So to speak. The old, long-gone revolutionary’s grandson, his namesake, lives in poverty. His children apparently have joined the millions immigrating to the U.S. Vicente Fox, Mexico’s first democratically-elected president, tried to better the lives of Mexico’s poor. But even Fox said it would take a generation or more.
Via Instapundit
"Ladies and Gentlemen," former Mexican president Vicente Fox used to begin his speeches. Such an innocuous phrase, yet it caused him enormous trouble in Mexico. Why? Because all previous presidents and most other politicians addressed their audiences as "Senores," i.e. "Gentlemen." There is little equity for women in machismo-land, you see, a place where even domestic violence is considered a husband and father’s privilege. These are just a few of the revelations in one of the best political books I ever read, Fox’s "Revolution of Hope." I learned more about Mexico from it than I ever learned living here, where even we gringos imagine that we have a certain kinship with Mexico. Fox encourages such feelings because he wants our relationship to grow stronger, and for us to be more welcoming of his paisanos coming here in the millions. I was not sympathetic to that before I read his book. Now I’m wavering. In his unparalleled candor and humor, he makes a compelling case for that and many other things. Ignore most of the critical commentary at Amazon’s site for the book. His Mexican political enemies seem to have taken it over. Probably some "Senores," so-called. But do consider the book. You’ll learn a lot about our closest and, potentially, best neighbor.
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Posted in Library, South of the Border
Tagged Mexico, Revolution of Hope, Vicente Fox
You don’t have to agree with former Mexican president Vicente Fox on everything to enjoy his book, "Revolution of Hope," which I’m barely fifty pages into and already impressed with its compelling candor and humor. It’s easy to see why some Mexicans find him as hard to take as some gringos do. He irritates them by airing such dirty laundry as their culture of bribery and manana tardiness, while bugging us by championing the illegal immigrants who swarm our southern border. But it’s hard not to listen to (and like) the fellow who grew up milking cows on the rancho of his Cincinnati-born grandfather, and tying strings to the tails of dragonflies because he couldn’t afford a kite. I think he’s short-sighted about Iraq, but in his best incarnation, he’s a globalist, a capitalist and a free-marketeer whose ideal is the one his Jesuit professors taught him and his peers of being "men for others."
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Posted in Library, South of the Border
Tagged Revolution of Hope, Vicente Fox
I usually enjoy reading San Diego Union columnist Ruben Navarrette, Jr. How many conservative Mexican-American journalists are there, after all? So I’m taking his advice to read former Mexico president Vicente Fox’s new book aimed at an American audience, Revolution of Hope:
"It is full of charming stories and insights into everything from Mexico’s fledgling democracy to its trade with Asia to its precarious relationship with the United States. It should be required reading for anyone who is curious about the effect Latin America will have on the United States for years to come…"
Most of the early reviewers at the book link disliked it. But there’s obviously more to the man whose statue recently was pulled down than most of us know. For instance, his paternal grandfather, Joseph, was an American who migrated to Mexico from Ohio in the 1890s. Chew on that tidbit for a while.
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Posted in Library, South of the Border
Tagged Mexico, Revolution of Hope, Ruben Navarrette, Vicente Fox
The only thing sillier than pulling down a statue of El Presidente is putting one up in the first place.
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Posted in South of the Border
Tagged Mexico, PRI, statue, Vicente Fox
THE TEXAS SCRIBBLER 