The last Monday in August Carnival of Latin America and the Caribbean

Crossposted at Fausta's blog.com

Welcome to the Carnival of Latin America and the Caribbean. If you would like your links included in the next Carnival, please email me: faustaw2 "at" gmail "dot" com.

TODAY'S PODCAST AT 11AM Eastern
How the Latin American media glamorizes Obama and ignores McCain.



ARGENTINA
Clouds gather again over the Pampas
After six years of rapid growth, Argentina’s economy is at a familiar turning-point, in which the president’s refusal to change course threatens to make it poorer

USA'08: Madonna, metete la lengua entre las piernas y cerralas

BOLIVIA
Bolivia set for anti-Morales strikes

Bolivia in turmoil over socialist leaders’ attempt to grab wealth

Evo Morales: “Fidel nos dijo: hagan lo que esta haciendo Chavez” - Radio Fides

Libia invertira $us 80.000 millones en Latinoamerica, incluida Bolivia

BRAZIL
Lobao Says Brazil Plans to Uphold Oil Contracts, O Globo Says

Not as violent as you thought: Contrary to stereotype, the murder rate is falling

COLOMBIA
FARC rejected by many of its members

COSTA RICA
Chere Tomayko: Another Battered American Woman Granted Asylum, This Time in Costa Rica, Because the U.S. Will Not Protect Her or Her Children

CUBA
Cuban student leader arrested

ECUADOR
Ecuador says to meet Chevron over $16 bln lawsuit

'Immune' to cancer: The astonishing dwarf community in Ecuador who could hold the key to a cure

MEXICO
U.S./Mexico Border Violence, Continues … and why it will not cease

Red Cross gets radio threats in Mexico border city

The Failure of the Social Contract

NICARAGUA
Ortega offers asylum to narco-traffickers

PANAMA
Panama creates controversial intelligence force

PARAGUAY
Paraguay leader replaces military

PERU
Fighting for Freedom in Rural Peru: "ALBA Houses" Threaten Democracy

Peru's army on standby as jungle unrest grows

Peru throws out Amazon land laws

PERU SUSPENDS CIVIL LIBERTIES AS 65 INDIGENOUS TRIBES STRUGGLE FOR THEIR LAND

PUERTO RICO
Más acusaciones contra el Gobernador
Visite nuestro sitio especial: Caso de Acevedo Vilá.

Corpse kept upright for 3-day wake in Puerto Rico (Yup, we’ve got pics) Insólito velatorio: Joven muerto es velado de pie en Hato Rey, según lo pidió a sus familiares.

VENEZUELA
Via IBD Blog, Mario Vargas Llosa: "RESTRAINING THE MEDIA BRINGS ABOUT DICTATORSHIP"

Venezuela Cement Takeover Widens Government's Control (Update2)

Chronology of Venezuela 's nationalization of key industries

Venezuela's Weak Strongman: Chávez does not speak for the South American left.

Vampire bats blamed for Venezuela rabies outbreak

Think progress

Are we under a legal military regime in Venezuela?

Where is the revolutionary gold?

Possibly the dumbest sportscaster ever, via The Real Cuba:


AMERICAN POLITICS
Bill Ayers, Barack Obama and Che Guevara

Miami Ethnic Clash May Preview U.S. Where `Minorities' Dominate

Bill Ayers gets the Chavista seal of approval


ENTERTAINMENT
In Brooklyn, Every Palate Is an Island

Special thanks to Eneas, Maggie, Maria and Siggy.

LAST WEEK’S PODCASTS AND POSTS



4.6 tons of cocaine seized in the Caribbean - port of origin: Venezuela
Latin American news media cover the Presidential campaign, and McCain is invisible
Bill Ayers gets the Chavista seal of approval
Puerto Rico’s governor faces new federal charges



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The third Monday in August Carnival of Latin America & the Caribbean

Crossposted at http://faustasblog.com

Welcome to the Carnival of Latin America and the Caribbean. If you would like your posts included in the carnival, please email me: faustaw2 "at" gmail "dot" com.

Today's big story: Chavez announced that the Russian fleet will be visiting Venezuela, that China and Venezuela are launching a satellite on November 1 and opening a Venezuelan space program, and that the private cement manufacturers have run out of time and are now being nationalized. All that, after he got back from crusing Paraguay with Lugo.

