The Dark Continent - The Wise World Traveler: Becoming a Part of All that You Meet - page 343

were early prizes then (think King Solomon's mines), a quest that was repeated several
times over the centuries. Meredith also describes the hunt for arable land, as first Romans
and then Arab invaders crossed into the continent in search of bounty from the rich soil.
Africa produced still another commodity, ivory, valued by the newly emerging nineteenth-
century countries of the Industrial Revolution, which joined existing willing buyers from
the Near and Far East.
Probably Africa's most compelling export, slaves, changed the course of history not
only on the continent but throughout the receiving countries, first those in what is now
the heartland of the Middle East and subsequently those in the western hemisphere. “From
molasses to rum to slaves,” the chilling story told in song in the musical 1776 , reveals the
tragic links among the second wave of slave traders.
Perhaps the story of African riches and foreigners' greed and treachery in pursuit of
them is best summed up in the following passage:
As the seemingly well-intentioned French journalist spoke about Africa's scarcity and
its limited resources , Nine smiled to himself almost condescendingly. He considered
such statements an absolute joke. Africa did not, nor did it ever have, limited re-
sources .
Nine knew something the journalist obviously didn't: Africa was the most abundantly
resourced continent on the planet bar none. Like the despots who ruled much of the
region, and the foreign governments who propped them up, he knew there was more
than enough wealth in Africa's mineral resources such as gold, diamonds and oil - not
to mention the land that nurtured these resources - for every man, woman and child.
He thought it unfortunate Africa had never been able to compete on a level playing
field. The continent's almost unlimited resources were the very reason foreigners had
meddled in African affairs for the past century or more. Nine knew it was Omega's
plan, and that of other greedy organizations, to siphon as much wealth as they could
out of vulnerable Third World countries, especially in Africa.
The same organizations had the formula down pat: they indirectly started civil wars
in mineral-rich regions by providing arms to opposing local factions, and sometimes
even helped to create famines, in order to destabilize African countries. This made the
targeted countries highly vulnerable to international control. Once the outside organ-
izations had divided and conquered, they were then able to plunder the country's re-
sources. [297]