There was a day when Zimbabwe was known as the food basket for Africa, a land rich in the needs to sustain a great nation.

All it takes for a land rich in natural resources to be demolished is ruthless and authoritative leadership.  This has regrettably occurred in the nation that gained independence in 1980 -- Zimbabwe.

Its current strong man Robert Mugabe achieved power after a struggle with political rival Joshua Nkomo.  To say that the current situation in Zimbabwe is a calamity would be an understatement.  Virtually any words in the human language to describe the current state of disaster would be an understatement.

While the fortunate ones have been able to escape to neighboring South Africa, those that remain have experienced horrendous plights.  Some political rivals have not survived while others who dared oppose Mugabe's brutal regime had their legs hacked off by his brutal thugs, loyal party functionaries enforcing control at the expense of the masses.

Action needs to be taken in the continuing ruthless pursuit of power by Zimbabwe's dictator Robert Mugabe.  After the counting was finished the inevitable result of a Mugabe "victory" in the presidential election was confirmed Sunday, June 29.

Mugabe's paper triumph was tainted by two elements that would not and should not go away.  

His principal rival, fearing death following an attack by Mugabe's police thugs on the rival party's headquarters, sought refuge in the Dutch Embassy in Zimbabwe's capital city of Harare.

The other element was that, unlike the first round of voting, in which the incumbent Mugabe finished second, the lines that formed at polling stations amid excitement were replaced by empty streets.

Is George Bush so far removed from reality that he fails to see how vulnerable he is when he calls the ruthless and undemocratic government of Robert Mugabe in Zimbabwe "illegitimate"?

Mugabe has something in common with George Bush in that he has legitimacy problems on his own behalf and achieved "victories" in 2000 and 2004 amid ruthless and undemocratic practices that were aimed at African Americans.

Bush's own brother Jeb, as governor of Florida, teamed up with then Secretary of State Katherine Harris to create a successful scheme to disenfranchise thousands of African American voters in the Sunshine State.  

As a result the vote was close enough to allow the Federalist Society to prevail with a U.S. Supreme Court majority of one to shut down a democratic recount in that crucial and deciding state and throw the election to Bush.

A current BBC News report cites the ruling African National Congress of South Africa as a recent source of scathing criticism over the oppressive rule of President Robert Mugabe in Zimbabwe.

Former United Nations Secretary General Kofi Anan has delivered similar comments as the carnage continues, in a nation where what the international community hoped would be a democratic election, to violence on the part of Mugabe's well trained and ruthless police.

Rather than holding a runoff between Mugabe and the candidate that appeared to be favored by most of the citizenry, the individual who should instead be preparing to govern Zimbabwe following a democratic election runoff instead was compelled to seek refuge in the Dutch Embassy in the capital city of Harare.

While Mugabe has enriched himself and become a billionaire most of his countrymen live at or perilously near the starvation point.  

The pictures on international television have been tragic, illustrating gross injustice and a dictatorial mentality to thwart democracy.

Those pictures have been indelibly frozen into the minds and hearts of anyone who saw them and cares about justice.  

In an effort to squelch democratic efforts to challenge the harsh authoritarian rule of Zimbabwe strongman Robert Mugabe, his hired thugs have captured elements known to be opposed to his rule and cut off their legs.  

Thank goodness the international media made certain that filmed footage of the punished souls who sought to fight for democracy were shown for proponents of democracy to see.