Busy guy.

I'll be talking about this in today's podcast at 11AM Eastern.

LATIN AMERICA
Latin America's populist decade may soon end

GAO Drug Control report (PDF file) U.S. outlines frustrations with anti-drug efforts in Latin America
A U.S. report showed improvements in coordinating antidrug efforts in Latin America, but cited corruption and lack of funding as top reasons the effort has not been more effective.

ANTIGUA
Georgia, The Olympics And A Tragedy Goes Unnoticed

ARGENTINA
Mopping up the bonds

Argentina May Raise Taxes on Higher Salaries, Cronista Reports. Meanwhile, La fortuna del matrimonio Kirchner sigue en constante aumento

Campaña por Santa Cruz

BOLIVIA
Bolivia Monstruoso y vergonzoso fraude

Bolivia - Minusválidos – engañados – ultrajados - robados

Evo’s big win
A recall referendum strengthens the socialist president, but fails to knock out his opponents in a still-divided country

BRAZIL
Brazil Passes Maternity Benefit Richer Than Europe's

Drunk Drivers Protest Brazil Crackdown as Traffic Deaths Plunge

Slide show: A selection of stunning views of Brazil, in photographs submitted by the readers of O Globo OnLine

Las andanzas de Lula

CARIBBEAN
BBS Caribbean report (audio), mostly on Olympic sports.

COLOMBIA
Uribe to the Rescue

CUBA
Mary Anastasia O’Grady;s interview of Armado Valladares: Twenty-two years in Castro’s Gulag

Leodan Mangana López and José Luis Rodríguez Chávez, Cuban Political Prisoners of the Week, Aug. 17, 2008

Book Review: Exposing the Real Che Guevara

Castro Blames Bush For War in Georgia-- Pravda Gives Bush the Finger

Le Monde: Cuban Government Scales Repression Against Political Dissidents - Pablo A. Paranagua (French)

Petición y comunicado de intención a la Asamblea Nacional del Poder Popular

Obama family values, abortion, and Dr Oscar Elias Biscet

Cuba redux

Cuba trades giraffes for medical equipment

ECUADOR
Ecuador seeks new deal with foreign drillers

Ecuador is at the mercy of international criminal cartels

GUATEMALA
Guatemala: ¿Sociademocracia, o socialdesgracia?

NICARAGUA
Tidbits out of Nicaragua

Tearing up the rules: Daniel Ortega bans his foes

Fallen leader's aim: Topple Ortega
Unfazed by scandals -- and house arrest -- former President Alemán prepares for a political comeback in Nicaragua amid what he calls a multifaceted crisis

PARAGUAY
Jungle Mom and Hugo Chavez ...Together again!

Paraguay leader embraces failed policies of socialism

Paraguay's president faces huge task

Paraguay's new president pledges to end misery, corruption

Via Lucianne, Hugo Chavez basks in Paraguay President Fernando Lugo's glory
The Venezuelan travels with the new president to spread their leftist message in the countryside

PERU
Lessons from an earthquake: A town rebuilds, slowly

PUERTO RICO
Tropical storm Fay brought drought relief. Details (in Spanish) Alivio para los embalses

URUGUAY
Argentina and Uruguay's tango row

VENEZUELA
Venezuelan Pres. Chavez Reassures Jewish Leaders. My post here

AOTW 8-15-2008 Hugo goes full multi-culti, changes Latin America to Indian America

The Venezuelan 2008 election: update 5 -second predictions-

Update on Maletagate: Venezuelan Government offered to pay US$ 2 million for Antonini's silence

the facts of the case could not be denied, a suitcase full of US$ 800,000 in cash, caught in a country friendly to Chavez, arriving in an airplane chartered by PDVSA and filled with PDVSA employees and Argentinean Government officials.

A 4 años del asesinato de Maritza Ron por pistoleros chavistas

The axis of oil

IMMIGRATION
Governators to protect the borders

ENTERTAINMENT
Bayly interviews his mom (in Spanish)


Special thanks to Eneas, Maggie and Siggy.

