Friday, December 24, 2010

Sample Solisitation Letter

Smiles that cheer the soul (for Christmas) Robes


- I do not like Christmas! Makes me so sad obligation to be happy.
"I understand your mood. That happened to me as I felt the same feeling the day I found out that wrestling was fictitious.

These phrases are part of the conversation between "Rafaelillo" and "Manolo the Mellao" this afternoon in the pub "The Mosquito", when I went to grab a snack and say hello to my friend John. Is December 24 and on this date everything is imbued with Christmas cards, invitations from friends, gifts, family reunions, hurry and stress that nothing be forgotten for Christmas Eve dinner. All that does not correspond to the Christmas celebration is free of ownership on this day.

Rafaelillo is nearing retirement, is a silversmith, as we say in my town who are dedicated to the craft of jewelry, and has no family, at least no close relative with whom he relates. Manolo is almost a decade younger and, unlike Rafaelillo, your family is larger. The nickname "Mellao" comes from young, when I practiced boxing. He played two matches when he started and both shook a great time, every one of them lost a tooth and that was the trigger that encouraged him to hang up his gloves forever.

I, personally, I do not like Christmas. In a way I provoke rejection, and like to Rafaelillo make me feel sad, not because they lack family to share it, thankfully, although not very extensive, yes I have family with whom to share the good and bad that happens to me. We see almost daily and do not need a special day to meet everyone.

long ago that Christmas disappoints me, I do not believe in that false message of peace, love and brotherhood among human beings has become part of utopia that I accept as impossible. The holiday spirit never goes beyond the sensitivity that causes that drive you want to become humanitarian revolution ever happens to be a mere attempt. A spirit that does not last longer than it takes to collect all the bright ornaments, wreaths and lighting balls, to keep and dusted the following year.

Christmas has become more cruel example of unbridled consumerism, these parties are nothing without their advertising icons each year dressed in red with beards and long hair white, with or without reindeer, with or without sled. Distant are the days where the parties were limited to the dinner on 24 and 25 next, not like today, that every year there are motifs that herald more days in advance, and November is when they start dressing the windows of confetti and Christmas symbols, marked on the glass with artificial snow sprays.

The truth is that, could not help and at times one is infected by the false and forced happiness, but have nothing to do with those feelings that swept over me in childhood. Were other times and other circumstances, was another pure vision the world, as that any child can have today. In the context of my childhood Christmas ads did not fit, there were no means to disseminate them, except the radio, or money to acquire them, and, of course, had nothing to do with the Magi and their gifts. The Christmas of my childhood was poor in gifts and toys and rich in imagination and collective spirit. Village streets smelled of home-made sweets in each house, fritters, butter, sandwich cookies, fried donuts, donuts of wine ... A anise and cinnamon, sweet anise brandy and lapilli bracero from burning under the round table of every home to heat the cold of winter.

groups young and old musical instruments were assembled improvised carol pace and visited each household, asking for the bonus, which consisted of nothing but a glass of anisette for the elderly or Christmas candy for children. Rattles, zambombas, tambourines, mortars, dishes ... Rudimentary orchestras angelic voices be heard as an echo in every corner of town. I do not remember Christmas Eve dinner more special than usual, remember the atmosphere created around that date and the stories my grandmother told us on Christmas morning, when everyone ran to wake up, my cousins \u200b\u200band I to mess with her bed.

But in reality, it makes me sad that Christmas has nothing to do with the disenchantment of a childhood far away and lost, rather by what means this celebration in many households, and many people do not even have a home to host them tonight so significant, or are alone, without family to share it, as happens to Rafaelillo and many other people in the world, sick, elderly, immigrants and other groups who suffer or are unhappy for some or other causes.

I guess, like me, all the adults we will find these celebrations as an exercise required to renew that spirit of generosity and altruism, not a date you feel excited, but sad for the many who are not eligible for this right to be happy even for a single night.

At the heart of the festival is childhood, children, those who actually absorb the purity of this conclusion, at least it is they who are left over mark, meaning it will mark them for life, even after of disenchanted and accept Christmas as another of the impossible utopias. For this reason is that I want to wish happy holidays to children, especially those who suffer from illness and that despite his health conditions every day give us their smiles to cheer the soul, smiles are worth more than Christmas itself .

Congratulations to all children in the Hospital Infantil La Mascota, Managua, and the association BATNA (Parents of Children with Leukemia and Cancer in Nicaragua). Merry Christmas!

