I thought you killed yourself… that wasn’t you?

That funny line from one of my favorite movies, Garden State, brings me to a very short, equal parts shocking and intriguing, post. Remember how back in june I was all “fuck this shit, man”, when the assassination of a fellow guatemalan, lawyer Rodrigo Rosenberg, made global headlines? The international aid commission that oversaw the investigation came to this conclusion: Rosenberg’s homicide was orchestrated by himself. If your spanish is in shape, you might benefit from this document, which was presented yesterday at a press conference, and summarizes the comission’s verdict.

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This calls for an angry e-mail

It didn’t take long for me to be completely offended by this biassed article about Twitter use in Guatemala and Iran. I usually don’t write people to give them a piece of my mind, but this time the author -Elizabeth Lazar- crossed the line. I share with you my e-mail:

Dear Elizabeth:
 
As a fellow writer and guatemalan citizen (not to mention part of that evil cyber community), I’m trully distressed by the statements included on your article Is Twitter Really a Tool for Democracy? Clearly, you have not lived in Guatemala, or are aware of President Colom’s poor handling of our nation’s finances (the last campaign he lost, about 4 years ago, included soft money donations from corrupt officials of the Portillo administration… to which he pleaded complete ignorance), and of how the “poor farmers’s” support is rallied by local councilmen. The corruption of our current government is all around… ask people who work at culture state institutions, who are asked to “volunteer” part of their monthly wages to “The Party”, and who are basically forced to attend demonstrations in favor of Àlvaro Colom, if they want to keep their jobs. I suggest you start reading some of the guatemalan press and get your facts straight.
 
P.S. And as far as a political agenda of the cyber community… I doubt there is one, beyond the public display of outrage with this administration’s complete lack of interest in solving the crime and lack of security issues that have taken the lives of thousands of guatemalans -Rodrigo Rosenberg included- in about 18 months and counting.”

 Update: Liz was kind enough to reply a couple of times to this original e-mail, here’s the last of her responses:

“Given how inflamed things are in your country and how much is at
stake, I understand your frustration.
As far as I’m concerned, outrage is a much preferred state to apathy”.

Guess who’s moving… again?

I’ll give you a hint, his nick starts with D, and ends with uffboy 😉 I’m crossing my fingers that is really the last time I move, before Duffgirl and I tie the knot and move on to bigger and better (although I’m so grateful with my bro’ who provided and offered my new housing situation) things, wherever we go.

Lucky me

Yes sir, I happen to be involved in a couple of art projects with the incredible individual/collaborative talents of Álvaro Sánchez and Alejandro Marré. Both artists are contributing in more than one way to my creative growth, and for that (and for their friendship also), I’m very grateful. Check their links!

Does your country…?

Does your country enacts its officials to persecute “enemies of the state”? Mine does.

Does your country allows president elects that have confessed to assassinations, to take office? Mine does.

Does your country asks state employees to “donate” part of their wages to the official party? Mine does.

Does your country rounds up people from rural and urban sides alike (while threatening to retrieve welfare benefits if they refuse) to “show support” for the administration? Mine does.

Does your country play musical chairs with its population?

I think you’ve guessed the answer…

You tweet, you piss off the wrong people, you get arrested

Guatemala’s current political and social mayhem (derived from the recent execution of a whistle blower attorney Rodrigo Rosenberg) has proved that social media is not a place where you can speak your mind without fear of retribution. Guatemalan tweeter Jean Ramses Anleu Fernández, an information technology worker, was arrested today, charged with “financial panic”. Here’s the whole story:

http://www.boingboing.net/2009/05/14/guatemala-twittering.html

Fun at the movies

Movie displays can often be amusing. Last week, when Mishu and I went to the movies, I couldn’t resist posing behind the Mall Cop display. I sometimes forget I’m 28.

No one’s dying anytime soon

Footsteps, misteps, falling

debris.

I seek shelter from gospel

choirs.

The politics of truth

gang up on me,

they’re not my truths

not my policies.

Bullets stray, voices are raised

guilty parties whose names

are named.

You speak of mortality, joy and I listen.

Yet, I’m afraid.

Extreme

Extreme group therapy
extreme debriefing
extreme public confessions
have an extreme taste with your Diet Pepsi

Extreme intoxications
Where are your extremely
cherished daughters?
Extreme moment of enlightment
Peformances nothing less than
extreme, alcoholic-like.
Homophobic extreme church goers
I had a dream, and Extreme
-the band- was playing
Moby was also there, rockin’
famous Extreme Ways.

My new relationship can only
be described as “extreme”
We’re going as fast as we can,
as rookies in the
extreme game of love.

Those late nights of extreme
gang-banging
are over
I got nothing but a most
humble approach for my sweet,
extreme girl.

The extremeness of life
has showed me a thing or two.

It’s a good thing we stayed

Life never ceases to amaze me. With 12 ounces of energy-drink goodness inside me, I explain: my worrisome self has become a more upbeat and positive character. Just started my first romantic relationship in a few years, and I’m happier than I had been in very long time (ignoring all the voices that go “dude, you’re going too fast, don’t get so carried away by the nubile and seemingly flawless start”). On top of that, I just finished editing and getting together an alternative first print of a poet’s debut book El niño que buscaba venganza (The kid who was looking for revenge); it’s what I’d call a 27 page anti-love letter, but a great one at that.

I’m quite sure I’m done with most of therapy, and you know… I feel Ok with that. I’m grateful with all that I’ve learned from her, and now I’m ready to move ahead. I’m procastinating a lot less you know… and so, I think of this uplifting Verve tune: Lucky Man. ‘Cause I am one 🙂