I heard a report on Morning Edition today, an interview with a Senegalese rapper. He said Africa is too well known for famine, war and disease, which belies how much hope there is for the continent. The African people need to take pride in their lives and their heritage, he said, not see it as a yoke. It rings true with the city of Berlin as well, and it clarifies the point I was trying to make yesterday. How much of the US economy is built on hope and feelings? The credit crisis taught us confidence is as valuable as actual goods and services. Berlin has goods. It has services. It is only lacking confidence. Instead of Asia, it is Africa. Instead of China, it is the DRC. It was a great story on Africa, and I think the rapper’s words could apply to any down region. Particularly one with a wealth it doesn’t know how to tap.