After I graduated high school, my parents sent me to a nice private university in Colombia. A year later I decided the distance was too much to bear and I went back to my hometown, applied to enroll in a public university (one of the best in the country) and that’s where I went for 5 years. Public schools in Colombia (and many Latin-American countries) are well known for student protests, sometimes marked by violence (I had my share of escaping gun shots back in 1994, but that’s a story for another day). Anyway, many days of classes were interrupted by protests, assemblies, students demanding a better education, better cafeteria lunches, better prices, etc. A semester even got cancelled, and everyone had to graduate months later than they were supposed to. You learn to live with it; you may not be part of it, but it becomes a second nature.

I remember very well one day when one of my classmates told me I should go to protest because they were going to increase the price of lunches in the public cafeteria. At that time I didn’t understand why I would have to risk someone hitting me in the head with a rock when I really didn’t eat lunch there. At 18-19 I wasn’t fully aware that there were people who could hardly pay for their food and who struggled every single day, travelling long distances, so they could go to school. If they had money to pay for transportation, they probably couldn’t afford lunch. And there I was, kinda privileged girl who MADE the choice to go to a public university, but who lived like she was going to a private one. My friend called me an oligarch, I laughed at him and continued studying for a test while the protest went on outside.

Did I ever make part of a protest? No, not really, except against the war in Montreal, on a very cold winter morning and against the FARC when we lived in KC. Would I attend a school protest now? ABSOLUTELY. Last week, thousands of students in Colombia went out on the streets after weeks of protests, to ask the government not to make an educational reform that would greatly affect public education and people who rely on it. They said what they wanted, they occupied the streets of the major cities in Colombia, nobody was attacked with rubber bullets, water hoses or tear gas. At the end of the day the president said “OK, we won’t do it.” It worked, the protest worked, and nobody took that right from the students, to express their needs and tell the government “DO SOMETHING ALREADY!”

As I have matured, I understand the needs of many people and the intricacies of this world a little bit better. I am not blind to suffering and injustice, and I’m not blind to the reasons behind the Occupy Wall Street movement. However, my husband and I have been blessed and shielded during the current economic crisis in the U.S. We both have our jobs, we can put food on our table with no problem, our house is not going on foreclosure, etc. So, it’s hard to have perspective; and while I would never apologize for not struggling, in my head it is VERY clear that the inequality of this country’s social classes is abysmal. There we have the very rich 1%, getting richer every day and the 99% having to conform to whatever the powerful say. Does it sound fair to you? IT ISN’T.

And now we have city governments telling their people they have no right to protest? That it is unsanitary to occupy a place for so long, that it is an inconvenience to have a bunch of “hippies” soiling the streets. Don’t they see that these “hippies” are well-educated people who are tired of getting doors slammed on their faces no matter how much they busted their asses getting prepared to face the world? Instead of throwing people out, why don’t city governments help the protesters to set up peaceful protests? After all, isn’t that a human right? Yes, a human right that is being violated… in the LAND OF THE FREE.

Discuss?

The death of Osama bin Laden has brought memories of that December day when Pablo Escobar was finally captured/killed. Do I feel the same? Not really, but my first reaction was to wonder why people think this is a moment to “celebrate” when death is something so ugly and it’s exactly what has caused so much pain. And then I feel guilty because I’m not blind the horrors Osama bin Laden subjected the USA to, yet I look at the celebration as something just as vengeful and hateful as what he did… the whole eye for an eye. It makes me realize that violence and hate can only be fought against with the same and it breaks my heart to see what humanity has come to.

I’ve never agreed with the war. I don’t understand why people think this is a “happy” moment while all it brings is memories of that very dark day in 2001 and no real relief for those who lost someone (because killing the killer doesn’t bring the killed to life). To me, it is bitter and it shows the darkness of human nature as its best, what we can become and how far we are from peace. Call me naive, but I’m not the one with the sentiment. An article on Salon.com says it clearly: [...] We have been rightly disgusted — not only because they are lauding the death of our innocents, but because, more fundamentally, they are celebrating death itself. That latter part had been anathema to a nation built on the presumption that life is an “unalienable right.”

