H -°, L 6° | Tomorrow: 
H 18°, L 6°I was troubled by Andrew Wagner's article in the Sept. 14 paper entitled "Obrador threatens stability." It is preposterous to expect Mexican voters to put their outrage on hold over suspected widespread fraud, because it might threaten trade relations with the U.S. It is also dangerous to look at the election with a U.S.-centric perspective because it leads to arrogant assumptions, but more importantly, it undermines an accurate understanding of what's at stake.
The mentality of the author (and "mainstream" journalists as well) completely ignores the question of fraud. Instead of further investigating the charges made by Andrés Manuel López Obrador (or "AMLO"), all news reports have side-stepped the issue and have minimized it to secondary importance.
Often, as seen in this paper, AMLO is compared to Gore. However, it is not a matter of dimpled chads, but systematic and widespread fraud, involving actions throughout the political hierarchy. They simply are not comparable. Further, it is hard to claim that AMLO and his "yellow revolution" are destroying Mexico; fraud and lapdog politicians beat him to it.
There is a prevalent political history of the Mexican people. From 1929 until 2000, the Institutional Revolution Party (PRI) held power through force, fraud, and corruption. In 1988, the first Democratic Revolution Party (PRD) candidate, Cuauhtémoc Cárdenas, lost to the PRI after a computer "crashed." And this year, Felipe Calderón of the ruling National Action Party (PAN) won the presidency amidst allegations of PRI-esque irregularities. Based upon this past, the Mexican people are rightly justified in raising hell and attempting to create a parallel government, this one of the people.
Let's look for a moment at this "alleged" fraud, particularly the numbers following the partial recount. Out of slightly over 40 million votes, AMLO lost to Calderón by 240,000, or less than 0.6 percent — a difference of less than two votes per polling precinct. The court-ordered recount covered 11,839 out of 130,000 precincts, or nine percent. In this limited scope, a number of extra ballots were discovered — 45,890 beyond the number legally issued. An additional 80,392 ballots disappeared. Initially, 2.5 million ballots went missing in action, and a number of ballot boxes were found, still sealed, in garbage dumps. Extrapolating the remaining 91 percent of precincts, 1.5 million votes were manipulated through taqueo (stuffed with forged ballots) and saqueo (looting). While it is unclear that the result would really swing by that many votes, the irregularities suggest that a reversal would be all but certain.
The July 2 election and the following protests were about more than just the election. Unlike in the U.S., a clear majority of the population is either indigenous or poor, and have historically been disenfranchised and oppressed. In AMLO's words, "we have the fourth-highest number of millionaires in the world, in Mexico. That would be OK, if there wasn't so much poverty. But there are 50 million Mexicans that live in extreme poverty. So our project is in favor of humble people, poor people."
The election has created a political space and a voice for these people, and has nourished the ongoing Zapatista uprising in Chiapas and the more recent attempt by the people of Oaxaca to overthrow their PRI governor and replace him with a popular assembly. Thus, AMLO's large support base isn't seeking to merely put him in power, they're going to the Presidency along with him.
Unfortunately, the media has taken to assuming that he holds them in some sort of hypnosis, that he is a conniving chessmaster, and they are his brainless pawns. This line of thinking decides that the indigenous, the poor, and the women who support him are incapable of making their own political decisions. Instead, the Mexican people have liberated democracy from the ballot box and set it free in the streets.
Most appalling of the editorial in question is the idea that AMLO should be concerned primarily with the effect on the U.S. The tide of left-ism rolling through Central and South America, Mexico included, is mainly fueled by opposition to painful trade and social regulations forced upon them by the U.S. So instead of feeling obligated to give up and kneel before hegemony, AMLO has a clear mandate from his supporters to thumb his nose at the U.S. instead. He and his supporters have no reason to stop their movement; they have nothing to lose and everything to gain.
If the U.S. truly is to support the idea of global democracy, we should support this movement for democracy, as well as a full recount. This is the only way faith in the "fledgling democracy" can be restored. Otherwise, we are in action supporting fraud over democracy.
Without a full recount, voto por voto, we will not have a Greek tragedy on our hands, but a second Mexican Revolution.
IP hash: 119c7fd4
how about a by-line?
IP hash: ec228c8f
Thank you very much. It is the first time since this election happen in Mexico that someone writes the truth.All other articles that I have read paint Obrador as the bad guy and Calderon as some sort of angel.The real danger for Mexico is Calderon.After he privatices the oil company (sales PEMEX to Dick Cheney) he also plans to privatice public education and health care in Mexico. Get ready for more illigal inmigration and a southern neighbore with 90% illiteracy and a life expectancy of 30 years of age.Your vacation spot is about to become hell if Calderon is allowed to rule Mexico.
IP hash: 8f67a865
It is intellectually dishonest to talk about the “outrage” of Mexican voters in this context when the vast majority of the country does not agree that the July 2 election was fraudulent. The Mexican system provided the opportunity for fraud to be proven; it was not proven. This is what Mexicans understand that American lopezobradoristas do not.
IP hash: 0cc25023
If someone steals my car and i start to blame the city for a crime problem, you would think the least i could do is go to the Police and actually report my car stolen wouldnt you?
Lopez Obrador is crying fraud and asking for a recount, but heres a little know fact that many are ignoring, HE DID NOT even bother to ask for a recount legally.
How can you posibly cry faul and pretend to really want a recount, went you don’t even ask the court for one? do you know of any courts that go to trial without a legal filing that a crime was commited?
