What the heck?!!!! Ser Chapín es??? These are names used by people of Central American countries to refer to themselves, used affectionately or as a measure of disrespect, depending on the context, like Yankee for US, Canucks or Hosers for Canada, etc: Guanaco - El Salvador Chapin - Guatemala Catracho - Honduras Nicas, Nicoyas o Pinoleros - Nicaragua
Tag: Central America
Is Haiti America’s Gaza?
As the US military descends to throttle Gaza's -excuse me- Haiti's points of entry, as it prepares detention facilities at Guantanamo to intercept and repatriate the expected rush of Haitian refugees, as the US protects its business interests in the Dominican Republic and Haiti which profit from the kept-poor labor market of captive Haiti, there are fewer differences than parallels. One difference, Israeli medics are willing to come help the injured of Haiti. 14238
Cuba declines OAS offer of Trojan Horse
Over US objections, the Organization of American States (OAS, OEA) voted to invite Cuba back into the fold, from which it had been expelled in 1962 for hanging with Communists. Cuba's reply? No thanks! Although Cuba's acceptance by fellow nations was hailed a victory, Fidel Castro wrote: "It is naive to think that the good intentions of one president justifies the existence of a body that... supported... neoliberalism, drug trafficking, military bases and economic crises." 7970
Farabundo Martí
Farabundo Martí struggled to free his native El Salvador from the US tentacles, but due to the small size of his country, and the gigantic size of the imperialist one, he and his paisanos still have not yet succeeded. Agustin Farabundo Marti is a national hero in El Salvador somewhat equivalent to George Washington. VIVA EL SALVADOR!, a most beautiful country.
Delinquencia vs Los Evangelicos and those caught in between
I haven't yet written anything about my Nicaragua trip and I hesitated to do so without giving it some thought. Just what did I see when I was there and how to explain it to my fellow Americans... lol? 3514
Cesar Sandino versus the US drug fiends
Cesar Sandino led the fight in Nicaragua to oust American soldiers who were policing US business interests in Central America.
Ancient Costa Rica for sale
The kids are still on Christmas break and are starting to show definite signs of cabin fever. To stave off a domestic implosion, we took a trip up to the Denver Art Museum yesterday. The DAM recently opened a spectacular addition designed by Daniel Libeskind, the architect chosen to rebuild the World Trade Center site. But I had an ulterior motive. I'd recently read about the DAMs 16,000-piece assemblage of pre-Columbian and Spanish Colonial art, including one of the world's largest collections of Costa Rican artifacts, nearly 2,000 items, donated to the museum by Denver businessman, Frederick Mayer, and his wife. I wanted to check it out. 2408
The King of Spain is a royal asshole
The international press has been reporting for everybody the spectacle of the King of Spain putting down Hugo Chavez with his comment 'Why don't you shut up, Little Boy?' Why the King of Spain should be attending a summit meeting in Santiago, Chile is never questioned at all though? 2132
Dead Archbishop Juan Gerardi- Catholic saint from Guatemala
Archbishop Juan Gerardi is a real Catholic saint. ...unlike the Spanish fascist clergy that Pope Ratzinger has recently been beatifying. See Democracy Now's report about who killed this archbishop? Was it really the US government behind this killing, too? 2087
Che, The Internationalist
Che Guevara lives on in the victory of his ideals over those of his adversaries. Che was an internationalist appalled by the poverty that the US Empire and its capitalism had delivered to the common people across the Americas and on other continents like Africa. 2016
Nicaragua, US made basket case
Pity Nicaragua, and pity Haiti. The US has screwed up both places royal through its 'interventions' time after time, and yet hardly an American seems to care. What a totally immoral country we live in! 2010
Vacation en Nicaragua
This post is dedicated to a good friend who got me thinking of Central America once again. It is about a vacation to Nicaragua and more. Let's start with a beautiful concert at the height of Hope in the early '80s, before the US government crushed that hope by its horrible imperialist military interventionism. Nicaragua Nicaraguita sung by the great Left folk singer of Nicaragua, Carlos Mejia Godoy. 1385
The New Colossus
I met an otherwise conservative old gentleman yesterday with a refreshing answer to the immigration question. Said he: "I'd welcome them!" 1248
How the US and its allies stole children in El Salvador
Many Americans are somewhat aware that the Argentinian allies of the US once stole babies from mothers that they had imprisoned, tortured, and then murdered. Those babies were then given to families of the leaders of the Argentinian military and government itself! This is an international scandal that still effects how many people perceive Argentinian society to this very day. It is a horrible legacy of the Dirty War that the US and its ally, the Argentinian government, waged on the Latin American Left. 1194
Bush’s Funniest vs Hugo Chavez
Now that Bush is back from Latin America, it's time to post Bush's Funniest Moments. And on to Argentina to see the rally where Hugo Chavez tore apart Dubya. This is a long video in Spanish, but watch the first 5 minutes at least to see the Argentinian Mothers of the Disappeared introduce Chavez. An education in itself. 1106
Cuban doctors vs Bush’s US floating militaristic showtime
The bankruptcy of US foreign politcy in Latin America will become highlighted later this week when Bush deploy's himself into Latin America with a Navy 'floating hospital' in tow. What the world will see is Top Gun military doctor Dubya diplomat in action, and it is assured ahead of time, to underwhelm rather than 'shock and awe'. 1093
Castro passes the baton
For even the hopeful, Fidel Castro's imminent mortality has for decades presaged the end of a dream. But Castro lived to see a successor. Not brother Raul, indeed neither an island-bound disciple nor a private-school Marxist, nor (but for this photo) a khaki'd comrade, but a veritable everyman Simon Bolivar to deliver the indigenous Americas to autonomy. 281
Poor Nicaragua
I don't really have much comment here. Nicaragua was a squalid, miserable little country in the '80s when the US refused to abandon its grip on the place after Uncle Sam's man, Somoza, went down. Sure there were the 8 years of Reagan to blame for this, but did Jimmy Carter ever open his mouth in any real protest? Did the Democratic Party help Nicaragua defend itself from the Republican thugs? Did the Sandinistas ever really have a chance? All the answers are... NO. 636
Nicaragua and Jimmy, a case study in how not to run elections
Daniel Ortega is back in. He has won the Nicaraguan presidential election held Sunday, with less than 40% of the vote! And we thought it idiotic when Dubya won the US election with less than 50%. These election structures that are so patently lacking in credibility would be comical, except for the fact that they are so sad. And to top the Nicaraguan election circus off, has been the media tourism down there of both Ollie North, US terrorist, and Jimmy, The Peanut Man Carter. News is in, that his stamp of approval already has fallen upon the election just held. All was done right and fair, he says. So Nicaragua has a new, yet old, president back in office who wins with only 38.5% of the vote! Good Ol' Jimmy. He couldn't make it to a gigantic Mexico this July, where there is substantial evidence that the declared winner won with less votes than the loser, but he could go to miniscule Nicaragua. Go figure? The Lord works in mysterious ways with this man of God. 587