I don’t think this is time for cheering but a time to make peace with what has happened and to be relieved because justice has been done. A time to reflect and time to say thanks, not only to the US armed forces, but to every group of men and women who fight for our freedom all around the world. Because having to decide that death is the right thing must be pretty darn hard.

Another pretty interesting article in the Hufftington Post: The Psychology of Revenge: Why We Should Stop Celebrating Osama Bin Laden’s Death — “The bottom line is that we cannot even begin to have peace until we stop the cycle of jubilation over acts of violence.”

I know Fidel Castro is one of those people who bring shame to the human race, but I don’t believe his praise makes Barack Obama a good or bad person. Fidel Castro is, after all, another guy with an opinion. And I can clearly see why he would admire somebody who represents everything that is contrary to the previous U.S. administration. Isn’t that why Obama won the election in the first place? Yes, change was needed and wanted by the people who decided.

I understand the bitterness of the opposition is the same bitterness people who didn’t want Bush in the White House felt. It’s the same with every beginning of a new presidency; some people won’t agree with it, and will try to bring their own reasons why. It’s called freedom of speech, but sometimes I wonder if people actually read or watch the news to know what’s really going on.

I don’t think the world is blind. George W. Bush got on that helicopter and left behind a trail of deceit. An endless war that has cost the U.S. trillions of dollars. An economy crisis that is costing thousands of people their jobs, including some of my friends. He is, by all means (and I’m not saying it, the media says it), the most unpopular president in the history of the U.S.

So what is there to miss about the previous government? Or how are we supposed to believe that another Republican leader would’ve made things better? People wanted change, and they got it. I know what it feels like when a president has messed up big time and you want change. Alvaro Uribe assumed the presidency of Colombia exactly because of the same reason, and fortunately we have not been disappointed. That doesn’t mean, however, that he hasn’t been criticized. I for one am not blind to recognize he’s made mistakes, and I don’t think another re-election should be in his future plans.

To believe that it is Obama’s task to fix the problems of this country during his first week in office is idiotic. Give the guy a chance to prove every single American he can bring something good to this nation. From what I read this morning, he’s already gone from words to actions. He has to clean a big mess, and anyone who can’t see it hasn’t lived on this planet during the last 8 years.

What happened, I ask.
I ask what happened in the world today.
All I see in the newspapers is the same horror stories.
Lives that fade without reason.

Why is there so much war?
Why is there so much pain?

What is it, what is it, I ask.
Is there maybe no love anymore?
And instead of hugging each other,
we kill each other and we forget how to love.

What is it, I ask.
People are killing each other,
People are dying,
And I’m here still trying to understand.

What happens with the world, that is so filthy
I ask what happens with the world
Which is so absurd, which is so glum

What’s going on that nothing good happens?
And peace never walks by…

After coming back from spending a wonderful afternoon with Spyder and Kanga I checked a few weblogs and Daniel’s last post made me think about all the craziness. We heard that people got killed today during the Black Friday shopping. That is the most insane thing I’ve heard, not only because I find it stupid to go out on such a day, but because people are so into their materialistic frenzy, they simply don’t think.

No, they don’t think about what’s been happening in India during the last couple of days. Nobody gives a crap, nobody is connected with the rest of the world. We’re all here, in our little corner, safe from everything else, worried about how much turkey we were going to get for Thanksgiving, or how much money we would save to go crazy with gifts.

So yes… ¿Qué pasa con el mundo?

This weekend I had the opportunity to hear a lot about politics in the 8-hour trip to and from Chicago. POTUS 08 was on our XM radio most of the time because John likes to be informed about what’s going on. And then I had to hear all of the candidates, their vice-president options and their wives. I’ve always said I don’t dislike John McCain, but after hearing his warmongering discourse and how he tries to attack his opponent in every single sentence that comes out of his mouth, I was more than disappointed.

And what I heard is probably just a tiny part of what the presidential candidates have to offer, but Joe Biden’s rally discourse in Colorado was refreshing. And Michelle Obama’s discourse in Ohio was directed to the real people who make this country without having to criticize McCain’s plan once. Sarah Palin is a joke, I am convinced, and McCain’s voice is simply annoying to my ears –and his fight, fight, fight lines make me sick.

I hope this country will seek the change it needs. I hope the people of this country will choose their leader wisely. But most of all, I hope this negative cloud goes away.

