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which partially explains why the land has not been distributed to the Blacks. Mugabe took over 20 years ago, lionized as a hero by his friends in Moscow and the Carter administration in Washington. He began making all the right noises about finding the middle course politically and socially in the country. At least he silenced a lot of criticism he could have received from Washington.
He tried to implement something he calls "Scientific Socialism" which is still a nitwit's idea of a political system, but managed to once again, straddle the fence between Moscow and Washington. Another reason for the lack of interest and understanding with what was going on was the utter chaos that was South Africa. The absolute worst things that could have happened for Mugabe were the collapse of the Soviet Union and the settling of the South African situation.
There have been millions of acres of Zimbabwean farmland that have been taken away from their former White owners. Very little of this has been transferred to Black ownership. One of the key reasons for this is Mugabe's conviction that private ownership is anti-Socialist and doesn't jibe with his political vision.
So now you have a situation where what used to be a relatively productive part of Zimbabwe is being ground to a halt due to White farmers' fears of dispossession and death. This is coupled with a lack of Black farmer productivity due mainly to the fact that they don't feel any real commitment to that which they do not own.
Mugabe is playing this blame game, thrusting all of the blame on White farmers, bankers, and homosexuals, while his country goes to Hades in a handbasket. Obviously, he is pandering to further his days in office. But I feel that he will end up going the way of Mobutu in Zaire...a relatively discredited footnote in African history.
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