Saturday, October 30, 2004
Hello all, Raegan and I still have our heads in the clouds in the hi-lands of the Dominican Republic. We've been keeping ourselves busy doing some work related to the coffee farm and some community-building work in the town where the farm is located. I'll get more specific at a later date, I promise. Once or twice a week we head down the mountain to the town of Jarabacoa to remember what pavement looks like, what products can be bought and to have a little taste of the outside world, usually via the WWW. Next Wednesday will be our next taste, but before heading to the internet cafe, I intend to buy a bottle of fine Dominican rum and some Coca Cola -- limes can be easily plucked on the farm -- for either some post news-gourge celebration or mourning.
I know I'm preaching to the choir, but I must....
We can all remember when we were in school and some of our peers ran for the student council. We would like to think that the shy-but-nice/smart candidate would be victorious, but we knew that the elected would always be the most motivated or the most popular candidate (and in rare circumstances both). It just wasn't fair I remember thinking. And maybe it isn't, but popularity is important. It's important for a politician to have people like you, to be on your side. And the student-reps who used their popularity to their advantage got things done. Ultimately, as divided as our country is now, and likely will be for some time, either Bush or Kerry will be deemed a more popular figure next Tuesday. It's no secret who I like, but I don't think many Americans understand (or perhaps care) what the world thinks.
Given Bush's persistent use of his words on the stump, apparently Kerry made a mistake when he suggested in the last debate that there ought to be some sort of "global test" before we send our troops abroad to wage war. I don't think that he was suggesting that we should allow, say the Dominican Republic, or god forbid, FRANCE (!) to veto decisions related to our national security. But I do think he meant that the there should be some percentage of the world that doesn't think we're full of it. Afterall, we want people to like us, dont we? Well folks, from my informal survey of many people and places in the world over the last 9 months, people think we're full of it and they don't like us.
Since we left the US, we have met one man who was in favor of G.W. Bush. He was a Chilean businessman and like many in our world he was concerned with one issue. For him it was a free-trade agreement with Chile that Bush signed into law. Most take a broader view, and this exceptional man is not what's important here. I should be more clear: we haven't met anyone on this trip who sits on the fence, this man was the only person we've met abroad who was not a fervent Bush hater. People are truly afraid of Bush. They don't trust him and aren't sure if they should trust American citizens because of him.
Many people we've met have reasured us: "there is no way he can be re-elected." They cannot and do not understand how he could be at all popular in the US concidering how unpopular he is their communities, countries, regions, continents. (I don't either). An op-ed article I read in the conservative Santo Domingo daily yesterday characterized Bush supporters as ignorant and provincial people who want America to be an empirical power that can bomb who it wants when it wants. I'd hate to read what the liberal daily says. The article went on to lambaste American democracy in light of the fact that 50% of eligible voters will abstain, and suggested that a Bush victory (given his unpopularity and our absenteeism) would be sure sign of electoral fraud. Woah! The point I'm trying to make is: whether you believe this to be true or not, it's disturbing that a far-from-fringe foreign paper would put out such unsavory ideas about our people, country, and government. (And these ideas aren't just relegated to the developing world, aparently a London daily suggested yesterday that America needs a Lee Harvey Oswald reincarnate) Yes I'm concerned about these opinions, and so should you be. From the people I've met on the road (and no they're not all dreaded, traveling WMF protesters -- they're from many walks) I've gathered that these ideas are more deeply embeded we'd like to think.
(And guess what folks? Many people we've met who would like to immigrate for a better life don't want in. If they had their choice, they want Canada, or Italy, etc, etc.)
These ideas are far from isolated to this paper, to this country. It has been suggested by more than one person, that the current divide we (Raegan and I) have enjoyed on this trip between government and people is very fragile. That is: hatred of Bush and our governtment may not stay merely that, and could easily become hatred of Americans in general if...
So where did I begin? Popularity. We wish it wasn't everything, but it's damn important. And currently, our standing, and thus our power in the world depends on it more than we think.
But the election sure is close and I'm trying to be optimistic. Before checking the news on Wednesday I think I'll buy one of those famous Dominican cigars too. Have a happy halloween, and don't forget to vote!
Comments-[ comments.]
I know I'm preaching to the choir, but I must....