But now, with the election coming soon, politics is all I read about. And people spend hours, brain cells and keystrokes making their views valid, sharing opinions and, in some cases, making asses of themselves when not able to express their views as civilized human beings. Suddenly everyone is an expert in government matters, and how dare you say otherwise! It happens to the best of us; it has happened to me.

My husband remembers when I used this weblog as some kind of political outlet. Now that I think about it, I wasn’t really discussing politics but policies… those of the U.S. government back in 2001-2003 when all hell broke loose and this country ended up in a stupid war that has claimed thousands of lives and hasn’t ended. I wasn’t even living here, and I was mostly taking a personal side about what I thought George W. Bush was getting into. But politics? I know zilch about it. I simply was, and I still am, against the war.

So this week with John McCain and his Palin vice-president… it’s been entertaining. I never know who to give credit to. People seem to have taken that woman’s private life as some kind of soap-opera. Do I know about her policies? Heck, no! I should probably get informed about it all. And then there is the Republicans calling the Democrats idiots, you should know better, you are wrong, get your facts right, etc. And vice-versa.

And in all truth, who has the facts right? Certainly not us, mere citizens (or residents). In the end, we are just pieces of the puzzle, and I thank God for freedom of speech so we can somehow guide each other in this darkness politics is. What drives me nuts is the “I’m holier than thou” attitude some people take when having different opinions. But that’s the human kind for you.

I should probably spend more time learning about what these two men who are running for president have on their agendas. The problem is, there are too many sources… and I can’t even vote.

What a bunch of crap! That is what they have been saying for the past 40 years. And they continue with their rampage of violence and abuse toward Colombians. And then they add they want to be in a meeting with Nicaragua’s president, Daniel Ortega? Give me a break!

I think we’ve had enough with the circus that Chávez and Correa have put up. One of them has come to his senses (¡Buena esa, Hugo!), and the other one is still throwing tantrums. And now the Farc want to bring another clown in? I understand they do not recognize the Colombian government, but this is not about politics anymore. They are pretty much weakened and without ideals. This is about the 42 millions of people who are claiming for peace.

I think a group that has done nothing but torture my people has no saying in how negotiations will be. They need to put an end to it NOW.

Declara:

1. Su felicitación al pueblo y al Gobierno de Colombia, por la exitosa operación de rescate que, respetando plenamente los derechos humanos, condujo a la libertad de 12 ciudadanos colombianos y 3 ciudadanos de Estados Unidos de América que se encontraban secuestrados por las Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (FARC), la mayoría de ellos por más de 10 años.

2. Que el secuestro es un crimen atroz y urge a las FARC y a todos los grupos al margen de la ley en Colombia a la liberación inmediata y sin condiciones, sanos y salvos, de todas las personas que mantienen secuestradas, exhortando a las FARC a renunciar a la violencia y a establecer un diálogo con las autoridades colombianas.

3. Su respaldo a los esfuerzos del Estado colombiano para el logro definitivo de la paz y la seguridad de ese país, esfuerzos que deberán realizarse con pleno respeto de los derechos humanos, el Derecho Internacional Humanitario y el Derecho Internacional”

The rescue of Ingrid Betancourt and other 14 people who were kept hostages by FARC, is not only about their freedom, but the freedom of a whole country. During decades, Colombians have been victims of a Marxist guerrilla that was never clear about its purposes. What started as a fight for the equal rights of people, became a war against people. Later, the guerrillas became part of the ugly drug market, and their signature included death, kidnappings, and other forms of violence that made Colombia well known around the world, not exactly for the coffee.

Today, the Colombian army triumphed against the rebels; a group that shows every clear sign of disintegration, thanks to a government that has shown no mercy, and to the decay of the rebel leaders whose ideals weren’t ideal. The special forces have rescued an important political leader who became the symbol of the victims of kidnapping, and who gave Colombia the chance to be heard all around the world. To hear Ingrid Betancourt tell the story of how she was chained when night fell on the jungle makes you want to cry. At the same time, seeing her alive and well after all these years gives our country a new hope, and new dreams.

To the armed forces of Colombia, my respect. To the president of Colombia, my admiration. To Ingrid Betancourt and the rescued victims, my best wishes. To my country, ALL MY LOVE.

See Yahoo! News for complete coverage.