Open veins of Latin America / Guide to the Perfect Latin-American Idiot

[fedecc]

Fedeccc
UNLESS YOUR AN ANTI CAPITALIST THEN YOU WILL LOVE IT.
So the genocide of the native americans and the plunder of the minerals af latin america was just capitalism. Can i be so bold as to ask was the use of the Jews as slave labour and the mass slaugther afterwards just capitalism and therefore acceptable.

What i was saying is that Galeano argues that capitalist development is the root of all evil and the cause of all the miseries in Latin America, and that this should be appealing to people that already share this view.

 

[HenryNisental]

I have read the second one and it is excelent. It reflects the present (not the unjust past) reality. It shows that latin americans create their own misery by blocking any demontrated path and policies to creating wealth. Most have the wrong perception that somewhere, there is and incredible mountain of wealth that is owned by a few, and that needs to be plucked, or redistributed, as they say.
They forget that if you confiscate a million dollars from one man and distribute it on one million people, they will get one dollar each.
The right approach to create wealth is a market economy and no other has been found yet.

 

[thebookcellar]

I thouroughly enjoyed "the Open Veins..."
Most accounts of history can be critisized by those with a different viewpoint - so i feel that, as with everything, that both sides of the story are read.

One fact for consideration is that Galeano had to come to Buenos aires because of the military government un Uruguay - he then had to leave Buenos Aires because fo the junta militar... whether his work is 100% reliable factually is debatable - the fact that he had to run because of his viewpoint is not...

 

[Matt84]

Fedeccc
UNLESS YOUR AN ANTI CAPITALIST THEN YOU WILL LOVE IT.
So the genocide of the native americans and the plunder of the minerals af latin america was just capitalism. Can i be so bold as to ask was the use of the Jews as slave labour and the mass slaugther afterwards just capitalism and therefore acceptable.

GODWIN LAW IN LESS THAN 10 POST! Hey We might as well set a record here!

 

[Matt84]

May I recommend "El Autoritarismo y la Improductividad", Authoritarianism and Improductivity by Argentine García Hamilton (recently RIP).

I believe the fair and balanced viewpoint of the author is evident in the title.

 

[jedard]

I believe that most Americans now living here in Argentina feel that the USA have never done anything to hinder growth in this country. The USA has never done anything to Latin America and and the CIA is a myth

 

[HotYogaTeacher]

Wow Windy. Stay in context. The genocide and enslavement of native people is something that happened everywhere in the world for a long time and was, at the time it was taking place, considered normal, if not right, by most "educated" people. The world has changed much since then. I don't think anyone on this thread was indicating in any way that it was OK. If you want to have a reasonable argument you can't just throw unreasonable thought bombs into the mix.

The book is a bit dated and biased. Period. It's also a good read and interesting. Keeping perspective is important when reading any historical opinion. I am neither purely anti nor pro capitalist. I can say that I feel there is a place for well regulated capitalism and also think that slavery and genocide, in any of their heinous incarnations, are wrong.

I think it is a good idea for those of us who live in South America to understand some of the things that locals think and feel, and why. That's just a good way to get more deeply into the culture....

 

[perry]

Too many people believe that growth and peoples economic situation is based on their own governments . The truth is more wider as every government must be first approved by the bankers and then credits are given creating a rush of monies to the people . Now they believe that they are free citizens but they are bigger slaves than most of us down here living on 10 dollars a day.

 

[AlexfromLA]

I personally think Galeano's greatest literary work was Memory of Fire. It is a trilogy that delves much deeper into the history of Latin America than Open Veins. It is written in vignette form and the images it evokes are much more striking and beautiful.

The first book is Genesis and starts off with the oldest myths in Latin Americas Native American cultures and onto the Conquest. It covers the 1400's up until the 1700's

The second book is Faces and Masks covers the 1800's up until the beginning of the 1900's

The final book Century of the Wind covers the 1900's up until what was at the time the present.

I read it when I was about 10 years old. It is still one of the most influential books I have ever read alongside Kak zakalyalas' stal'. One of the most enlightening and saddest books I have ever read in my life. It is a must for anyone with Latin American blood running in their veins.