El retorno de paisanos en esta temporada vacacional podría caer hasta en un 50%, debido a que les sale muy caro volver a pagarles a los "polleros" para ingresar nuevamente a Estados Unidos, afirmó Alfredo Castañeda, líder de la Unión de Productores Agropecuarios Mexiquenses.Family friendly and effective, no? Anyway, teaching the Progressive Era this week in class and ran across Teddy Roosevelt's policy on the border. The four border agents that patrolled the border (from San Diego to South Texas) were ordered to keep out Syrians, Greeks, Japanese, and Chinese. Theodore Roosevelt declared the border: “Closed to all but Citizens of Mexico.” Texas students were outraged - I think especially so now that Glenn Beck has given the go ahead to hate TR.
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Frontera Santa
Monday, March 29, 2010
Argentines Demonstrate... and Demonstrate
For more on labor and export booms, see Charle's Bergquist's oldie-but-goodie, Labor in Latin America. Meat workers were absolutely linked with Peronismo in the day, but I'm not so sure Kirchner's neo-Peronism is being so agressive (NASDAQ reports sound like Kirchner is trying to get labor unions to play ball with business).
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Latino Churches to Parishoners: Take the Census
The paper quotes Los Angeles politicians on the consequences of not participating in the census:
On Tuesday, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa estimated that the city of Los Angeles has lost about $206 million in federal and state funding over the last decade because 76,800 Angelenos were not counted in 2000. Similarly, Los Angeles Councilmember Paul Krekorian (CD-2) said that for every 100 people that are not counted in this Census, over one million dollars could be lost that could be used to fund healthcare, child services, for community development block grants and for education.The churches, however, are standing in opposition to Latino activist organizations (including one massive coalition of Latino churches) who are advocating a boycott of the census. The National Coalition of Latino Clergy & Christian Leaders (CONLAMIC) is urging immigrants to boycott the census until immigration law is reformed. Clearly, pastors on the ground in US America's most Latin American city disagree with that assessment.
Monday, March 22, 2010
Reading Mexico: Area Specialists Needed
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
The OTHER San Patricio
Tucked away just north of Corpus Christi, Texas are two communities founded by Irish immigrants to Mexico. One is Refugio, Texas, (pronounced by the locals as Refirio) and the other is San Patricio - located in San Patricio county and sporting such street names as McGloin and McMullen. Brought to Mexico by the promise of land, they intermarried with powerful Tejano families. The Irish settlers hopped quickly on the Texas Revolution band wagon, supplying food to the troops and coming out the whole squabble as powerful land owners in the new republic. And, unlike their more famed and not-so-Irish cousins in the San Patricio Brigade (which were as much Protestant, Scotch, and German as Irish and Catholic), these Irish Mexicans have been fairly well ignored in history. My student reports that not even the local history museums - as prolific in Texas as In-n-Out burger joints in California - carry much information on these Irish Dons. Looking forward to seeing her work with the papers of several of these families as well as land records, etc. Check out an annotated bibliography of the Irish in Mexico here.
Monday, March 15, 2010
Students Drawn by Cheap Booze - And That is Exactly the Problem
The secret to luring American college students? Cheap,all-inclusive package deals including all-you-can-drink.
Let’s face it, the Spring Break bottom line is booze, beaches and sun at the cheapest price possible. If hotels and airlines can get together to make a cheap package where a college student never has to pay for a drink, that package becomes pretty appealing. And Mexico knows that.
About 25,000 students from the United States and Canada are expected to lie on Mexico’s beaches, drink and party, up from 20,000 last year.
And that, folks, is the problem. Spoiled children of the middle class demand their thrill without having to deal with the cost - exactly the parable of the narcotics war. US Americans want their buzz, and Mexico pays the price via the violence.
Monday, March 8, 2010
Violence and Drug Crime to Fall in Mexico: Texans to Stay Home
Latin Americans, on the other hand, are perfectly safe when they come to Texas. Just ask Jaqueline Saburido (below) who had a great time in Austin, TX.
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Memory, Wilderness, Recreation, and Indigenous Rights (and Rites)
Read the rest of the story... .WEST GLACIER – They used to dance here.
Back before the tourists and the motor inns, before roadways and boat ramps, before blacktop and gift shops and bus stops.
They danced in the winter, when the year was young, to the song of water, the song of chickadee, nuthatch, wren and raven. They danced for health and wealth and for food, danced the circular trail of the seasons to come, danced songs given by spirit helpers, at the beginning.
“For 10,000 generations, the Kootenai people danced there, and it became known as The Place Where They Dance,” said Vernon Finley. “It was our home.”
Now, that place is known as Apgar, on the shores of an ancient waterway known today as Lake McDonald, shining like a sapphire in a mountain vastness known as Glacier National Park.
Monday, March 1, 2010
Moving on Correa? Terrorism, Indians, and Oil
Ok, from reading the WSJ it sounds like the Indians are looking to use their resources as they will ala Milton Friedman and these commies from Quito are swooping in and regulating the heck out of their resources. No details, and just a small quote. Let's see another take on that... .After two days of meetings, CONAIE heads blamed the government for the breakdown of the talks, which started in October, after the death of a member of the Shuar native in a clash between police and protesters amid demonstrations against a proposed law regulating water and mining and oil activity on their lands.
Delfin Tenesaca, head of the Ecuadorian Confederation of Kichwa Nationalities, or ECUARUNARI, a CONAIE arm, told Dow Jones Newswires that indigenous people "will start to implement a plurinational state with our own rules in each of our communities."
The Latin American Herald Tribune which appears to quote extensively from actual CONAIE members has a little different POV.
In the assembly, Conaie denounced the government “for not modifying the colonial state and continuing to strengthen the neo-liberal and capitalist system, betraying the Ecuadorian people,” Santi said. “Neo-liberal” is in Latin America a term used as a slur by leftists to describe advocates of free-market, laissez-faire economic policies.That doesn't sound like what the WSJ says or at least intimates. The CONAIE are upset because Correa isn't EZLN enough. But Chevron and the WSJ are pretty sure he's the bad guy.
What else happened earlier in the month? Ecuador was placed on financial terrorist list by the French. And earlier this year? Ecuador deepened ties to both China and Iran and ended leases on US military bases. When the only reporting I really see in the mainstream on this supposed coming revolution in Ecuador is on the pages of the Wall Street Journal after Ecuador has decided to screw the US military and Chevron, I have to encourage Correa to not fly *cough*(Torrijos)*cough* or take any cigars from strangers.
PLEASE, follow the Chevron link to see what sort of power they are throwing behind a lawsuit in Ecuador. Not eye-opening, but certainly position affirming.