Författare: xikano_2

Wish the Kos gang would have been around the turn of the 19th century, heck, what am I saying, just a few decades ago.

History here.

I have never liked the terms latino nor hispanic though I advocate latino more than I will ever do Hispanic.

It seems that whenever the ’majority’ in the US speak of us they inevitable tend to use either monicker to refer, in essence, to mexicans. I can’t get why the US doesn’t acknowledge the Xicano community in Texas or California. To much linkage to the past, I suppose. But labelling us as latinos or hispanics has other intentions as well.

It ignores us.

Whenever the government and its ’majority’ speak to us they refer to us not as natives but as something alien to the US. It is not we, Xicanos, who are divisive, its the US government and its lackies who insist in not accepting the fact that we are just as native as they are.

Either way, history has a wierd way of repeating itself in the US. How many times have mexicans been robbed of elections in the US? And who said anything about it? Wish you were there Kos, wish you were there.

Suggested reading: Steiner, Stan. La Raza: The Mexican Americans. New York, Harper and Row, 1970. Chapter XIV: The Secret Politicans

Believe it or not Sweden is too having an election this year but you wouldn’t notice by the raucus the elections churn out in news pieces such of the likes as whether a politician can make noise at a local shopmall rather than the issues at hand, what issues Julio?

Yeah, me and hundreds [of] others seem blissfully ignorant that we are about to have elections in Sweden aka Sverige and the weekend that just passed relished instead on an old sun ritual rather than reflect, wait this needs a period here, otherwise my spanish will get the better of the english. So there, got a fresh breath of air yet? Rather than reflect on whether the Moderaterna or the Socialdemocrats are better than the environmentalists or the lefties. Swedes are doing what they do best, live in Sweden.

Don’t ask me about the issues ’cause you’ll end up recieving an invariable uh? in bold letters.

What is a country like Sweden to do when its democratic system seems like a utopia in America? The Spaniards see it as the future to be and France envies its law and order while England can’t get enough of its exports and the germans adore its forests and moose trafic signs.

Homelessness? Forget it, there is little or next to nothing compared to other states in developed countries which of course, doesn’t mean there isn’t a problem. The solution however, is devoid of that long term aspect that it has, for example, in the USA. Here, homeless people have all kind of resources to resort to get out of the situation there are in and, believe it or not, homelessness, at times, can be a lifestyle choice.

Ok, how about government graft? that’s sure to rile a few folk here, erhm, not, the last graft issue involved a minister who used her government credit card to buy diapers for her baby. Ok, other stuff might have ocurred since then but that has stuck tills now.

Urgh, as a Xicano with dual citizenship that means I get to vote and as I’m a leftist, voting leftist here makes me look like a conservative. Gí¶ran Persson, the prime minister who has overseen the institutions that oversaw my permanent green card and dished out my citizenship is as popular as I stepped in unto these nordic lands. Today he seems perpetual like that even the opposition flirts with him. Gosh.

Are things that great in Svealand? and what does this teach us about democracy once nearly all acomplishable things are acomplished? Is it that better to steal from paul rather than peter?

yes, I know, your dirty, cynical stinking thought process will immediately recall greek dictatorships where, we are told by dubious characters, that everything was nice and swell. Far from the realities as we see’em to-day.

It’s just that our mess doesn’t look like your mess. Perhaps it’s that Swedish attitude towards the environment which manages to lull us into believing that everything is alright. The environment affects us all and the Swedes have been good at hiding the mess we are all in, masquerading all to fit our surroundings. One reality at a time.

At times one would think that Sweden lives a life separate from that it presents to the rest of the world, even themselves. At times you can see the triple reflection on the mirror but you have to be quick at the blink to see it or just sit and contemplate as the Swedes do. Am sure they do. What they say and what they do is not consistent t all, but heck, which country doesn’t do as they do?

Either way, the midsummer was good. What did I do? I got drunk, as a good Swede, I will not fail my country.

Well slap me in the face and call me aunt Jamina, I was linked by the Agonist. Jí­jole mano! I better clean up the place, I never expected visitors to this place from that corner of the net, shit, this is huge. Thanx for the Link Sean!

I was rather amused at the noise the progressive blogs made yesterday. They relished a vid snippet crooks and liars dished out on the net yesterday. Turns out the wingnuts are eating their own. O´leilly not only ridiculed Malkin, a special cucuy for the Xicano gente, he, some argued, made sense on immigration.