Sunday, December 19, 2010

English Bulldog Is Sick

Dick (Requiem for a mother courage)


Barely a few minutes from 20:00 local time, when an ambulance took the dying body of a woman who was bleeding on the pavement outside the government palace in the city Chihuahua in the Mexican state of the same name. The state prosecutor later confirmed that the woman died several minutes later at Park Clinic, close to where he was aided by paramedics.

Until yesterday, few people outside of Mexico knew about this woman, the cause for which they fought and why he lost his life. Marisela Ortiz Escobedo was a courageous mother, an activist who spent the last two years of his life to Mexican courts to exercise their duties on the murderer of his daughter, Rafael Barraza Sergio Bocanegra. The killer had been released, acquitted of all charges, after judges Catalina Ochoa Contreras, Vazquez and Rafael Zúñiga Netzahualcóyotl Jury Baudib his release for lack of evidence at the trial held. A few days later, on appeal, blaming these same judges corrected to 50 years in prison, but it was too late, the murderer had sufficient time to escape.

Frayre Ruby Marisol Escobedo was only 14 when she fell in love with Sergio Rafael, since then, until they killed him had not done anything other than submit to a life of fear and extreme violence, the that time away from family and friends. On 28 August 2008 at only 16 years, killed, burned and shot a cemetery illegal dump and pigs. Was violent with her until the last moment, the butchers and fled confident, living quietly Ciudad Juarez, at least until after a while, until the integrity and tireless struggle of the mother managed to stop him justice.

The murderer accepted his guilt, led police to the place where the body of Ruby, pleaded guilty at the hearing and apologized to the family, also tried to negotiate a sentence of twenty years trying to dodge prosecution the maximum penalty it can impose the Mexican justice system, 60 years. However, Sergio Rafael was acquitted of all charges because the judges felt that the self-incrimination was not sufficient to put him behind bars. Needless to say, this event rocked Ciudad Juárez, and opened the wound femicide unresolved. During 2010, each day a woman has been killed in the state of Chihuahua.

From that moment, Marisela fought with superhuman strength because justice was fulfilled by the murder of his daughter. Began a protest march, with her family from Ciudad Juárez to the country's capital until Gov. Jose Reyes Baeza asked him to continue the journey by car, to which he responded. Conducted an investigation on his own and managed to trace the whereabouts of the fugitive murderer, putting Sergio Rafael in Fresnillo, in Zacatecas State, but received no sufficient support and again escaped. After several protests were held trying to draw attention to the murder of Ruby Marisol justice and will not go into oblivion.

His latest staging is wearing a few days ago against the Government Palace, where he was killed by a shot in the head. Surveillance cameras collect those few minutes in which a man walking around the corner, while a white car is at the height of the street where Marisela and a companion, along with the banner displayed. The murderers waited just when it closed its doors Palace Government to meet the threats that had been Marisela by the Barraza family. For the features, it is believed that the subject could be reached by walking Rafael Sergio himself, faces Marisela and her companion, the young man goes into a struggle with the murderer and Mrs. Escobedo while fleeing towards the Palace of Government, but the gunman ran out after her and several yards last shot in the head.

A cruel story that leaves an aftertaste of impotence, injustice, suppressed anger, but far to terminate the account, the events before the funeral shows that all is not said. Last night, while you watched the body of the activist, her family returned to receive threats, if not enough what they have suffered. They set fire to a timber owned by a family of Marisela and kidnapped the owner and an employee of the business as well as serious burns two other employees.

could go throwing blame the violent machismo have Mexico, could continue to use the word femicide and all eyes turning to a society made by men for men, where women suffer and are victims of injustice given by males. I could go with a lot more for women, if not because in this case, much of that responsibility lies with a woman, the very judge that contributed to his decision not only to be cleared of murder, also had the opportunity to once again commit another crime, in this case against an exemplary woman. Now that what happened can not be helped, the president of the Supreme Court, Javier Ramírez Benítez, has announced the suspension of three judges who acquitted the murderer Sergio Rafael, after the bill sent by the governor César Duarte. They explained that the three judges will be suspended, but will not be made available, or they take root, will be completely free and only leave their roles as officers. No doubt Mexico needs a new revolution, judicial, police and many levels of society.


