Buenos Dias, Colombia (Not S Carolina!) (5) 145 In 1965 was the famous kidnapping and slaying of Leonidas Lara, the Colombian Rockefeller.E Lara had a super-gigantic spread over to the east, south-east called Laralandia. Well-to-do guests arrived from all parts of the world to stay a bit at the hacienda, it was said. It has also been said that Lara was miserly with those who werent well-heeled. It seems some of his own workers did the job, eventually killing him and burying the chopped-up body in a hole or well in some pasture. Who can truly justify great wealth surrounded by great poverty? On the other hand, murder, of course, can never be unpunishable. God Himself will see to that, lets hope. 146 I am sitting in a super-exclusive capital city club waiting for the people to arrive for a meeting. Its good to be here in this posh place for I enjoy it visually, but Im glad I dont have to worry about paying the dues. How simple Gandhi is in those photos we see. Hell always be supremely difficult to top. 147 About Mr Chavez in Venezueal I know very little. Once I read that he wanted to put an end to large expanses of infertile land. That I agree with. Its so far the only issue of his that I have been interested in. Democracy is good and capitalism is good, but not without their limitations. I cant see having millions of hectares of fallow or pastureland belonging to one or a few individuals while millions of souls are in dire need of daily food and are lucky to own a single pair of shoes. Its true we didnt bring them into the world or that its no fault of ours they were born, but the reality is that they are here nonetheless. 148 The horror crime of 199_ involved another girl, mind you. Her father was a man of means, a hotelier, and had died. The girl was the offspring of a second or third marriage and lived with her mother. There were grown childrenEfrom the first and/or second marriage(s) who, it seems, did not inherit anything, or, if they did, inherited very little. They get hurt and begin envying this half-sister girl. They ambush her and her mom one morning(here in our capital city!) as they set out for school on foot. Both were injured by bullets. The girl died quickly, the mom later, I think. Again, this was another horrific crime that the nation had to swallow and endure. Where is God? Is He there? He is as far as I am concerned, but you have to seek Him. He has little need to seek. I hope the perpetrators wound up doing just that. 149 Love story. S and E met on the Internet. Shes a healthcare professional and hes a vet. Hes N American and shes South. A baby is on the way now after some 2 years of marriage. The baby will be one of those fortunate beings who belongs to 2 countries, has 2 passports, and knowledge/customs of 2 cultures. Life isnt always all that bad, is it? 150 One day I was standing on the 53rd Street waiting for a bus or collective cab(We dont have these, though it would be nice for the environment.) and a woman stood next to me. She asked me if I spoke English as a native speaker. I said yes I did as a matter of fact. She asked if I could speak some English to her as she taught that subject in school but never had the opportunity to chat with a live speaker(only cassettes). So we chatted away a bit until our buses came. She was happy. I was touched. 151 A practice no one has seen in our country in a long time(during the Great Depression?) that we see every day here is sort of like Trick or Treat all year. Beggars stop at the restaurant or bakery front door and ask for a little bag of something. Sometimes they can get nasty. They have a right to ask and you an obligation to give, they feel. Or, on a farm. They have a right to camp on your property like it or not. Howre you gonna get them off? At the business, they can break a window or something if you dont help. It all boils down to the rights of man, eventually(Think of France.). What are those rights? Again, when the nation-states fail to provide employment for the needy, fair deals, etc, the needyE(most are, some arent) will avail themselves of such. Hairy, isnt it? 152 The news is all about fines, tow trucks, public rights-of-way, etc. and people are buzzing and/or cussing. Its really no big deal. What happened was that for so many years(50?) here anybody did any thing they wanted, including irrespecting others and treading on their rights and no one did a thing to stop or change those occurrences. And now some visionary mayors of late are programming change. Were being forced to grow up as a world city. 153 It appears a national strike is on the agenda for September 16. Most all of the workers are supporting it as there are salary and benefit cuts in the making; pension reforms that benefit the State, not the worker, of course; and other labor reforms. Traditionally, most national strikes have been in September anyway, and nobody associated with any schoolkids or teachershave ever cried much about it. September and February are the 2 months in this land without a single holiday(Wheres a reform for this?). Again, wheres all the money, or even some of it that has been stolen over the years from the public coffers? There should be no statute of limitations as regards theft of public funds. 154 In Belgium some of the young roller skaters from this country recently walked away with a basketful of medalsgold, bronze, silver, you name it. Its fantastic that 6 world skating champions are from this nation. Thats another reason to visit usto skate on some of these rinks in the romantic tropics. 