Author: Laura Carlsen

How Legalizing Marijuana Would Weaken Mexican Drug Cartels

November 2, 2010

In the months leading up to today’s vote on California’s Proposition 19 to legalize recreational use of marijuana, opponents of legalization have issued a barrage of confused and contradictory arguments. Their aim is to somehow debunk the common-sense fact that legal sourcing erodes the black-market profits of organized crime.

The most recent argument thrown out in the anti-Prop. 19 campaign, claims that the California marijuana market is insignificant to Mexican drug traffickers.

Two Worlds Collide at Cancun Climate Talks

October 29, 2010

The debate over climate change generally transpires within the cloistered confines of expensive hotels, executive boardrooms, and diplomatic halls. As seen in the failure to arrive at binding agreements in Copenhagen, the talks are generally as sterile as the surroundings. Now, all signs point to another high-level fiasco at the UN Climate Change Conference (COP 16), to be held Nov.29-Dec. 10 in the beach resort town of Cancun, Mexico.

Ecuador’s Attempted Coup and Threats to Democracy in the Hemisphere

October 23, 2010

The Sept. 30 attempted coup in Ecuador that killed three and held the elected president hostage serves as a warning. Democratic transitions remain fragile and incomplete in Latin America and some of the boldest moves away from colonialism and toward inclusive societies are being met with reactionary force. As the Ecuadorean police uprising shows, nations could lose the important gains that have been made over the past decades.

Las mujeres al frente de los movimientos contra la militarización

October 20, 2010

Cuando George Bush Jr. salió de la Casa Blanca, el mundo suspiró aliviado. La Doctrina de Seguridad Nacional de golpes unilaterales, la invasión de Irak bajo el pretexto falso de las armas de destrucción masivas, y el abandono de los espacios multilaterales había abierto una nueva fase de agresión estadounidense. A pesar de la concentración en el medio-oriente, el aumento de la amenaza de la intervención militar se sintió fuerte e inminente en muchas partes del mundo.

Standing Up for Democracy in Ecuador

October 9, 2010

The uprising in Ecuador that occurred on September 30 shook the world and sparked a debate about the reason for the unrest. Groups of police and members of the armed forces, disgruntled over a law that, among other aspects, eliminates police bonuses, took to the streets in protest. When President Rafael Correa went out to talk to the police, he was attacked with tear gas and later held captive in the police hospital as police officers continued to attack unarmed citizens.

Un Plan Colombia para México

September 14, 2010

La Secretaria de Estado de E.U. Hillary Clinton afirmó el miércoles pasado que México y Centroamérica están enfrentando una “insurgencia” que exige aplicar el equivalente del Plan Colombia en la región. Sus comentarios despertaron al instante la ira del gobierno mexicano, así como temores de una intervención militar más extensa de Estados Unidos.

A Plan Colombia for Mexico

September 10, 2010

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton stated Wednesday that Mexico and Central America were facing an “insurgency” that requires the equivalent of a Plan Colombia in the region. Her comments immediately raised the ire of the Mexican government and sparked fears of expanded U.S. military intervention.

72 migrantes masacrados, las víctimas más recientes de la guerra contra las drogas

August 29, 2010

Herido, cubierto de sangre y desesperado, un hombre se acercó a un puesto de control militar en San Fernando, Tamaulipas, a 160 kilómetros de Brownsville, Texas, para denunciar un acto horroroso. Herido en el cuello, el migrante ecuatoriano que iba rumbo a Estados Unidos guió a miembros de la Marina mexicana a una escena aún más horrenda.

IV Foro Social Américas: Los movimientos de base siguen mandando

August 19, 2010

Lejos de las unanimidades del período en que gobernaban las derechas en los principales países de Sudamérica, los movimientos sociales consiguen unirse en la defensa de los bienes comunes y en la crítica al extractivismo, pero se separan cuando llega el momento de evaluar a los gobiernos progresistas y de izquierda.