The week’s 15 Minutes on Latin America




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Olympic pride: Thank you, Kobe, and Michael

Crossposted at http://faustasblog.com, where this blog is now

With the exception of the men's swimming relay (for which I stayed up last night in spite of not getting much sleep the night before), I haven't been watching the Olympics, so I missed this:

Kobe Bryant Schools Liberal NBC Announcer On Patriotism (my bold print)

Chris Collinsworth: Tell the story when you first got your USA uniform.

Kobe Bryant: Well I had goosebumps and I actually just looked at it for awhile. I just held it there and I laid it across my bed and I just stared at it for a few minutes; just because as a kid growing up this is the ultimate, ultimate in basketball.

Collinsworth: Where does the patriotism come from inside of you? Historically, what is it?

Kobe: Well, you know it’s just our country, it’s... we believe is the greatest country in the world. It has given us so many great opportunities, and it’s just a sense of pride that you have; that you say "You know what? Our country is the best!"

Collinsworth: Is that a ‘cool’ thing to say, in this day and age? That you love your country, and that you’re fighting for the red, white and blue? It seems sort of like a day gone by(?)

Kobe: No, it’s a cool thing for me to say. I feel great about it, and I’m not ashamed to say it. I mean, this is a tremendous honor.

Video at Ms Underestimated has the video, which is also on YouTube, editorial bubbles and all:



However, Q&O sees Collingworth's differently,

To me it seemed like Collinsworth was simply trying to set Kobe up to say how awesome patriotism is, and how much he loves America. If you've watched any Olympics coverage ever, then this is exactly the kind of saccharine backstory pablum fed to the viewers, regardless of who the interviewer is, or which network is providing the coverage. It's a part of the basic formula: controversy, hard luck, sick/dead relative, USA! USA! USA! So I don't think the question was Collinsworth's opinion, but instead a softball for Kobe to tee off on.

Either way, thank you Kobe.

And Chris.
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The WSJ has a terrific slideshow of Michael Phelps winning his 8th gold medal.

All of us middle aged and older remember being excited when Mark Spitz won his seven golds.
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This week's WSJ's Five Best books on historical conquest, selected by David Day:

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This week's shoes:
Merrell Encore

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The second Monday in August Carnival of Latin America and the Caribbean

Crossposted

Welcome to the Carnival of Latin America and the Caribbean. If you would like your posts included, please email me: faustaw2 "at" gmail "dot" com.

This week's big story, which was rather predictable: Yesterday's referendum in Bolivia continues the current status, with Evo Morales still in power and the opposition also in Eastern Bolivia remaining strong:

Bolivians voted Sunday to keep President Evo Morales in office, with unofficial returns on a recall referendum giving him a victory even larger than the one that put him in office more than two years ago.

But despite drawing more than 60 percent of the vote, according to partial counts from polling stations, Morales appears to have not fundamentally changed the prevailing political deadlock in this Andean nation. The governors in eastern Bolivia, who form the powerful opposition to Morales, also held their seats by wide margins, leading to concerns that the voting results could exacerbate tensions here.

The president, vice president and eight of the nine state governors were subject to Sunday's recall vote. Three governors, including Morales opponents from La Paz and Cochabamba, were defeated. Meanwhile, the governor of Santa Cruz, the relatively wealthy lowlands state that has led the fight for more regional autonomy and to remove Morales, was backed by nearly 70 percent of voters, Bolivian television reported.

The departments voting against Morales are: Santa Cruz (70%), Beni (78%), Tarija (62%) and Chuquisaca (61%). As you may recall, last May Santa Cruz, home to 25% of Bolivia's population, voted for autonomy, a result which Mprales dismissed.

Noticias24 has a video (in Spanish) of the final results.

Resultados del referéndum de Bolivia
by noticias24

Official results will be available in 7-10 days.

Morales to push on with Bolivian reforms after winning vote. The Beeb makes it sound as if having opposition in Bolivia is a bad thing, since they claim that the referendum was "designed to heal the country's wounds" - into a Communist country.

As regular readers of this blog know, Evo Morales has the financial and ideological support of Hugo Chavez. Version Final estimates that in the past two years Chavez has sent Morales US$2,912,851,275, including $55 million for the purchase of helicopters and $30 million for improving the Bolivian army ifrastructure. More at the PDF file in Spanish (via el duende de Santa Cruz). Gateway Pundit posts that Venezuela and Iran are to loan Bolivia 225 million dollars to create a state cement company for the construction of roads and houses, ignoring housing shortages in their own countries.