155 Let me clarify the murder stories. Agatha Christie and Ann Rule are 2 of my favorite authors. Christies murder stories are fictitious and Rules true. These I write in this diary are true also. I dont write them to make the country look bad. Every single country on earth has horrible murders, prisons, etc. I write them for the readers who, like me, find them interesting, who like to know everything they can about the human condition. I hope this defense is clear. Thanks. 156 Why do millions of people allow themselves to be led" or controlled by a single individual? An elected President isnt usually a big problem cause you know the term is temporary, for good or bad. That leaves the dictators. Theyre the bad guys, right? So, we say they are well-guarded and nobody can do anything. Like during the time of Hitler. Now we know this isnt true. We have people-bombs, collar, letter, mule, car, baby, doll-bombs, you name it. The possibilities seem endless. Endless hatred instead of love, sadly. 157 Right now in this country(and probably my own) its better to have 2 jobs, even 3 if possible, because with only one people(superiorsE can treat you badly and you ve no recourse. You have to eat you-know-what. Also, it is less likely you will lose or feel the need to quit both jobs at the same time. What do you think? 158 If youd like a WILD ride, you dont have to go to any amusement park. Come take a cab or cab-collective in this city of contrasts and your desire will be satisfied. You must possess 2 arms and hands to hang on with, however. 159 How times change. Now we are zoning prostitution and providing free and obligatory medical check-ups, periodical SIDA testing, teeth repair, etc. The day might be here already when some sexual workersEget better medical attention than your poor great-granny or great-uncle. With one hand the city is taking work benefits away from its older and loyal workers and with the other hand increasing benefits to street walkers. Of course, the raw truth is that all Gods children deserve adequate health care(but not in a prisonEnation as are some regimes). 160 In case youd truly like to help someone in this country, you can order the book, The Dead Do Not TalkELos Muertos No Hablan), by Spanish author Paco Gmez Nadal; publishers are editorial Aguilar. Panamericana has the book on display at this moment. Proceeds from the sale of the book go to the families of victims of the BojayEmassacre. How kind of Mr Gmez Nadal to donate the royalties, dont you think? You see, there are Spaniards who are true friends/sympathizers of this land. 161 Speaking of the devil, Mr Antonio Caballero of Spain and Colombia has done very little besides write hate columns against Uncle Sam over the past few years. You can read him in Week/Semana") magazine anytime you wish. He excels at helping to sell the magazine. Commercially, hes slyer than a silver fox. When Manhattan was attacked, I sent the mag a note saying I hoped he was quite satisfied. I bet he never saw it. 162 Theres a tomato here called tree tomato" and folks make juice from it. Whenever it is served at school(occasionally), the kids dont really like it and a lot goes to waste. Some people like it a lot and swear by it. That it reduces cholesterol, that this, that that...They can have it. There are too many other fabulous juices to worry any over this tree tomato. Try mixing pineapple and blackberry juices. 163 A good columnist here, Hernando Gmez B, says the US meddles and bosses others around because there is no one to prevent it. Thats about the size of it, Mr Gmez, and when there is someone to prevent it, youll be answering to them. Maybe in Arabic or Chinese. You wont even have to mention tired old Uncle Sam anymore. How you like them apples? 164 This city, Bogota has been going the way of many big cities in developed countries as regards the automobile. (Mass transit is under-emphasized and under-funded in most countries.) You see many cars going to and fro with one, sometimes two, occupants. This is ecologically bad and reflects the developed worlds suicidal bent. Whos gonna give up a little comfort for tired old Mother Earth occasionally? (To be fair, I have to mention that we have a mass transit system in existence here now, but it is still in its early stages.) 165 Spot searching trucks after midnight and spot searching iron mongers, businesses will reduce vandalism of sewer covers drastically. 166 Over and over again we see the need for people who will do good works for their city or country without the thought or hunger for any particular reward. Ask not...E said JFK. Love of city and country and fellow citizens is the only solution for the many crises we are witness to. 167 What is all this killing on top of killing gonna get us? A ticket to Hell? 168 We ask the mayor, whoever heard of sad, big city streets with no newspapers being sold? Does he think everyone gets 3 square meals a day as he does? I hope he doesnt get ALL his plans approved! Frankly, Id like to see newspapers sold on the streets until Im gone. 169 Sometimes we need to remind ourselves that its not country and God, its God and country. 170 You crack the pomegranate then eat all the insides out with a spoon. They are very delicious. 