[thechat] Presidenta Bachelet

[Judah McAuley]

I have been following the election to some extent and have been 
impressed by her. She seems very strong and level-headed. Considering 
what Chile has been through (and what she personally went through) under 
Pinochet, I can see situations where reprisals are very tempting. She 
seems to be above that and I think that is a good thing for the country 
and the region.

 From my perspective as an American, the biggest implication of her 
election is probably the confirmation of the leftward trend in South 
American leaders. First Chavez, then Morales, now Bachelet. Admittedly, 
she doesn't seem as far left economically as Morales, but I still think 
it shows a strong sense of independence and a reaction to the policies 
that the World Bank and the IMF have tried to push on SA. I'll be very 
interested to see what impact this election has on CAFTA. Hopefully 
we'll see a greater emphasis put on environmental and social concerns in 
trade agreements in the future to produce more equitable trade amongst 
neighboring countries.

Judah

javier velasco wrote:
> Hi gang,
> 
> I'd like to get some of your impressions on the coverage of the Chile's 
> recent presidential election that gave us the first 
> democratically-elected female president in latin america.
> 
> Have you seen her bio?
> 
> In case you're wondering, I'm really happy about it, she's a strong and 
> coherent person.
> 
> cheers
> javier
> 
> PS: let's see how long this lasts before turning into a music 
> conversation ;)