In other Latin American news, Colombia has destroyed a FARC outpost described as "a small city" with 43 houses, where the Colombian military found weapons, electrical plants and documents. The information leading to this strike was provided by two informants.

ARGENTINA
With buddies like these, Argentina and Venezuela are in real trouble.

BOLIVIA Articles prior to the referendum:
Bolivia, Shell Oil reach pipeline compensation deal

Bolivia reached a "friendly" agreement Aug. 8 to compensate Royal Dutch Shell for its stake in the nationalized gas pipeline company Transredes

Morales Says He `Doesn't Fear' Results of Recall Referendum

Bolivia: Se acerca la batalla del jacha uru

Protests Mount as Bolivia Heads for Crucial Vote

BRAZIL
Brazil to Fight Ethanol Tariffs

Paying for the forest: Donations are welcome, even from foreigners

CHILE
Bomb Explodes at Brazilian Embassy in Santiago, EFE Reports

Viento en contra sobre la Concentracion

COLOMBIA
So ... Should Colombia Give the Hostages Back to the Terrorists?

Afghanistan: Colombian soldiers to back Spanish troops

Red (Double) Crossed

FARC Commanders Indicted Over Kidnappings of Americans

CUBA


The picture of the Revolución
This photo is the perfect metaphor for the half-century long Communist dictatorship: the infrastructure, the economy, and Cuban society crumble away while the cult of personality is highlighted in bright letters.

A disident’s return to Cuba




Political prisoners end hunger strike

GUATEMALA
US tourist hacked to death in Guatemala

ECUADOR
Constitutional coup d'etats by Chavez and Correa

Death Threats Received by Archbishop and Human Life International Leader in Ecuador for Opposing "Abortionist" Constitution

Special forces search for FARC

HAITI
George Soros' Testing Ground

MEXICO
Mexico's Poor Forgo Goods as Income From U.S. Drops

Drug cartels feeling the heat
Under unprecedented pressure, Mexico's drug cartels have unleashed epic violence, which some say shows that antidrug measures are working.

The Mexican kidnapping business

NICARAGUA
Vinculos de Daniel Ortega con las FARC

PARAGUAY
The next leftist on the block: Measuring up Fernando Lugo's plans for a misgoverned country

TURKS and CAICOS
Commentary: Are the Turks and Caicos Islands ready to leave the nest?

VENEZUELA
In Enacting Decrees, Chávez Makes New Power Grab

VENEZUELAN BUSINESSMAN TURNS THIEVES INTO EMPLOYEES
Alberto Vollmer's programs for poor squatters and young hoodlums seen as a model for defusing social tensions.

Power Grab
Venezuela's Hugo Chávez launches a new attack on his country's freedoms

S.O.S. Venezuela's Political Disaster - August 7, 2008

What now in Venezuela? How do you fight against a "legal" coup d'etat?

Chavez accused of reviving old reforms

Chavez's way

Chavez continues nationalization drive

About those Russian planes….

AMERICAN POLITICS
A Lousy Latin Lover

PODCAST
I'll be talking about Bolivia in this morning's podcast at 11AM Eastern. The call in number is 646 652-2639 and chat will be open at 10:45AM, please join us!



Special thanks to the Baron, Eneas, Maggie and Siggy.

"WWBCD?", Olympic version

Remeber that this is my back-up blog. Please go to Fausta's blog for regular posts
Blue Star Chronicles is keeping an Olympic eye on things, and sent this:
Pres. Bush declines to slap Misty May-Treanor's bikinied butt

Today, as the busy crowd over at our Olympics blog notes, after an hour's brisk bit of mountain-biking himself, Bush paid another visit to the American athletes, watching the women warm up for softball, regretting the disappearance of that sport from the next Olympics ("It's good for the world to have girls playing softball and these women are going to show young girls how to win") and trying his hand, so to speak, at volleyball.

Bush knuckled off a couple of lobs, but defending gold medalists Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh gave the chief executive some pointers. Then after a good play, in the tradition of female volleyballers, May-Treanor turned, bent over slightly and offered her bikinied rear-end for the 43rd president to slap.

"Mr. President," she said, "want to?"

Want to has nothing to do with it in public life.

