Dear Derwayne & Ravin, A) Nationalism is a passé notion in a country where with each change in government, one or the other larger ethnic groups feel excluded from governance. Burnham faced this dilemma and now, so does the PPP. Chavezs nationalist Venezuela was characterized by one of the most diverse coalition governments ever, and with a working class ideology, he won consistently with 60% of the votes cast. B) Anti-Americanism isnt hip in a country where people feel that more damage has been done to their country by their own politicians than external agents. For almost 20 years, the incumbent effectively controlled all arms of Government. Contrast this to anti-Americanism in Venezuela where only in 1999, a US backed coup was reversed and in Iran, where US fueled sanctions and reckless involvement in its neighbor Iraq are in full play today. (Cuban public opinion is hard to read as a result of the repressive nature of the one party state that tolerates no freedom of expression) Nuance and context are useful frameworks while sweeping generalization isnt. Comments welcomed. Love, Saieed.
Posted on: Sat, 05 Jul 2014 01:23:44 +0000