ANTI-AMERICAN
SENTIMENT
Politics In Latin America
~ by Mark McMahon
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am often asked if I encounter anti-American sentiment in my travels. Yeah,
you bet! See photo. It seems like more and more lately. But it has never
been directed at me personally. People seem to be smart and kind enough
to distinguish between a country's government and its citizens.
Having been
on the road in Latin America for the better part of the last four years,
I have come to appreciate the perspective of my own country from an outsiders
point a view. While I value my U.S. Citizenship, I have never been a particularly
patriotic person. I have always felt that being a citizen of the planet
should take precedence over national borders. My travels have only reinforced
this view.
I have noticed
that each country seems to have their own collective self-image. Many Latin
American countries have a definite self-esteem problem. Almost like a lack
of patriotism - but not exactly. There is still great national pride. It
is sort of a feeling that they, as a country, will never amount to much.
The U.S. is perceived as a bully big brother who could solve all of their
problems but is more likely to beat the crap out of them. The fear of becoming
crapless is growing.
Recently I
spoke with an educated Venezuelan (PhD from the U.S.) who was very
fearful of the U.S. and their recent military posture. He thinks Bush will
use Venezuela’s governmental instability or even Venezuelan President’s
close relationship with Fidel Castro as an excuse to take over the country
and it’s immense oil and gas reserves. |
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Political
instability is a cliché in Latin America; as well as U.S. intervention
that follows. That is, when there is American money at stake. Bolivia is
in political disarray at the moment but there is no financial incentive
for the U.S. to intervene in this poverty-stricken landlocked little nation.
The people took dynamite to the streets to force a corrupt president to
resign. A huge sale of Bolivian natural resources was about to take place
and the people felt it was not going to benefit them but rather line the
pockets of the politicians. The revolt worked. The president resigned and
fled the capital in fear for his life.
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The
same political pocket lining is happening in our country but there is no
dynamite in the streets. The White House has become a Billionaires’ Consultancy
Agency. Vice-President Cheney’s former company, Haliburton,
gets BILLIONS in government contracts. Cheney had a series of secret meetings
with Ken Lay of Enron prior to taxpayers and pensioners getting bilked
of BILLIONS. Why no dynamite in our streets? Are U.S. citizens not informed
and/or just don’t care? There are still Big Macs at McDonalds and
most of us can afford them. In Bolivia people can’t afford a Big Mac, hence
the corruption is taken a little more personally.
I am in Buenos
Aires at the moment and have been reading about Argentina’s Dirty War of
the 70’s. (I mentioned this in last month’s article.) It was the 'ethnic
cleansing' of the reigning regime. It was political rather than ethnic,
but you get the point. Between 20 and 30 thousand people were 'disappeared'.
Many were tortured. Many were drugged and dumped from airplanes into the
sea while still alive. Pregnant mothers were abducted and murdered after
giving birth. The babies were then 'adopted' by the perpetrators. Truly
diabolical.
As I read about
all of the thousands of people who were 'disappeared', I thought, how could
the citizens of Argentina have let this happen? Were they not informed
and/or just didn’t care? How could those "just following orders” have actually
followed those orders? Then I thought about what is happening to the prisoners
of the U.S. war on terror in Guantanamo Bay. 680 prisoners incarcerated
indefinitely. No charges. No sentences. |
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No lawyers.
28 suicide attempts! (This is probably not because afternoon milk and cookies
were suspended.) Their civil and basic human rights are being absolutely
trampled at the hands of MY government. Alright, perhaps the comparison
to The Dirty War is a stretch, but not a big one. It is still a travesty,
skirting all laws and conventions of common decency of our culture by keeping
them 70 miles offshore.
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In the eyes
of foreigners, our war on terror has made us into terrorists. And in my
eyes, our foreign policy is abysmally shortsighted, quite simply, sowing
the seeds of future generations of terrorists.
I have never
felt compelled to write about politics before. Why the sudden shift in
my awareness and writing? Good question. I think several things have contributed.
