Latin America

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Congress: US Wasting Billions in War on Drugs

Pair of reports blast counter-narcotics spending in Latin America

(Newser) - The Obama administration has essentially no evidence that the billions spent combating the drug trade in Latin America have done anything to stem the flow of narcotics into the US, according to a pair of scathing new congressional reports. “We are wasting tax dollars and throwing money at a...

Che's Pal on Epic '52 Motorcycle Trip Dies

Alberto Granado lived out his days teaching in Cuba

(Newser) - Alberto Granado, the man whose motorcycle adventures with Che Guevara would ultimately alter the course of Latin America, has died today in Cuba at the age of 88. The epic journey undertaken in 1952 by the two Argentine med students formed the political convictions that turned Guevara into an icon,...

FBI: In '61, Ted Kennedy Rented Out 'Entire Brothel'

Classified memo describes decadent partying in Chile

(Newser) - While John F Kennedy sat in the most powerful office on Earth, little brother Ted was off renting out an entire Chilean brothel during a 1961 tour of Latin America, reports the Boston Globe . A previously redacted FBI memo, which Judicial Watch says it obtained despite a battle from the...

US Is Worse Than Banana Republics
 US Is Worse Than 
 Banana Republics 
Nicholas Kristof
Nov 18, 2010 12:59 PM CST

US Is Worse Than Banana Republics

Yet somehow we need to give the rich tax breaks?

(Newser) - It’s tempting to say that the US now has a banana republic-level income inequality, but that’s not fair—to banana republics. “The truth is that Latin America has matured and become more equal,” writes Nicholas Kristof of the New York Times , even as the US has...

Chavez, Ahmadinejad Want 'New World Order'

Venezuelan, Iranian leaders announce 'strategic alliance'

(Newser) - Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and the visiting Hugo Chavez joined forces yesterday in slamming US “imperialism” and seeking “a new world order,” al-Jazeera reports. “We are united and determined to end the current unjust which dominates the world and replace it with a new world order based on...

Troops Save Ecuadorean Prez from Rogue Cops

Correa held captive in hospital by police protesting benefit cuts

(Newser) - Troops have rescued Ecuador's president from a hospital where he had been trapped for over 12 hours by police officers rebelling over benefit cuts. Rafeal Correa, who was tear-gassed and roughed up by rogue cops, described widespread police protests as an attempted coup. He had vowed to leave the hospital...

Venezuela Threatens to Cut US Oil Exports

Chavez says he'll cut off the oil if Colombia attacks

(Newser) - Hugo Chavez has again threatened to cut off Venezuela's oil exports to the US. The Venezuelan leader says he'll stop the flow of oil if his country is attacked by close US ally Colombia, the BBC reports. Chavez has cut off diplomatic relations with Colombia over accusations that Venezuela is...

Mexico City Offers Free Honeymoon to Gay Couple

First Argentines to wed get the trip

(Newser) - Mexico City—the first city in Latin America to legalize gay marriage—is reaching out to Argentina—the first country in the region to do so . The first Argentine couple to wed under the new law will get a free honeymoon to the Mexican capital. The tourism minister says the...

Argentina Legalizes Gay Marriage

Bill giving gay couples equal rights is a Latin American first

(Newser) - Argentina has become the first Latin American country to give same-sex couples all the rights of straight ones. A bill legalizing gay marriage has passed the country's Senate and President Cristina Kirchner has promised to sign it into law, CNN reports. Supporters and opponents of the law jostled outside during...

Castro Makes Rare Public Appearance

Cuban leader 'thin' but 'looks good'

(Newser) - New photographs of a smiling, tracksuit-clad Fidel Castro greeting workers at a scientific think tank were posted on the blogs of two Cuban journalists and a media website yesterday, offering a rare glimpse of the reclusive revolutionary leader in a public forum. Castro, 83, appears slightly stooped but otherwise healthy...

Gay Marriage Arriving in Mexico City

Gay rights battle raging across Latin America

(Newser) - The same-sex Mexican wedding will be born tomorrow as a new law puts Mexico City on the front lines of the gay marriage battle raging across Latin America. But even as gay couples line up to tie the knot, the Catholic Church and President Felipe Calderon's conservative party are gearing...

Clinton Seeks to Defuse Falklands Spat

Secretary of state offers to facilitate, but not mediate, UK-Argentina talks

(Newser) - Argentina and Britain need to do something to resolve rising tensions over the Falkland Islands but they shouldn't expect the US to mediate, Hillary Clinton said yesterday. "What we want to do is to facilitate them talking to each other,” she said at press conference in Uruguay. “...

Chile Sends Troops to Stop Looters

Clinton to visit Santiago tomorrow morning

(Newser) - The Chilean government has sent in 10,000 troops to control looting earthquake survivors scrambling for food and water. Reports of looting are widespread despite government efforts to distribute food. "People have gone days without eating," a thief in the city of Concepcion tells Reuters . "The only...

Chavez Declares Electricity Emergency

Venezuelan leader blames drought, capitalism for shortages

(Newser) - Hugo Chavez has declared a state of emergency, giving his government extra powers to deal with chronic electricity shortages. The Venezuelan leader announced measures including a 100% surcharge on electric bills that show a 10% increase in usage. Chavez warned that the worst drought in decades has hit hydroelectric production...

Costa Rica Elects First Female President

'Today we are making history': Laura Chinchilla

(Newser) - Costa Ricans have elected their first female president: Ruling party candidate Laura Chinchilla won in a landslide after campaigning to continue free-market policies in Central America's most stable nation. "Today we are making history," said Chinchilla, who will become the fifth Latin American woman to serve as president....

Colombian Rebels Kill Governor

Kidnap victim Cuellar found with throat cut

(Newser) - A Colombian provincial governor snatched from his home Monday has been found dumped dead on a country road. Police believe leftist guerrillas cut Luis Francisco Cuellar's throat as they fled from security forces. Rebels dressed in military uniforms killed one policeman and wounded two others when they seized Cuellar from...

Mexico City Legalizes Gay Marriage

Latin American first gives gay couples new rights

(Newser) - Mexico City is set to become the first Latin American capital to say "hola" to gay weddings after lawmakers there approved a bill yesterday giving gays full marriage rights, including the right to adopt. The bill is expected to be signed into law by Mayor Marcelo Ebrard. "We...

Peru Murder Story a Big Fat Lie

Peru cop suspended for tale of gang that killed fatties

(Newser) - The Peruvian cop who claimed to have busted a crime ring that killed dozens of people to harvest their fat has been suspended for lying. Felix Murga, the country's top organized crime investigator, said that a gang had killed 60 people to sell their fat at $15,000 a liter....

Judge Blocks Latin America's 1st Gay Wedding

Argentine couple's case sent to supreme court at last minute

(Newser) - An Argentine judge put the kibosh on Latin America's first gay wedding before it could take place today. The federal judge ruled yesterday to reverse a decision from a Buenos Aires judge allowing the wedding to proceed, the AP reports, until the country's supreme court can consider the issue. Jose...

Chavez Masses Troops at Colombia Border

Leader warns Venezuelans to 'prepare for war'

(Newser) - Hugo Chavez has told the Venezuelan people to "prepare for war" and ordered 15,000 troops to the Colombian border. The leader told his soldiers to "defend this sacred nation called Venezuela," and accused Colombia of conspiring with the US to invade and grab the country's oil...

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