And lordi lordi lord, even the wsj did too as well a few days ago.

Are they re-trenching to their so-called old values to rescue the few and not-so awed anymore?

What is going on here? Have they seen something we haven’t yet? All this is making my speculation antena shoot up in the sky like a beanstalk on viagra.

Me thinks the wingnuts saw into the future and came around the real impact May 1st will have on the upcoming elections, in turn, they are softning their positions to appease the May 1st crowd? Ah, gawd knows. It sure smells like it though.

Alright, alright already ese!

So I’ve been recycling news yet there are less folk out there concentrating on the mexican elections than there are concentrating on it. Erhm, did that make sense?

Either way, these elections matter. Lots. Beyond lots. Way beyond. (ok Julio, we get your drift.) I got the gut feeling that mexicans, some of us either way, are causing some kind of like dent somewhere and policy is being formed to mend the dent. Riddles. What am saying is that even though mexicans abroad seem not to be interested in mexican politicians my hunch tells me this is not entirely true. Those in the business of interpreting these kind of things tend to like huge numbers in order to make predictions and tend, as well, to be off the Southwest area making residency instead in seats of power. The Southwest has a life of its own that many suits fail to see.

I have argued that most mexicans who vote in the elections rather take the highway and use the oportunity to visit the motherland instead of going the IFE way. However, there are quite a proportionate number of mexicans who fear deportation the moment they come near a mexican embassy though most mexicans would not have an idea of the kind of services and embassy and its consulates offer the mexican citizen because said places are mostly seen as an establishment of the upper classes. This is very much ingrained in us. I remember how I felt the very first time I sat a foot on the premises of a mexican consulate. One has to understand that the mexican government is at times little interested on its subjects and when they show interest one does well in being cautious. Those who do know tend to be already familiar with the shenanigans of said institutions. These are the people that go and vote in places like Tijuana as they did back in 2000. They are known as emigrados. Amongst other things. Be that as it may, the politization of the mexican masses, illegal, legal, mexican-americans and other identity contraptions of our Gente is in full swing in the good’ol USA.

My question here pertains the Xicano community since the political leverage must balance somewhere and will either alienate or coalesce. The Tomás Rivera Center gave out a lofty little phamplet outlining some of its ideas in 1994 titled Latinos, Global Change, and American Foreign policy. In summary, it predicted that we were to start flexing muscle in our country of origins but since the Bush gang took over the White House they stopped listening to anyone outside their circle of realities. Nonetheless Xicanos who tend to be in positions of power understand the importance of México. Though we haven’t seen much evidence for the aforementioned for obvious reasons. The fear machinery that is intrinsic to American politics has the Latino community in a weird state of mind since most latinos have adherence to their homeland and this is not seen particularly well by the powers to be and is a strategic tool to keep that population at bay lest they begin flexing muscle as seen on May 1st. This in turn keeps many latino leaders off the ramp light as was evidenced by the L.A. Mayor who decided to take of to Texas on the most important day in American politics in many years.

I think that his fear mongering will soon stop having its effect on Latinos. The more they assert their americanness and start painting their own America instead of having others paint it for them. The sooner the better.

If Manuel López Obrador wins I think this idea will accelarate since many suspect that many mexicanamericans will lean towards the PRD. This in turn will fuel a more direct engagement with mexicanamericans and start building the necessary bridges to create a stronger Xicano community both economically and politically as well. Fox realized this only too late as evidenced by his flurry of trips to the USA where he met representatives of the mexicanamerican community. I believe gringo mentality will have a hard time swallowing this idea of a more present México in their midst. We have been in their midst for a long time. We have adapted. Its their turn to do the same in kind.

Related: What a wall can’t stop

Stratfor says …

Mexico: Why the Upcoming Election Matters

Summary

Sixteen days before Mexico’s presidential elections, the two leading candidates — leftist Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador and conservative Felipe Calderon — are still in a dead heat. Roberto Madrazo, the Institutional Revolutionary Party candidate, remains in third place but he is not so far behind that a Madrazo victory can be completely ruled out. Polls also indicate that no party will win a majority in Congress. This will restrict the next president’s ability to pursue any policy in the short term; but the candidates’ positions on policy issues are so different that the outcome of the upcoming presidential election will matter in the long run.

