letters

The readers' concerns

Shopping tourism

Your article on tourism statistics was most interesting but I believe that you neglected to quantify “shopping tourism.” It was impressive to see the number of foreigners at the shopping malls and even Central Avenue. This appears to parallel the quantity of “high fashion” stores that market products of international fame at absurd prices. I would appreciate your comments on this phenomenon.

Alex Psychoyos

Suggestions

Keep up the good work.

I saw a critique the other day where the reader stated that your paper was becoming more of a US paper than a local Panamanian paper.

Yes, there is more US news than when the paper started, yet the bulk of the paper remains local news.

As a reader of your paper; here are some recommendations I would like to present to you for consideration in incorporating it into your paper.

1. The personal statement

There is a writing concept titled "the personal statement." It relates to life experience acquired over the years in one's professional life. It is also used to describe one's qualification for a professional position one aspire to. You can find a template for one on the Internet, or I will send you one.

2. Linguistic anthropology

Pasa dala... Pasa una cuara....

Bigotry and lies from the Republicans

Who is Barack Obama?

Probable US presidential candidate, Barack Hussein Obama was born in Honolulu, Hawaii, to Barack Hussein Obama, Sr., a black MUSLIM from Nyangoma-Kogel, Kenya and Ann Dunham, a white Athiest from Wichita, Kansas.

Obama's parents met at the University of Hawaii. When Obama was two years old, his parents divorced. His father returned to Kenya. His mother then married Lolo Soetoro, a RADICAL Muslim from Indonesia.

When Obama was 6 years old, the family relocated to Indonesia. Obama attended a MUSLIM school in Jakarta. He also spent two years in a Catholic school.

Obama takes great care to conceal the fact that he is a Muslim. He is quick to point out that, "He was once a Muslim, but that he also attended Catholic school."

Obama's political handlers are attempting to make it appear that that he is not a radical.

Obama's introduction to Islam came via his father, and that this influence was temporary at best. In reality, the senior Obama returned to Kenya soon after the divorce, and never again had any direct influence over his son's education.

Lolo Soetoro, the second husband of Obama's mother, Ann Dunham, introduced his stepson to Islam. Obama was enrolled in a Wahabi school in Jakarta.

Wahabism is the RADICAL ISLAMIC teaching that is followed by the Muslim terrorists who are now waging Jihad against the western world. Since it is politically expedient to be a CHRISTIAN when seeking major public office in the United States, Barack Hussein Obama has joined the United Church of Christ in an attempt to downplay his Muslim background. ALSO, keep in mind that when he was sworn into office he DID NOT use the Holy Bible, but instead the Koran.

Barack Hussein Obama will NOT recite the Pledge of Allegience nor will he show any reverence for our flag. While others place their hands over their hearts, Obama turns his back to the flag and slouches.

Let us all remain alert concerning Obama's expected presidential candidacy.

The Muslims have said they plan on destroying the US from the inside out, what better way to start than at the highest level --- through the President of the United States, one of their own!!!!

Please forward to everyone you know. Would you want this man leading our country?...... NOT ME!!!

Editor's note: Gee, the Wahabis --- aren't the Saudi royal family, closely allied with the Bush family and Republican oil interests, affiliated with that strain of Islam, too?

Barack Obama is, like many Americans, from a religiously mixed household. He has for many years been a member of the United Church of Christ and believes, like the founders of the American republic, in separation of church and state and that there should be no religious test for public office.

But now, in these semi-literate Republican wedge attacks spewed out all over the Internet, we see the GOP's essential anti-Americanism: they want to repeal the section of the US Constitution drafted by the convention headed by George Washington that forbade a religious test for public office, they want to repeal the First Amendment prohibition of an established religion promoted by Thomas Jefferson, James Madison and others as a precondition to the Constitution's ratification, they want to steer the USA into an era of religious wars that the founders of the American republic so carefully tried to avoid. The author of this endlessly repeated propaganda piece is too cowardly to sign his or her own name to it, which is the general modus operandi in these tiresome Republican email attacks.

