Costalegre Jalisco Mexico

A lot is being written NOB about the July election. The only thing any of the newspapers can agree on is there needs to be a change. Any thoughts from SOB on this subject?

What are the elections in July about?

National, state & local elections. July 2. President, senators, delegates, municipal presidents, some governors. This is the big one.

Talk about "absent minded" ... I have read dozens of stories regarding the candidates and all that they have promised. Will the "common folk" of Mexico EVER get afair shake? Will this time be the beginning of real reform in Mexico?

Any prognosticators out there?

Common folk seldom get a fair shake anywhere. I certainly hope real reform begins to happen this time in Mexico but I dont expect it too for the simple reason that no one wants to give up anything. The president of Mexico makes $236,693 a year, more than the leaders of France, the UK, and Canada. Mexican congressional deputies, who serve only a few months a year, take home a minimum of $148,00 a year, plus a $28,000 "leaving office bonus at the end of the term. Meanwhile, Mexico collects taxes equivilant to 9.7% of GDP, a figure on par with Haiti. Thus, there is little to spend on education and health care which means there is no social mobility and little job opportunity. Fourty families own 60% of Mexico. There are no voluntary organizations, no civic involvement, no family foundations and thus, no accountability, allowing corruption to flourish. Under Fox, it has created only one-tenth of the 1 million jobs needed. I can't see a new government giving up their place in the sun for the common folk. All this said, I hope I'm wrong, but the stated facts are right so you do the math.

Wow Beachbum...I can't respond to the figures & salaries that you quote, but your statement "no voluntary organizations, no civic involvement, no family foundations and thus, no accountability" tends towards the extreme. There are the Lion's club, Rotary club, scouting programs, Red Cross, etc. Women's groups such as INMUJERES and GIRE (which promotes birth control and family planning). There are groups that do free medical care, help for the elderly, environmental cleanup. There are shelters for battered women, orphanages, etc. There is mandatory social service for students at some levels of school--it might have them helping in health clinics, visiting residents at the asilo de ancianos or doing painting there, helping in schools. School children do clean-up and painting at their schools every year. The DIF offers family's support in the way of training, food supplements, etc. There is adult education offered by volunteers to help teach literacy. Health care is much more accessible to the average Mexican than to the average American--the local centros de salud charge NOTHING, and there are "Hospitales Civiles" in many large cities, which charge very little. And if I were to compare family foundations here in Mexico to that in the US, it's a no brainer. Families are much more united here, the extended family embraces the children & help each other out. I could go on and on and on... Are you getting your information off the world wide web or have you ever actually been to Mexico to see these families in action????

JCT2--I'm pulling for AMLO, but then I'm feeling optimistic!

Hey Bb ...

Could you point me to the sources you employed to state all the financial statistics you used in your post?

Thanks

I have to lean to AMLO as well ... but not just to see the US reaction ... or see his struggle to get things done in Mexico.

My girlfriend from DF back in '99-'00 worked for him when he was mayor. We commuted from the south end to the Zocolo a number of times, I attended 2 city council meetings with her, helped with the weekend education programs they setup outside the city offices on the Zocolo ... and generally learned a lot about woman's and children's programs (which I quickly forgot - Mexico was new to me).

Socialism is still alive in a number of forms. What the so called socialism's of the past didn't realize - it's a soft approach and has to come in the back door. Mexico has a much better feel for it than the US.

I agree BB that was a bit of a rant

The facts and figures come from the Universal Press reporter, Georgie Geyer, and Professor George Grayson of William and Mary, not the WWW. And yes, I've been to Mexico, several times. I believe most of what was said about lack of services concern isolated places, not the big cities. Had those been my words, the post would have been much shorter. I'm not qualified to speak about Mexican families or politics since I'm not Mexican.

List of news sources - Mexico

http://www.planeta.com/ecotravel/period/pubmex.html

A friend pointed out the source ... at least one of them. This sure looks like an extreme right-wing site to me. The article covers a lot of material and for someone with as little knowlege of Mexico as you claim - to pick out the 'juicy' parts and add a few seems disingenuous

http://www.frontpagemag.com/Articles/Re ... p?ID=22225

The source I used was the editorial page of the Oregonian, a left leaning newspaper in a left leaning town. Time for me to leave as I will never understand people that dislike their own country. I wish you all well

Sparks, one other thing. You might have asked me what paper I got the info from instead of assuming. I had never heard of Front Page until I clicked on the link you posted.

Well I thought jct2 asked for some sources and you were rather vague. It's more interesting to see the original article than to get bits and pieces.

How does liking your own country fit into this .... oh boy !!!

You know Bb you've done this whole behavior before. Seems like you kinda "get off" on saying some "outrageous" statement from some very "questionable source" and when anyone pauses to ask you to "verify" your statements ... you begin to play the "innocent victim" ... and all around you simply misinterpret and/or misunderstand your "kind offerings of 'truths' ".

Maybe if you want to be involved in a meesage board like this one or anyone ... you would give some "thought" to how your approach is delivered.

I mean, I don't know you from a hole in the ground ... but I'm thinking a hole in the ground is a lot more believable.

Now I wonder what would I find if I did a search on " the Universal Press reporter, Georgie Geyer, and Professor George Grayson of William and Mary ".

Any chance of getting the issue of " the editorial page of the Oregonian " you say has the information?

Your posts remind me a bit of the old saying, "if you can't dazzle them with brilliance ... baffle them with bullshit".