Bush extols "democracy" for Latin America, code for "capitalism" and "free trade"

in brazil's capital, brasilia, today...

President Bush on Sunday urged Latin Americans to reject efforts to reverse democratic progress in the region while choosing representative governments and building constructive ties with other nations.

latin america already has grass-roots democracy that can't be beat... when things are going bad for these folks (and we don't know the real meaning of bad here in the u.s.), they rise up and toss their leaders out, not only out the door but often right out of the country...

"Ensuring social justice for the Americas requires choosing between two competing visions," Bush said in the Brazilian capital.

One of those choices, he said, "offers a vision of hope. It is founded on representative government, integration into the world community and a faith in the transformative power of freedom in individual lives."

The other, Bush said, "seeks to roll back the democratic process of the past two decades by playing to fear, pitting neighbor against neighbor and blaming others for their own failures to provide for the people."

that last statement is a flat-out lie... what they're desperately trying to do in latin america is to find a balance between really and truly respecting and honoring the lower rungs of society (who are often the ones who are doing the work of the country) and allowing businesses and the private sector freedom to prosper... bush tips his hand when he says things like this...

Bush also continued his push for a free-trade zone for the Western Hemisphere, stretching from Alaska to Argentina. The president argues that more trade between the United States, Brazil and other nations in the Western Hemisphere would help create jobs, spread democratic values and lift people out of poverty.

what he's really after is an unfettered open season for u.s. corporations in a very large market... you notice that the countries that are most vocal in opposition to ftaa are the mercosur countries (see below) - argentina, brazil, uruguay and paraguay - who are working to make a success of their own free trade area, a critical item virtually unmentioned in the u.s. media...



(from wikipedia...)

Mercosur or Mercosul (Spanish: Mercado Común del Sur, Portuguese: Mercado Comum do Sul, English: Southern Common Market) is a trading zone between Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay, founded in 1991 by the Treaty of Asunción, which was later amended and updated by the 1995 Treaty of Ouro Preto. Its purpose is to promote free trade and the fluid movement of goods, peoples, and currency. Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico and Peru have associate member status. It has a south and middle America integration vocation.

Some South Americans see Mercosur as giving the capability to combine resources to balance the activities of other global economic powers, perhaps especially the United States and the European Union. The organization could also potentially pre-empt the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA).

yep... indeed...

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