We can all remember when we were in school and some of our peers ran for the student council. We would like to think that the shy-but-nice/smart candidate would be victorious, but we knew that the elected would always be the most motivated or the most popular candidate (and in rare circumstances both). It just wasn't fair I remember thinking. And maybe it isn't, but popularity is important. It's important for a politician to have people like you, to be on your side. And the student-reps who used their popularity to their advantage got things done. Ultimately, as divided as our country is now, and likely will be for some time, either Bush or Kerry will be deemed a more popular figure next Tuesday. It's no secret who I like, but I don't think many Americans understand (or perhaps care) what the world thinks.
Given Bush's persistent use of his words on the stump, apparently Kerry made a mistake when he suggested in the last debate that there ought to be some sort of "global test" before we send our troops abroad to wage war. I don't think that he was suggesting that we should allow, say the Dominican Republic, or god forbid, FRANCE (!) to veto decisions related to our national security. But I do think he meant that the there should be some percentage of the world that doesn't think we're full of it. Afterall, we want people to like us, dont we? Well folks, from my informal survey of many people and places in the world over the last 9 months, people think we're full of it and they don't like us.
Since we left the US, we have met one man who was in favor of G.W. Bush. He was a Chilean businessman and like many in our world he was concerned with one issue. For him it was a free-trade agreement with Chile that Bush signed into law. Most take a broader view, and this exceptional man is not what's important here. I should be more clear: we haven't met anyone on this trip who sits on the fence, this man was the only person we've met abroad who was not a fervent Bush hater. People are truly afraid of Bush. They don't trust him and aren't sure if they should trust American citizens because of him.
Many people we've met have reasured us: "there is no way he can be re-elected." They cannot and do not understand how he could be at all popular in the US concidering how unpopular he is their communities, countries, regions, continents. (I don't either). An op-ed article I read in the conservative Santo Domingo daily yesterday characterized Bush supporters as ignorant and provincial people who want America to be an empirical power that can bomb who it wants when it wants. I'd hate to read what the liberal daily says. The article went on to lambaste American democracy in light of the fact that 50% of eligible voters will abstain, and suggested that a Bush victory (given his unpopularity and our absenteeism) would be sure sign of electoral fraud. Woah! The point I'm trying to make is: whether you believe this to be true or not, it's disturbing that a far-from-fringe foreign paper would put out such unsavory ideas about our people, country, and government. (And these ideas aren't just relegated to the developing world, aparently a London daily suggested yesterday that America needs a Lee Harvey Oswald reincarnate) Yes I'm concerned about these opinions, and so should you be. From the people I've met on the road (and no they're not all dreaded, traveling WMF protesters -- they're from many walks) I've gathered that these ideas are more deeply embeded we'd like to think.
(And guess what folks? Many people we've met who would like to immigrate for a better life don't want in. If they had their choice, they want Canada, or Italy, etc, etc.)
These ideas are far from isolated to this paper, to this country. It has been suggested by more than one person, that the current divide we (Raegan and I) have enjoyed on this trip between government and people is very fragile. That is: hatred of Bush and our governtment may not stay merely that, and could easily become hatred of Americans in general if...
So where did I begin? Popularity. We wish it wasn't everything, but it's damn important. And currently, our standing, and thus our power in the world depends on it more than we think.
But the election sure is close and I'm trying to be optimistic. Before checking the news on Wednesday I think I'll buy one of those famous Dominican cigars too. Have a happy halloween, and don't forget to vote!
Monday, October 11, 2004
Raegan and I safely landed in Panama City a few days ago. Immediately it became apparent that despite sharring many linguistic and historical ties with South America, we are on a different continent. First impression: how could the air possibly be more humid? We´re adjusting. Next was getting US greenbacks out of the ATM. What bland and boring money we have, but to this too we are adjusting. I don´t know if we´ll ever full adjust to the Quiznos Subs, Payless Shoe Source, KFC, TGI Fridays, Dominos, etc, etc... we didn´t realy miss those places so much. But we were really excited to be able to buy chips, salsa, and cheddar cheese at the 24hr Supermarket, things we really missed, and to be able to take refuge from the heat in a movie at the mall. Raegan and I are a little ashamed of ourselves on this account, and I´m not sure how we´ll feel when we get back to the U.S., but for now, malls are great.
Speaking of great, we had a terrific time in Brazil and our last few days in Sao Paolo was the cherry on top. We met Euduardo, who goes by Duda, in Buenos Aires and he invited us to stay at his house. He lives with two older men; Mosa who teaches languages (Portugese, English, Spanish and French), and Jean-Francois who has a few small businesses (Jeweler and purveyor of fine chocolates). Duda was nice enough to get us at the bus station at 6am before heading off to work, and Francois and Mosa oppened their home to us as if we were old friends. They´ll likely never know how nice it was for us to be in a home instead of a hostal.