Friday, December 10, 2010

Kates Playground Sets Full

When the culture of cruelty pervades


Probably if you had to start writing about Mexico, and I had to choose the topic that would deepen, will never end scoring opportunities in a draft that gives me this North American country and I fraternally him out of that concept, will hop into my political and geographical protocols, for inclusion in the Latin American context. That's where I think it should be. Based in the border between North and Central America, but it is not the same as the line dividing the continent is on top, alongside the United States, to the south, which is neighboring Guatemala.

Mexico is an inexhaustible cultural wellspring that not provide facilities for choosing this particular theme to represent words in a couple of pages. However, and unfortunately for those who do not know their culture or history, neither would have an easy time choosing what content to represent Mexican society today. If you let go for what news show every day in the news, would surely a picture far removed from what I think, yes, describe a country that unfortunately began to get used to it as such, imbued with a culture of cruelty, where corruption and violence is the daily bread.

understand, and defend, you can not categorize an entire society by the attitudes of a few and some isolated incidents that do not represent the idiosyncrasies of an entire nation. However, when these anti-social or antisocial acts are becoming more and more everyday is that something went wrong, something must be wrong with that rocks the cradle of culture, education and childhood, because children are yesterday's men today. I say men because it is on this human race, the male, which fall all the blame or suspicion of a society, in part, sexist, racist, xenophobic, violent and corrupt.

Yes, I guess, as I read many Mexican friends, they are putting the fuss and, among other things, remembering my sainted mother and all my honorable ancestors. But we should not forget that a free and intelligent society should start looking in the mirror first to avoid a misconception of itself. As I said at the beginning, there are many positive themes that could have chosen to refer to Mexico, but I will not fool anyone, this is not the case. Try to be honest criticizing and denouncing what seems unfair to me, otherwise there is no need to emphasize, is what we deserve anywhere in the world, justice.

Yesterday afternoon, home from work with headphones plugged into their ears listening to the radio talk shows and interviews Gemma Nierga Cadena Ser interviewing a Mexican journalist, Rosa Isela Perez, who lives in exile in Spain with her family, forced by the death threats he received in his country, in retaliation to their complaints against abuses and violations, especially against the femicide in Ciudad Juarez. Yesterday, the General Council of English Lawyers rewarded by the their courageous work in the Human Rights Awards CGAE XII. Rosa or Rosie, as he called Gemma, she refused to accept that after all these thousands of murders of young women and girls was a mass murderer, not even an organized group or several groups that are devoted to rape and murder women, the blame lay on society, male, who accustomed to the guilty pay for their punishment for their misdeeds ever put the red line further from the cruelty illegal.

Leaving behind this cruel and traumatic case, we stumbled upon the social contradiction regarding racism. Hard to understand that, as recently as few months, Mexico full justice cry out against racist laws in the state of Arizona and, instead, it seems as if racism suffered by the majority of the population, with 65% indigenous genes, by a racial minority to be as normal in the world. The face of Mexico is primarily indigenous, however, the color of the skin is not enough in this country to understand racism. Slim, the richest man in Mexico and the Arab world is a black, part of the Jews who dominate the country's big cities are skin and dark hair, and many of the blacks and English are bald. This minority, which elsewhere might be victims of racism, in this case are privileged against the native or indigenous. It is anti-Indian culture, the rejection of all indigenous cultural heritage. It seems as if it was worth the post-Cuahutémoc the detriment of the pre-Hispanic. Just look at the poverty in which the majority of Mexico's indigenous peoples to realize the project of society to eradicate completely the original cultures.

paragraph of insecurity and drug trafficking is of a depth greater than all others. We know the war that is waged every day, especially among gangsters in every corner of the country and splashed in all social environments. No is safe, no one is sure to be a victim of injustice that Mexico is, whether or not related to drug trafficking. The worst thing is not what we are accustomed to and murderers, but to every action cruel surprise us more. The latest is the arrest of "child assassin", no wonder if it was not really about a child, a boy of 14 years with several deaths in her precocious resume, in charge of beheading victims appeared later hung the bridges or wherever it attractive to more spectacular bloody tragedy.

dig deeper into the wound of the Mexican reality no is not pleasant, if perhaps disturbing, because if we look at the geographical and social map of Central America will see that, contrary to curb all these injustices and cruelty, evil spreads like an oil slick on paper, on the reality is seen in countries like Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador and Nicaragua, at the gateway all unwanted import, but also shows part of racism, sexism, violence, corruption, and where drug gangsters begin long their influence.