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A majority of those crossing the southern border now come from Central America (mainly Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras). I've seen the meme that this is the result of US foreign policy in C.A. I figured that it was far-left tripe/trope that could easily be knocked down. I went to my local library and checked out some books. The surprising answer is that this 'meme' is largely correct.
US meddling in Central America goes back a long way, but really acclivated around 1900 when US-based fruit growers moved into the area, always lobbying DC for military and other forms of support, which they usually got. We were the marionettes, installing some dictators and deposing others. We fomented some revolutions and quashed others.
The US militarily occupied Nicaragua starting under President Wilson, from 1912 to 1932. In 1954, the CIA got rid of liberal Jacabo Arbenz Guzman in Guatemala, who had been duly elected with 65% in 1950. In 1980, when the entire region was blowing up from violence, a State Dept. official remarked, "what we wouldn't give for an Arbenz today." Many, many other similar examples of meddling exist.
We propped up military dictatorships and oligarchs, in return for a steady supply of cheap bananas, coffee, and other goods and raw materials.
Now in 2019, over 100 years of misguided meddling comes back to bite at the border.
"The surprising answer is 'yes."
Thank you for your VERY BASED OPINION. You know what the ysay about opinions?
To continue my comment, here is the economic aspect. This college professor explain how nafta and cafta screw workers and benefit company owners and corporations. The difference is that American workers get government assistance and workers have other options. Workers in Mexico and Central America have no options and have to leave.
The talk is 18 min, but well worth it to know how these trade deals work.
Not superior in any moral or spiritual sense. Superior in achievement and nation building? of course, that is undeniable. As for links I suppose this will do: https://www.encyclopedia.com/
Or I suppose you could just open your door and walk outside?
But you had said "evolution" created it, which indicates science.
Perhaps a slip?
The USA intentionally destabilized Central America not too long ago in some of the worst excesses of foreign policy any nation has ever done. This is why in many parts of the world "America" means "Imperialism" and they want nothing to do with us. You reap what you sow.
btw, I know it is commonplace to label the US-supported regimes of Central America as 'right wing,' but I would dispute that label. They were dictatorships by military and oligarchs (primarily large land-owners), and not 'right-wing' in the sense used in US politics, i.e. favoring limited government. In fact they were just the opposite.
Quote:
Originally Posted by GABESTA535
False. Right-wing has always meant favoring the landed and business elites over the common people.
Right wing as currently used in common US political parlance means limited government and individualism. Ted Cruz, for example would be the current epitome of 'right wing.'
The systems they had in Central America, keeping in mind they were not all exactly the same, were more feudal than anything else. Large landowners, backed up by (often) US military power, with masses of landless peasants working for subsistence wages (or less).
In Honduras, for example, two entrepreneurs from New Orleans, with a private army, started buying up land on the north coast of Honduras where they had giant banana plantations. One of his mercenaries, a black guy named Lee Christmas, later became US ambassador.
When they ran into trouble with the locals, they would lobby Washington DC for support. No problem, just install a more compliant Honduran leadership and then business as usual. This often would be in response to threats of land redistribution or nationalization of businesses. It roughly started under Teddy Roosevelt, and continued under Democrats and Republicans alike.
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