Wanna read more? Read it here or read over here.

”As Elections Approach, Mexico Faces Internal Instability”

Weak governance and deteriorating social conditions have steadily increased political and social instability in Mexico during the past several years. Rather than soothing the country’s rocky political and social environments, the results of Mexico’s upcoming general elections will heighten this instability. More concerning, however, are tightening U.S. border security and immigration reforms. These measures may provoke economic instability in Mexico, further destabilizing the country’s political and social environments in the months ahead.

…

Vicente Fox’s Big Shadow

Washington Post/Mexico Votes – For those of you just dropping in on Mexico’s July 2 presidential election, I wouldn’t blame you if you thought Vicente Fox was seeking a second term. The man who ended 71 years of rule by the conservative Institutional Revolutionary Party, known as the PRI, continues to dominate the polls, headlines and even the airwaves

Blimey o’reilly!

I actually felt a whiff of hot air run through my scarcely hairy arm yesterday. I know, it’s summer, finally, no, really, I mean finally. I can tell because my skin gets a glow on it and man does it look good. I love the alive look on it. No, am not a metrosex man but here in Sweden I’ve become an expert of sorts on hand and facial creams. My skin tends to dry up as soon as a cloud manages to block the sun. So I had a few beers at my father-in-law’s house and every now and then I would peek at the glow in my arm. I was at peace with mother nature. I smiled to it all.

The glow, by the way, is a sort of sweat, perspiration if you will, that reflects back light, ergo, you know.

I opened the window and I was bared chested. The landscape offers a nice patch of land where agriculture is carried out. The green field is wide open, the sky semish baby blue and the air amazingly lukewarm at 6:30a.m. I usually get up at 5a.m. everyday and no, its not something from my days in the barracks because I have never been an army man.

I sustain the theory that my body clock hasn’t really adjusted to Sweden yet. This easily rationalizes away all kinds of irrational unconcious behaviour from my part and shoos away tiredness. This because at times I experience minor, and I joke here, unexplained narcolepsy. Couple that with the normal depression season here in Sweden during winter and you’ll get my drift.

Either way, just forget about the disgression there, I was stunned to feel the air in my bare chest, it felt good. My beer belly got all ticklish and the view my corner of the swedish highlands offered to my lagañosos eyes was not picture perfect yet amicable as a good nature morning salutation.

The thing is that though summer is here I hate the profution of sweat that I produce at the slightest feel of a sunray on my skin. This is another one of those mutant changes I suffered, I believe, the moment my feet landed on nordic soil. Yes, my whole constitution is in total disarray yet I live.

Loads of seagulls. One would expect this nearby beaches not inland. What the hell do they do here in the Highlands is no mystery. They are after the crayfish on the countless lakes that Sweden is made up of and scandinavian bread leftovers that my neighbours and countless other swedes throw out to the birds.

Swedes tend to be really concious about their discards. There are even garbage disposal spies ready to rat on you the moment you leave plastic on the paper container. No, really, garbage facism does exist here. So food either gets the decompost treatment or its thrown to the birds. One would think the birds be having and overweigth problem but they don’t. They are nice and lean and still manage to do their primal instinct chores: look for yummy earthworms, as my grass attest to witness because every now and then I manage to find patches of uprooted grass here and there, or are those hedgehodges doing the nasty work?

’nuff w/ the summer.

Reading through Crooks and Liars I came across Malkin, a name I have learned to loath ever since the recall days in California.

Ever since then she has gained prominence amongst R wingnuts who like to put a little color in their ugly and nasty rethoric when it comes to Mexicans and well, anything that can push a button and make money, cause, really, she ain’t all that.

Crooks and Liars redirected me to this little link, Mrs. Malkin’s sacrifice, where I discovered Malkin’s distaste for all kinds of immigration with loopholes in it.

Turns out Malkin is herself an undesired immigrant the likes she herself proposes to ban all over America. She is an anchor baby herself.

Pinches Irish, there’s always something to learn outta them …

The backgrounds to Mexico’s struggle against Spain for its independence have been argued to have taken root as early as 1650, when an Irishman, William Lamport, attempted to revolt against Spanish rule in Mexico, cause an uprising among the Mexican people, and overwhelm any resistance of the Spanish.

Via Military history of México