I was recently back in the U.S. and attended a wildlife film festival in
Jackson Hole Wyoming. These filmmakers are, almost by definition, committed
and frustrated environmentalists. I have never felt so at home with a large
group of people. I heard chimp-lady Jane Goodall speak and shook hands
with media-mogul Ted Turner.
Another speaker
at the festival, you might say from the enemy camp, was an Assistant Secretary
of State for the U.S. Department of State. I couldn't have disagreed more
strongly with some of his environmental assessments but I am nonetheless
very pleased that he requested to be added to my Adventure Alert List!!
That gives me just one degree of separation from our President. (Or would
that be two? I'm not sure how these degrees are counted. Either way, it's
pretty darn close to The Shrub.)
It is a big
world out there but we are all connected on a variety of levels. (At the
most basic: same water, same air) The movie SIX DEGREES OF SEPARATION asserts
that you are connected to every person on the planet by a chain of six
persons who know another person who knows another person...etc., etc.
My chain to
Osama Bin Laden is very short. A buddy of mine was in the World Trade
Center when the planes hit on 9-11. He made it out in one piece but his
life was changed. Subsequently his brother said he was taking the hunt
for Osama too personally. "Personal? You're damn right! He tried to f#%*in'
kill me!" was his reply. I am but one degree from that very personal relationship.
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Roundaboutedly,
this is getting back to my newfound political consciousness. It seems there
is NO degree of separation between the Bush Family and the Bin Laden Family.
I just read a book by Academy Award winning muckraker Michael Moore: DUDE!
WHERE'S MY COUNTRY? I would not presume to ask you to plunk down a twenty
for the book, nor would I even ask to read the whole book. I will ask you
this: Go to the mall, go to the bookstore and peruse the first chapter.
You're on your own from there.
Among other
things, the first chapter explains that during the days immediately after
9-11, when other air traffic was still grounded, a private jet was crisscrossing
the U.S. picking up MEMBERS OF THE BIN LADEN FAMILY! This was with the
assistance of U.S. Government Agencies -this was not for incarceration
or interrogation but for safe passage to France! Why did this not make
mainstream media?
CUBA, AND
THE POLITICS Of My Pet Project…
In the last
few weeks there has been a small burst of news stories about Cuba. Since
scheduling my seminar about traveling to Cuba in January (link:cuba seminar
info)
(
http://www.filmtrips.com/htmlemail/cuba.html ) |
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I have been
doing research and trying to stay abreast of current events. I have made
many Cuba-related contacts, some of which are helping to keep me informed.
The content of my seminar may change drastically with political and legal
shifts in the wind.
The first of
the three stories, chronologically, is an official press release from the
Department of Homeland Security announcing the allocation of "intelligence
and investigative resources to identify travelers" from the US to Cuba
who may have been in violation of the embargo. Phew! I am feeling so much
more Security about my Homeland now!
http://cryptome.org/dhs101403.htm
The next story
is a week or so later, showing a group of US travel agents in Havana!
They were basically thumbing their noses at the Shrub and proving
that embargo dodging can be fun! I laughed out loud.
http://www.cnn.com/2003/WORLD/americas/10/19/cuba.us.tourism.ap/index.html
The last and
most recent story is about the Senate voting to end restrictions on travel
to Cuba by a sizable majority. The Shrub threatens to veto the House and
the Senate on the matter showing his allegiance with small but powerful
group of Anti-Castro Cubans in Miami.
http://www.cnn.com/2003/ALLPOLITICS/10/23/cuba.travel.ap/index.html
Shame on The
Shrub for his wanton disregard for the will of the majority in favor of
a very small but wealthy minority. Business as usual. The White
House speaks of "the brutal Castro regime". I am certainly no Commie, but
we might take some notes from a “brutal regime” wherein everyone has food
and healthcare in spite of great interference from the wealthiest nation
on the planet.
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| Mark McMahon
is closing in on his goal: Tucson to Tierra del Fuego or Bust! His
lively adventures on the road are documented with photos and stories on
his webpage: www.filmtrips.com.
Visit the site and be sure to sign up for his email Adventure Alerts. |
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