Honduran Democracy -- Central American style ...

[A4sForever]

Honduran military ousts their President in pre-dawn strike ... arresting him and flying him into exile in Costa Rica .... AP story developing:

[FONT=Verdana,Sans-serif]Honduran Congress names replacement for president[/FONT]

El Presidente Manuel Zelaya, a leftist ally of Hugo Chavez, was pushing for a referendum to re-write the Honduran Constitution whereby he would be permitted to 'run' and remain in power indefinitely -- ala Chavez in Venezuela -- it would appear the Honduran Army has invoked term limits ...

 

[Brett327]

Honduran military ousts their President in pre-dawn strike ... arresting him and flying him into exile in Costa Rica .... AP story developing:

[FONT=Verdana,Sans-serif]Honduran Congress names replacement for president[/FONT]

El Presidente Manuel Zelaya, a leftist ally of Hugo Chavez, was pushing for a referendum to re-write the Honduran Constitution whereby he would be permitted to 'run' and remain in power indefinitely -- ala Chavez in Venezuela -- it would appear the Honduran Army has invoked term limits ...

I love it. How very Turkish of them.

Brett

 

[A4sForever]

I love it. How very Turkish of them.

Brett

Definitely .... another thing from the AP article that I LOVE re: 'the vote' post-coup and Central/Sud American 'politics' in general ...

"[FONT=Verdana,Sans-serif]It appeared that the vote would no longer take place."

[/FONT]:icon_lol:[FONT=Verdana,Sans-serif][/FONT]:icon_lol:[FONT=Verdana,Sans-serif][/FONT]:icon_lol:[FONT=Verdana,Sans-serif][/FONT]:icon_lol:[FONT=Verdana,Sans-serif]
[/FONT]

 

[scoolbubba]

I hope this doesn't endanger our source of Honduran cigars. All those ex-pat cubans rolling in Honduras will have to get up and move...again!

 

[Gatordev]

I know you're mostly joking, but there's actually a pretty large group of U.S. military personnel and assets in country, so you're probably safe.

 

[Clux4]

I know you're mostly joking, but there's actually a pretty large group of U.S. military personnel and assets in country, so you're probably safe.

Funny you say that but a good friend(US military) actually just traveled there yesterday. I should get first hand info from him when he calls.

 

[Brett327]

I know you're mostly joking, but there's actually a pretty large group of U.S. military personnel and assets in country, so you're probably safe.

Did a couple months in Soto Cano - weird experience. Seemed like the whole countryside was in some state of conflagration - literally burning. The bars are also filled with 14 year old local chicks trying to hook up with Army dudes, so if you're a pedophile, it's a wini-win situation.

Brett

 

[Jim123]

One of the AP graphics shows a Honduran soldier carrying an M-16.* That image is one heck of a statement with quite a few possible interpretations.

* as opposed to the ubiquitous AK we associate with most developing countries' conflicts.

 

[Gatordev]

Pretty much everyone down there has M-16s and surplus cammies. We've sunk a lot of money in the AOR over the years to combat the various "regimes" and all the gear is still down there.

 

[A4sForever]

Pretty much everyone down there has M-16s and surplus cammies. We've sunk a lot of money in the AOR over the years to combat the various "regimes" and all the gear is still down there.

Roger that ... and it pretty much depends upon who the client/client states are ... or 'were' in the 'good ol' days' when most of the Latino bad guys were 'our' bad guys and the Central/South American military leadership (and many lower ranks/rates/policia) were @100% graduates of the former "School of the Americas" ... now known as "Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation" ... (God, you gotta' LOVE bureaucrat-speak, don't you?? ) ...

Until the advent of the Sandanistas and the subsequent need to 'upgrade our guys', it was quite common to see various U.S. sponsored regimes still sporting M-1 Garands, M-1 Carbines, Colt 1911A1s and WW-2 style steel pots ...

Some of the "Institutes" more 'notable' graduates include:

Argentina -- Leopoldo Galtieri, Roberto Eduardo Viola
Bolivia -- Hugo Banzer Suárez, Luis Arce Gómez
Chile -- Raúl Iturriaga
Ecuador -- Guillermo Rodríguez
El Salvador -- Roberto D'Aubuisson
Guatemala -- Marco Antonio Yon Sosa
Panama -- Manuel Noriega, Omar Torrijos
Peru -- Vladimiro Montesinos, Juan Velasco Alvarado

Some light reading for your further edification ....consider the source, but it will give you some grounding in the question of: Latin America - United States relations, a primer from Wiki

 

[voodooqueen]

I doubt that the class divide will change with a new leader.

 

[A4sForever]

I doubt that the class divide will change with a new leader.

Yeah ... but I don't think that's ever gonna' happen south of the border ... class divide ... corruption .... bribery .... you name it; it seems to be endemic in the culture, the government, and the conduct of business.

 

[Mumbles]

Suprise, suprise....


http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUKTRE55S5J220090629?sp=true

 

[scoolbubba]

South America is one of the regions I am wayyyyy less than informed about. Trying to untangle the corruption, feuding, and coup on top of junta on top of dictatorships makes my head hurt. I'm sure I'm not the only one who's neglected our own backyard while trying to get knowledges about the sandbox.

 

[skidkid]

It is curious that we (as a nation I suppose) were so quick to condemn a Honduran Supreme court sanctioned coup-type action (no deaths yet) but yet were so very slow to condemn the crackdown on protest in Iran (death toll rising).
I realize that South and Central American politics are corrupt on a good day but at first read it seems as though the Honduran military might have done this one right. I guess the real test is who they put in power in the interim and how interim it is.