See http://www.snopes.com/politics/obama/muslim.asp about the claims asserted in this particular screed.

She turned me into a newt!

RE: Coming political witchcraft of Senator Hillary RODHAM CLINTON with her readiness for a change.

After the defeat in Iowa primaries, at her age of 61 years old Senator Hillary RODHAM CLINTON is to become overnight a candidate for a change. This is to be her witchcraft in the politics, contrary to her background and facts of her own making.

Since the beginning she has been the insider in Washington, DC. In 1970s she worked for the US House of Representatives. Then, she departed for Arkansas, but she kept her Beltway contacts. She returned to have co-run the White House with her husband William J. CLINTON and to have done so under the their motto “to elect one and to get two.” In fact, she was already co-president during two tenures of well known scandals.

Several days before the Iowa caucuses, she ran her campaign on the legacy of her own husband. She stressed her experience in the governance. This cannot be found in her own biography on her official senatorial website at the address: http://clinton.senate.gov/about/biography/index.cfm. Since her youth she has specialized and practiced the dealing and wheeling of an insider in the Federal Government to go up and up in the political careers.

The real political change comes with the next generation taking over the power. Each generation has its own leaders at about the same age. They share the same ideas and fight for implementing their program, campaigning, losing and winning. Senator Hillary RODHAM CLINTON belongs to the outgoing generation of leaders with the past visions. She relies upon the political oldies in developing, presenting and eventually implementing the vision which does not meet the present needs of the American people.

After what happened during the tenures of President George H. W. BUSH, co-Presidents William & Hillary CLINTON and President George W. BUSH, the United States needs badly the real change in the leadership not to become the United Kingdom of America with two royal families, shifting the power to each other. Recalling his own words, President George H. W. Bush has considered President William J. Clinton like his son. Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton has hardly criticized President George W. Bush in the effective way. She has agreed fully with his approach to Iraqi war till the beginning of her presidential campaign a few months ago. This is her politics of going hand in hand up to the Oval Office.

Now, Senator Hillary RODHAM CLINTON wants to pull a rabbit of a change out of her hat. This can happen only in a witchcraft that she reportedly believes in and practices. The proverb goes that an old dog cannot learn new tricks. The final say belongs to the American people casting their votes in primaries and general elections.

The Independent Voter

Bhutto's legacy

This Benazir Bhutto thing has not begun to really pan out yet. We know that the present government of Pakistan is a gone goose and that our own administration is deeply imperiled by its resemblance to the gander. Hillary has taken to the updrafts, stretching her wings in condor-like movements, speaking in resonate tones like Disraeli and availing herself of the vacuum our State Department has left behind. In a strange way, I think that the the outcome will rest in Bhutto, herself. Her image will remain like the Cheshire cat and her legacy will be "what might have been." This will be the first democratic portrait to be framed in the modern Muslim world. It has been much needed. Pakistan now has someone to exceed to. No matter who steps in, Bhutto will be there as their MLK or their Mandela (whether she deserves to be or not.) The people can fuss and fume, but they have a martyr whose death took her meaning far beyond what it meant to her own political party --- something all will admire: Beautiful as woman, matron, mother and politician; courageous and unafraid of death, educated, devoted to freedom. The world will remember.

Benazir Bhutto: distorted hierarchy of political values

The martyrdom offered by Benazir for political values is not the first by a politician or even by a lady but the type and amount of nauseating indignation and grief it has aroused not only in Pakistan but across the world is mainly due to widespread perception that the USA and its democratic allies were the driving force behind her return from her eight-year exile to implant absolute democracy (republic) in Pakistan. Though Pakistan all along has been practicing and is still prepared to practice diarchy (having pro-active president, elected or otherwise, with jurisdictions of martial affairs like defense, internal security, human rights, foreign affairs, consent to legislation etc. along with elected prime minister and chief ministers having jurisdictions of all the civil affairs of Pakistan).