As the son of a president, a husband of nearly 37 years, the father of two daughters, the subject of some attempted tabloid exposes and a seasoned political veteran, who is not a female athlete but knows that every camera for a half-mile is trained on him, Bush wisely chose instead to brush his hand across the small of May-Treanor's back. (See photo.)

Darn!

Reuters had to redo their captions.

Now ask yourselves, "What would Bill Clinton do?"

Fortunately for everybody, George W Bush is not Bill Clinton.

And Laura Bush is not Hillary.
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In the Olympic spirit, today's books and shoes:

First, the books:
The WSJ's Five Best Books on the Olympics, selected by ESPN's Jeremy Schaap:

And now the shoes,
Puma Espera, in silver/white/blue.

My experience with the Puma brand is that they run slightly small, so order a 1/2 size larger.

Crossposted

The first Monday in August Carnival of Latin America and the Caribbean

Wecome to the Carnival of Latin America and the Caribbean. If you would like your posts included in next week's Carnival please email me: faustaw2 "at" gmail "dot" com.

The big story of the week: Hugo Chavez enacts 26 laws that became effective immediately even when only the title of the laws (not the laws themselves) were made public. On the same day, he nationalized the Banco de Venezuela which was owned by Spanish Banco de Santander, saying that the bank's deposits will now be in the government's hands.

BLOGS OF THE WEEK
In Spanish: Disidente Cubano

In English: Financial Times Latin American Agenda

ARGENTINA
Waiting for revenge

Rural, final

BOLIVIA
New Paper Suggests Bolivian Conflict Revolves Around Lopsided Control Over Land, Natural Gas

Foley Hoag Wins Key Victory for Government of Bolivia in Investor Dispute over Nationalization of Telephone Company Entel

Carry on voting: Two reports, first from Bolivia and then from Ecuador on the radical socialists who hope that constitutional referendums will transform their countries

BRAZIL
Lula’s lieutenants cozy with FARC (in Spanish)

Brazil's Embraer aims to lead world executive jet market

Elite Squad demonstrates the point of police brutality, says José Padilha: José Padilha’s drama about corrupt cops in Rio has attracted controversy - deservedly so, says our correspondent

Brazil's Economy Lifting Rich And Poor

Brazilian Army to Permanently Occupy Indigenous Territories

Brazil rides wave of growth

COLOMBIA
Mario Vargas Llosa writes (in Spanish) about the rescue: Operacion Jaque

IBD blog:

While bank runs plague Venezuela next door as panicky depositors seek to withdraw their savings before Chavez can get his hands on them, Colombia is an investment magnet, drawing in a record $3.1 billion in the first quarter. If things stay steady, the country should draw at least $12 billion by the end of the year. It would be a 25% rise from 2007's record-setting $9 billion. See what happens when a country cleans up and follows free markets? The inflowing investment is proof of it, a belief in Colombia's future. Viva Colombia!

Colombia's share of world cocaine plummets

Colombia registers foreign investment record

Colombia’s capitalist communes

Good news from Colombia: coke production down, business up

Sainted, or Stockholmed?

Uribe to ask US for longer trafficking sentences

CUBA
A history lesson from Cuba

3rd anniversary of El Café Cubano…sad day

fidel castro says that Edmonton is a "dumping ground"

Don’t Get Too Excited About Cuban ‘Reforms’

Big Brother’s Shadow: Raul Castro preaches patience

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
Dominicans' role in hunt for Alzheimer's cure

ECUADOR
Ecuador to shut down U.S. anti-drug operation

From the Tehran Times, Ecuador opens trade office in Iran

Ecuador’s Path to Dictatorship Continues Unchecked, ATPDEA Extension Should be Conditioned

Ecuador sticks with US dollar as currency

The good life for the president and for lawyers

GUATEMALA
Is is true what they say about Muso?

HAITI
Aristide’s American profiteers, especially at Fusion, whose board at the time (during the Clinton administration) “read like the who’s who of Democratic politics”

The chairman of Fusion's board was and still is Marvin Rosen, who was the finance chairman of the Democratic National Committee during the 1996 Clinton fund-raising scandals. During the late 1990s, Joseph P. Kennedy II and Thomas "Mack" McLarty, both prominent Democrats, were on the board. Fusion has previously denied any wrongdoing.

The Carnival continues later this morning.