Our last night in S.America was well commemorated. Raegan and I cooked dinner for our hosts and were joined by our traveler pal Jonathan. After dinner we went to a rock bar where the multicultural audience was singing Ozzie Osborn lyrics into their beer bottles. That sentence can´t explain the place, but at the time I felt like I had found the heart of the city. Sao Paolo is a really interesting place, and when we took our seats on the plane the next morning we had mixed feelings. Like Brazil and the rest of South America we felt that our time was too short to have seen and done all that we wanted to, but that we had given it a good run. In the last 9 months in S.America we tried very hard to feel and understand a place through our experiences and at times, like our last night in Sao Paolo, we succeeded.
Other thoughts on Brazil as a whole:
You need a guide to get where you want to go because "it´s dangerous." Like the location of a bus station compared to a Brazilian town, or the location of your next destination in this huge country: far from it. The earth is red, the land is green and the skies are blue. In mid-day the cobblestone streets are so hot the dogs scratch their ears standing up, and the men wash their shorts and bodies simutaniously in the watering hole. To battle the heat, find shade and have a beer or coconut chilled scientificly to fractions of a degree above freezing, or a mango or a papaya or a guava or a...... Have one anytime. Or sit in the hammock under a banana leaf, or under a fan, and watch the children play with their invented toys, the shirless men, the men in suits on phones, the young women in tight clothes (tighter when pregnant) or the old women carrying loads home on thier heads. Flip, flop, flip, flop. Smiles. Hear the music blasting from the speakers on the car, the election is coming, or from the radio, the guitar on the porch, the drum on the beach, or the voice walking to her job designing airplanes. Hear nothing: never. At night step up to the bar on, in, around the plaza and meet your friends of every color. Dance. Tommorow: work and dance again and know that you are tropical paridise, a country of 200 million souls, and a world power...who else is?
Here are pictures!
Comments-[ comments.]
Speaking of great, we had a terrific time in Brazil and our last few days in Sao Paolo was the cherry on top. We met Euduardo, who goes by Duda, in Buenos Aires and he invited us to stay at his house. He lives with two older men; Mosa who teaches languages (Portugese, English, Spanish and French), and Jean-Francois who has a few small businesses (Jeweler and purveyor of fine chocolates). Duda was nice enough to get us at the bus station at 6am before heading off to work, and Francois and Mosa oppened their home to us as if we were old friends. They´ll likely never know how nice it was for us to be in a home instead of a hostal.
Our last night in S.America was well commemorated. Raegan and I cooked dinner for our hosts and were joined by our traveler pal Jonathan. After dinner we went to a rock bar where the multicultural audience was singing Ozzie Osborn lyrics into their beer bottles. That sentence can´t explain the place, but at the time I felt like I had found the heart of the city. Sao Paolo is a really interesting place, and when we took our seats on the plane the next morning we had mixed feelings. Like Brazil and the rest of South America we felt that our time was too short to have seen and done all that we wanted to, but that we had given it a good run. In the last 9 months in S.America we tried very hard to feel and understand a place through our experiences and at times, like our last night in Sao Paolo, we succeeded.
Other thoughts on Brazil as a whole:
You need a guide to get where you want to go because "it´s dangerous." Like the location of a bus station compared to a Brazilian town, or the location of your next destination in this huge country: far from it. The earth is red, the land is green and the skies are blue. In mid-day the cobblestone streets are so hot the dogs scratch their ears standing up, and the men wash their shorts and bodies simutaniously in the watering hole. To battle the heat, find shade and have a beer or coconut chilled scientificly to fractions of a degree above freezing, or a mango or a papaya or a guava or a...... Have one anytime. Or sit in the hammock under a banana leaf, or under a fan, and watch the children play with their invented toys, the shirless men, the men in suits on phones, the young women in tight clothes (tighter when pregnant) or the old women carrying loads home on thier heads. Flip, flop, flip, flop. Smiles. Hear the music blasting from the speakers on the car, the election is coming, or from the radio, the guitar on the porch, the drum on the beach, or the voice walking to her job designing airplanes. Hear nothing: never. At night step up to the bar on, in, around the plaza and meet your friends of every color. Dance. Tommorow: work and dance again and know that you are tropical paridise, a country of 200 million souls, and a world power...who else is?
Here are pictures!