This cold blooded unethical obstinacy of the USA and its democratic allies and dereliction and hypocrisy of Pakistan's friend and neighbor China regarding the stopping of the USA and its democratic allies from such dangerously Machiavellian manipulations (especially in view of the fact that China, a veto holding power of the UN and thus its promoter and permanent member, is itself not practicing democracy), coupled with the pervasive anti-Americanism especially among the fundamentalist terrorists of Pakistan, had already put Benazir's life in great danger. The first proof and last warning had already come through the October blast, claiming about 100 lives on her arrival in Pakistan.

But what has escaped the notice of grieving mankind are the following, which are mainly responsible for this flop and tragic show (of the USA and its democratic allies) in Pakistan. against the backdrop of impotent UN:

1. Civilized mankind has always considered the state and its political apparatus to be subservient to the cause of human values as is evident also from the dictates inscribed on 'Shilalekhs' (stone inscriptions) some 2,500 years back in India (also on 'Shilalekhs' inscribed during the rule of Ashoka the Great).

2. In the contemporary world UN is supposed to take this responsibility to disseminate human values by enforcing human rights even by intervening militarily in member counties who audaciously deny these human rights to its citizens.

3. But the USA and its democratic allies have spread the misinformation through UN (of which India is also a victim) that the state can be complete and effective even without assigning preeminent roles to martial forces of the member states of the UN. This gullible world community does not realize that it is precisely the supremacy of the martial element of any state that serves to ensure human rights, which is the only valid and relevant political philosophy of the contemporary world, especially in this age of globalization.

4. These distorted political values of UN (which condones absolute democracy, pressed by its powerful members like USA and its democratic allies, over human rights) are less due to beliefs of the USA and its democratic allies about the efficacy of absolute democracy in solving myriad problems of the mankind. It is more due to the fear of the USA and its democratic allies of allowing the UN to intervene militarily in member counties, lest it may open these countries also to the UN's military intervention in case of human right violations by these countries (which are not uncommon in these countries also).

5. But this global political humbug is going on for the simple reason that the powerful countries of contemporary world are predominantly Christian and support a ridiculous concept of outdated so-called sovereignty of about 200 UN member countries (most of which blatantly violate human rights) that exist without even having adequate power, political will and resources to remain on the political map of the contemporary world, especially as humane, progressive and modern nations.

6. Though the entire remaining mankind is grateful to Christians who have given so much to mankind during last six hundred years in terms of advancement in science and technology. But Christianity has singularly failed to imbibe humanity (which, as mentioned above, was practiced even twenty five hundred years back by civilized world). Thus Christians are shirking the responsibility of humanizing mankind through their formidable unprecedented power acquired during last six hundred years.

7. Let there be no mistaking the fact that most of the terrorism across the world (including fundamentalist terrorism which claimed the life of Benazir) is mainly due to the failure of the UN to enforce human rights in its member countries across the world.

Let us hope that the UN will rise to the occasion and will not (along with the UK) confine itself merely to the investigation of the assassination of Benazir as demanded during Sunday's press conference by Zardari (husband of Benazir Bhutto and co-chairman of her political party PPP) and reportedly consented to by President Musharraf.

The least that mankind expects from the UN is that its General Assembly will be summoned immediately and the hierarchy of political values of human rights (with proper mechanism to enforce human rights in its member states by the UN) over all forms of governance (democratic republic, diarchy, military rule, communism etc.) will be declared and resolved to be enforced by the UN.

This is the only way to ensure that the martyrdom of Benazir will not go in vain. Especially given the fact that in this part of Asia (as is evident from the example of India also) 'Absolute Democracy (republic)' degenerates into majoritarianism's corrupting and criminalizing effect on the state. Not to talk of social indicators such as removal of poverty / unemployment, providing proper health and education facilities, etc. for a majority of its people, it has scant regard to even the rule of law.