Its no wonder 73% of the nation does not support his contradictory tactics.
IP hash: b7e31b27
Great piece of analysis. The american people has always stand out for democracy, and their sympathy and support to the mexican people against this treason to the democracy by Calderon and the ruling gang that supports him and imposes him as elected president will always be wellcome.
The real issue is not about supporting Lopez Obrador or refusing Calderon, but about respecting the people’s choice which at this very moment we don't know, because the numerous irregularities that occurred in the counting of the votes, and the refusal of the proper authorities to re-count each one of the ballots.
IP hash: 98f17fe5
Bill Anderson, is that you!?
Lopez-Obrador lost same as Gore. But in the liberal tradition of recounts, it would only yield the same result.
Look back in history and note that the three most prominent recounts have been initiated by Democrats (or lefties). Washington state governor’s race of 2004, Presidential election of 2000, and this most recent occurrence were all at the hands of liberal losers.
Don’t patronize us with your threats of revolution. All we will get are a bunch of mad liberals marching in the streets … and what’s new about that?
IP hash: 119c7fd4
perhaps the fraud is being ignored by 50% of the Mexican population because their candidate won?
and the court… i’m willing to bet that wealthy, politically powerful judges will support Calderon before any “leftist.” with that in mind, it is easy to see why perhaps a full recount (which was asked for) was denied.
and let’s be honest, most of the folks who are telling AMLO to shut up and go away, are the people who said the same to Gore in 2000 and jumped on the swift-boat bandwagon in 2004.
IP hash: 337aec1a
The commentary posted onSept 19 at 12:28, about the lack of request for a legal recount by the Coalicion that postulated Lopez Obrador (and not by Lopez Obrador himself as the commentary states) is false, and only repeats one of the many missleading arguments provided by the “Tribunal Electoral” during the trial. There was a legal request by the coalicion, which is called a “abstract reason” endorsed in at least one previous trial by the Tribunal, that allowed and give support to a total re-counting of the ballots, and that didn't required the challenge of all the electoral posts in Mexico. The tribunal missed the opportunity to give the election the clarity at least a third of mexicans request. To repeat a lie again and again does not makes it true, no matter what Goebels and Adolf used to think.
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In response to the commentary posted September 19, 2006 @ 4:43pm. I think you are not informed. Lopez Obrador only asked for a recount on exactly 26% of the ballots,(don’t believe me, see the offficial request on the tribunals website). You are talking about the so called “abstract reason”, wich was not a request for a recount, but a request for an anullment of the election. Wich is another contradiction of Lopez Obrador. Why legally ask for only 26% of the ballots counted, claim you want 100%, and then present a motion to the court that you want the elections annulled based on “abstract reasons”?
There is simply no way to defend erratic behavior like this. Either he wanted a full recount, wich leads to the question on why he only asked for 26% of the ballots counted. Or he didnt want one (because he felt it was fraudulent, wrong, rigged), wich leads to another question, why ask for a recount in an election that you think should be annulled?
Like i said, Obrador supporters lack facts, all they can do is say its not true, its not real, its not right and present not a shred of evidence to support any claims.
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“Bill Anderson, is that you!?”
No it’s not.
Maybe the 3 recount demands have been made by “liberals” because their opponents have been more corrupt?
IP hash: e62b1af8
Is anyone left down in Mexico to vote? I thought they were all in the US already leeching off our social programs.
IP hash: 10591e9f
Quit comparing this to Florida 2000. Mexico’s IFE is well-funded, profession and in the words of PRD founder Cuautemoc Cardenas - who knows a lot of electoral fraud - “Trustworthy.”
Lopez Obrador run a lousy campaign. He stumped for votes in rural pueblos while Felipe Calderon went on TV. Negative ads … welcome to modern politics. (It’s ironic that in Mexico, using the image of a leftist firebrand like Hugo Chavez can hurt someone’s campaign worse the calling him a “Yankee stooge.”)
And as for President Fox jumping into the fray, the Mexico City government ran nationwide ads boasting of Lopez Obrador’s “accomplishments” in the capital and abetted the recent street protests.
Lastly, the EZLN; it’s dead. Subcomandanted Marcos has few followers outside of Chiapas - and most live beyond Mexico. Somewhat ironically, Marcos’ accused Lopez Obrador of recycling the worst elements of the PRI - look no further than Lopez Obrador’s inner circle for evidence of that. The international left can’t lose it’s illusions and see that Lopez Obrador for what he is: an irresponsible figure. Why not start promoting Patricia Mercado Castro instead? She’s at least responsible and sane.
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“Lastly, the EZLN; it’s dead. Subcomandanted Marcos has few followers outside of Chiapas - and most live beyond Mexico.”
Hardly. Zapatismo is very much alive throughout Mexico, particularly the indigenous communities. Look at Atenco and Oaxaca. Oaxaca City in particular has “EZLN” scribbled with spray paint all over buildings in the Zocalo, along with freehand paintings of Marcos’ eyes. But more importantly, EZLN is not trying to take over the world, but merely take back Chiapas, which they have largely succeeded in doing. Further, they remain a rallying symbol throughout Latin America for autonomous democracy.
Marcos himself voted for PRD, but the EZLN’s message all along was “don’t just vote.” Vote for your lesser of 3 evils, but don’t just stop there. Shake it up and organize.
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TRY TO LIVE IN MEXICO LIKE I’M DOING AND THEN WRITE AN ARTICLE THAT MAKES SENSE, PLEASE.