171 The whole school at this moment are playing with soccer and basketballs, jump ropes, and on gym bars. Kids. Not a one sad or pessimistic. Is this why Jesus C said we have to be like children in order to enter the Kingdom? Of course, the Ks a place of zero sadness, isnt it? 172 All the public space to-do means that public property had been abused over the years by the hawkers and street vendors. Granted, it was overdone in some areas of the city and one could hardly walk at times, but now the pendulum threatens to swing the other way completely. It is draconian to say not a single vendor will be allowed to roam the streets when it is the sole means of survival for many people(some 20,000 they say). Governments fail to provide jobs(if unwillingly) for people who desire to work yet issue decree after decree in their disfavor. Sounds like before the French Revolution and like saying, Let them eat cake.E Theres a lot of work to be done in this country, but for Gods sake, lets not try to fashion it like some of the quite boring large cities in developed countries many of us know about. 173 S is a small-time bisexual blackmailer, it seems. He sleeps with those rather decent" people then casually asks for a loanEof some amount later. Obviously, one should lend the money, especially if one has something to hide. Hush money, it is naturally. S is married and has children. 174 In this country I had to learn to speak(and still am learning). English AND Spanish, not just one. Since there is no big demand in the world to learn GeorgiaE English, I had to try to sound something like the newscasters back home. A sort of neutral accent? Anyway, nobodys perfect, right? 175 Some men are still getting their fingernails polished(by manicure) but it may be fewer now than in the past. I suppose its a custom from Europe. 176 Some of the things Ive been saying in this diary were proved true a few days ago in a city tragedy. Some handicapped kids and adults burned to death when the stupid driver tried to restart the engine by pouring gasoline into the carburettor. Its a trick I witnessed in my childhood, only with the vehicle emptied. The whole city has been very upset about it for 2 or 3 days now. Its like another tragedy we had about 7 years ago. The driver at that time did something similar causing a bus with occupants to catch fire. Problem was the bus had no emergency exit. Ten or 15 people perished in that tragedy. Laws were passed immediately so now we have emergency exits. But, you see, laws arent enough. All these drivers need to pass some kind of preparatory course. It was also noted that the vehilce was illegally taking these kids here and there and that a stack of unpaid traffic fines were in existence. As Ive always said to my Colombian wife, Its a city I love, but one with no police patrol.E Can you imagine? No, you cant. We live it, though. 177 Wendys(hamburgers) left Colombia earlier this year. It was expensive for this land. If you take the situation where a very lot of people live on from 10 to 20 thousand pesos a day(like from 4 to 8 dollars), you can see that they cant spend 4 to 8 dollars for a meal or two. Burger King arrived and left back in the 80s. McDonalds seems to be doing rather well, however. Its also expensive but the kids really love it. Maybe the toys influence them a lot. DunkinEDonuts has also hung around a long time. Who doesnt like a donut now and then? Oh well, Wendys, like BK, was fun for those a bit well-off while it lasted. 178 The traffic clogs up daily on the 26th Street going toward the mountains. It clogs at the Cundinamarca governmental building. Across the wide avenue is the registration building for civil status. If the city would make an extra left lane(on the median) in front of the governmental building, the clogging would probably stop or be reduced substantially. Its worth a try, anyway. This is something the mayor might wish to spend some thinking time on instead of trying to rid the city of newspaper vendors. I will always love easy access to news and O censorship for adults. Well, practically. 179 The President, who is still new, is going to gringo land tomorrow. It is very good. Colombia will never have a better ally than Uncle Sam despite the latters problems and misunderstandings now and then. Maybe many ill-informed people of this country think they would get a better deal with China or with the Arab-speaking countries as their main ally. What are the true chances of that happening? 180 A Harris poll seemed to show that N Americans think this country is their third enemy. This is unfortunate. Lets look at a reason or two. One is that the poor guy who struggles daily just to get food in his/her belly couldnt really care less about too much friendship and/or admiration. He/she wants to eat, to be able to enjoy one or two simple advantages that many people in rich countries take entirely for granted. Its an observation I always had about Vietnam(thank God I didnt have to go). The average Vietnamese didnt give a shit about whatever his government was going to be called because this average guy was busy trying to eat every day and provide something for his family if he had one. So, Communism or Capitalism for this guywho cared? Same here in Colombia. Another reason is the drug problem that has affected all of us negatively. Down here folks think Washington is always harping on the supply, the supply, the supply, spraying and all that muck. Its true. Washington is. But as I mentioned in an earlier entrywhat about the demand? Whens it gonna fall, ma? Whats going on, pa? Makes one think she/he should try a snort or two her/himself just to see what all the fuss is about. It is FUSS, isnt it?
Copyright © 2002 Randall Barfield |