Where being American can get you out of trouble...

... and being French can kill you: Ivory Coast. Newsweek has an article about the current situation in Abidjan, the economic capital of Ivory Coast and it's really worth reading.

"No, no, he's an American," the police chief said. "Quickly—show them your passport." The passport was locked in the trunk. Hands shaking, I fumbled for my wallet and extracted my California driver's license. "American! American!" I said, thinking: this must be one of the few places left in the world where such a declaration can get one out of trouble. After inspecting the license, the Young Patriots gave me the thumbs up and waved us through.

France is accused by the partisans of Laurent Gbagbo, the current president, of all the things that went wrong in this country. Since a few days, the Young Patriots, group of young Gbagbo loyalists, are back in the streets looking for some white faces, automatically assumed to be French, at roadblocks in the capital. You can assume that they are not looking for French to engage in a nice little chat.

It's unbelievable how a country can drown so quickly. Back in 1996 when I visited Ivory Coast, it was one of the richest countries in West Africa and now it's under a state of quasi-civil war. Poor Africa!