It is a call for help we've heard many times before. Millions in Africa are at serious risk of starvation, according to the World Food Program. Experts point to a complicated mess of drought and flood, war and peacetime corruption.
The nations at greatest risk are those with the weakest governments, places like Zimbabwe, Zambia and Malawi. Coming just when Africa and the West are seeking new models for relations, more trade, less aid, governed by new demands for accountability and transparent government; the call for help puts both parties back in that familiar place. "Send money now."
And again, even if the food arrives, people will die. And there's no guarantee the same thing won't happen again, next year.
