One Man's Opinion

The - let's call it - Supreme Court of Colombia has ruled decisively that President Uribe can't run for a third consecutive term, in spite of a law that was adopted overwhelmingly that would allow him to do so. Originally elected in 2002, in 2006 he managed to get a law passed that allowed him to run for a second consecutive term. In his third time at bat, he has struck out. But, wait a second. Isn't he the same guy that has had a running feud with Chávez, calling him all sorts of names and decrying his antidemocratic practices, including his attempt to perpetuate himself in power? This has to be one of the great hypocrisies of all time. While he was berating Chávez over everything - acting on behalf of his American "friends", I might add - Uribe was laying the groundwork to stay in power as long as his much-maligned neighbor. Through all this, the United States, so ready to condemn Chávez for everything, has said nothing about its Colombian "partner...

Boy, it seems that New Yorkers are going to need a floodlight to look for an honest person to take over as state governor! First, it was Eliot Spitzer, who, for a while, came across as Elliot Ness incarnate, against the Wall Street Mob, and then disgraced himself by hooking up with high-priced hookers. Now, it's David Paterson, who not only is legally blind, but also seems to turn a blind eye at improprieties left and right. After having confessed to using drugs in the past and admitting all sorts of scandalous sexual behavior with and without his wife, apparently, he also pushed for special legal treatment for one of his aides in trouble with the law. So, this has signaled the end to the "Be Nice to Blind Black Public Officials" season. Although he has announced that he won't seek reelection, he has vowed to finish his term, showing that he is really blind, in the worst way.

The thing about the "killer" whale in SeaWorld is that it had "priors" that were ignored. So, the management there was playing with fire, by keeping the animal in their show, in spite of its involvement in two incidents which resulted in the death of two individuals. Also, I hate to agree with PETA - which often takes lunatic-fringe positions - but keeping a whale in a tank, no matter how big, is courting disaster because depriving it of the freedom the open sea affords amounts to a form of cruelty. Maybe the only safe and humane way of appreciating the whales is by watching them in their natural habitat through powerful binoculars, not in a circus-like and unnatural environment, doing "stupid pet tricks."

It is only natural that Mexicans be wary of the U.S. presence within their borders, given the history between the two countries. Simply put, the United States stole a large chunk of Mexican territory in the 19th century, and established a number of southwestern states there. So, when U.S. law enforcement agents go south of the border to "help" Mexico fight the drug cartels, Mexicans are suspicious of their intentions. By their nature, Americans are prone to take charge of everything and anything, and, if left to their own devices, will soon be running whatever operation there is, ordering Mexicans around in their own country. What the U.S. needs to do is take care of their own business on their side of the border, cutting down the demand for drugs by their people and stopping weapons from crossing over to Mexico. There's plenty of work to be done on American soil, without "invading" Mexico again.

Once again, the world convenes, this time in Geneva, to discuss the death penalty, the last, worst example of man's inhumanity to man. Significantly, the holdouts in abolishing the ultimate punishment are Iran, China and the United States, which is constantly chastising the other two for their human rights violations and all sorts of wrongs. But, when it suits the U.S., it doesn't mind being in the company of "Communist" China and "evil" Iran. I suppose that, following the example of the United States in other matters, the rest of the world should ask that sanctions be applied to these three "rogue" countries that keep executing their own people or anyone else that commits a capital crime within their borders. As with other conventions adopted in Geneva, the U.S. will pick and choose which ones to obey. This is not one of them.

It's now being revealed that a guy with a passport issued to "Elvis Presley", photo and all, got aboard a plane in Amsterdam in September 2008. The man did it just to show that these supposedly high-tech systems are easily fooled, and that we shouldn't rely on them blindly. Obviously, no one bothered to look at the picture of Elvis in the passport and at the man who was carrying it. Or maybe the security personnel there are part of those people who feel that The King isn't really dead...

A just-published book claims that British Prime Minister Gordon Brown is anything but phlegmatic in his dealings with his staff. The PM is charged with being rather rude and subject to temper tantrums. There is one instance of intemperate behavior that I find quite interesting because it has to do with what could be construed as a sort of plagiarism, on his part, of speeches by Al Gore and Bill Clinton. It seems that he had employed the same ghostwriter as the American politicians, and the man cut corners by quoting himself. Having been a ghostwriter myself for quite some time, I can understand the temptation to repeat oneself, especially when you have to address the same or similar issues over and over again. And yet, professional ethics demands that you try your best to be original and not resort to formulaic language used previously for another client. You may work in the shadows, but he or she has to stand in the spotlight.