The Guanajuato state government earlier faced harsh criticism after a public audit revealed that Governor Juan Manuel Oliva had spent two million pesos to buy foodstuffs with public money, to be distributed by the state, from the mother of his son-in-law.
It gets worse: It has now been revealed that the pious governor - the same who has in recent days issued blatantly unconstitutional calls to reintroduce religious education in the schools to instill "principles and values" could use a further refresher course on ethics himself, not to mention laws on corruption and conflicts of interests.
The new revelation: The state government has spent at least 80 million pesos purchasing foodstuffs from a company belonging to the daughter-in-law of Elías Villegas Torres, the regional leader for the ultra catholic extremist secret society El Yunque. The company, mind you, was created only four months after the coming to power of Oliva in late 2006, yet managed to beat out well-established competitors for contracts to supplying the state's DIF, which the current investigation has revealed as something close to a snake pit of crooks.
As for "principles and values," at least the way most decent citizens recognize them, they appear increasingly absent from the state government of Governor Juan Manuel Oliva.
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Spoken like a true yunquista: Guanajuato governor wants "religious education" in the schools
Guanajuato governor Juan Manuel Oliva, following up on a "proposal" from the archbishop of León, declared he was in favor of "analyzing" whether to reintroduce "religious education" in the schools in Guanajuato.
According to Oliva, who is a member of the extremist catholic secret El Yunque society:
"I am a believer that parents should choose the education for their children, and because of this right that they have, we will need to consider a request of this nature." Oliva also added that even though the secular state remains "protected," this does not imply living in a society that is "absent of principles and values."
Where does one start... for one, to even call it "religious education" is disingenuous. What Oliva wants is to indoctrinate the children with the catholic gospel, period - no need pretending. And exactly whose parents are demanding it? Yet even more fundamentally still: It is utterly pathetic to hear the old canard of these believers in invisible friends chime in on "principles and values." Does not teaching catholicism truly mean not teaching "principles and values"? Does this religion really have a monopoly on teaching children good "principles and values"? Unfortunately, this is what ignoramuses like Oliva believe in - that absent the (highly selective, mind you) teaching of bronze-age scriptures, students will simply not learn the good values and principles Olivia is obliquely referring to.
Is it truly so that the more one teach catholic values, the better human beings the students will come out? Is it truly so that in societies that do not teach religion in this manner in school - Scandinavia, most Western European countries - its students turn out to have less "principles and values" than those who are indoctrinated in catholic values? Let's put it this way: Quite a few scientific studies do show a clear correlation with church attendance/religiosity, and "social trust" and crime rates. Unfortunately for Oliva, the relationship runs in the other direction: The less religious a society is - and the less religious its education system is - the better off a society is.
And lest we forget: Guanajuato is one of the states in Mexico with the highest rates of teen pregnancy. Guess what state does not teach any sex education in the schools?
According to Oliva, who is a member of the extremist catholic secret El Yunque society:
"I am a believer that parents should choose the education for their children, and because of this right that they have, we will need to consider a request of this nature." Oliva also added that even though the secular state remains "protected," this does not imply living in a society that is "absent of principles and values."
Where does one start... for one, to even call it "religious education" is disingenuous. What Oliva wants is to indoctrinate the children with the catholic gospel, period - no need pretending. And exactly whose parents are demanding it? Yet even more fundamentally still: It is utterly pathetic to hear the old canard of these believers in invisible friends chime in on "principles and values." Does not teaching catholicism truly mean not teaching "principles and values"? Does this religion really have a monopoly on teaching children good "principles and values"? Unfortunately, this is what ignoramuses like Oliva believe in - that absent the (highly selective, mind you) teaching of bronze-age scriptures, students will simply not learn the good values and principles Olivia is obliquely referring to.
Is it truly so that the more one teach catholic values, the better human beings the students will come out? Is it truly so that in societies that do not teach religion in this manner in school - Scandinavia, most Western European countries - its students turn out to have less "principles and values" than those who are indoctrinated in catholic values? Let's put it this way: Quite a few scientific studies do show a clear correlation with church attendance/religiosity, and "social trust" and crime rates. Unfortunately for Oliva, the relationship runs in the other direction: The less religious a society is - and the less religious its education system is - the better off a society is.
And lest we forget: Guanajuato is one of the states in Mexico with the highest rates of teen pregnancy. Guess what state does not teach any sex education in the schools?
The great John Ross is dead
I just saw the sad news that John Ross died this very morning, at age 73, due to liver cancer.
I was by coincidence just reading his absolutely amazing book of Mexico City, El Monstruo, which only came out in 2009. It is a great read, even if you have not lived there for a couple of decades like him.
Here is a wonderful obituary of a most extraordinary man.
I was by coincidence just reading his absolutely amazing book of Mexico City, El Monstruo, which only came out in 2009. It is a great read, even if you have not lived there for a couple of decades like him.
Here is a wonderful obituary of a most extraordinary man.
Monday, January 17, 2011
Nayarit elections and the party Convergencia: "We will only join winner"
Perhaps not verbatim, but pretty close: The party Convergencia in Nayarit said it would only join a coalition of PAN and PRD if the candidate proposed was the one ahead in the polls.
Everybody loves a winner, but especially Convergencia. That said, expect Convergencia in the end to line up behind thecandidacy of former PRI, then PRD, then PAN, then whatever party she can use for her gain, politician Martha Elena García, now a federal deputy, and wife of a former governor of the state.
Everybody loves a winner, but especially Convergencia. That said, expect Convergencia in the end to line up behind thecandidacy of former PRI, then PRD, then PAN, then whatever party she can use for her gain, politician Martha Elena García, now a federal deputy, and wife of a former governor of the state.
PRI and the Great Lie: Guillermo Sánchez Nava, near death, faked it!
The PRI is certainly on a roll these days: Just when you think its standards couldn't sink any further, Senator Fernando Castro Trenti demanded evidence that Guillermo Sánchez Nava, who went in a coma after being attacked by most likely PRI supporters, claiming amazingly that the PRD campaign "put up a farce," meaning that the PRD somehow arranged for the attack on Sánchez Nava themselves. Wow.
Note that the PRI senator demanded "evidence" that the PRD activist was actually hurt; yesterday, his sons responded to this pathetic call by presenting his medical diagnosis from the hospital: traumatic head injury.
Will that suffice, Castro?
Jésus Ortega, national PRD president, condemned Senator Castro for his "absolute insensitivity and total loss of humanity." I think Ortega is too kind.
Ortega also denounced governors Enrique Peña (Mexico State), Egidio Torre (Tamaulipas), Ivonne Ortega (Yucatán) and Ney González (Nayarit) for interfering in the election.
Note that the PRI senator demanded "evidence" that the PRD activist was actually hurt; yesterday, his sons responded to this pathetic call by presenting his medical diagnosis from the hospital: traumatic head injury.
Will that suffice, Castro?
Jésus Ortega, national PRD president, condemned Senator Castro for his "absolute insensitivity and total loss of humanity." I think Ortega is too kind.
Ortega also denounced governors Enrique Peña (Mexico State), Egidio Torre (Tamaulipas), Ivonne Ortega (Yucatán) and Ney González (Nayarit) for interfering in the election.
Mariano González Zarur becomes Tlaxcala governor; the worst of PRI resurfaces from the sewer
Mariano González Zarur's assumption as governor of Tlaxcala Saturday truly brought out the best and the worst of the PRI - representatives of the latter included highly discredited ex-governors Roberto Madrazo and Ulises Ruiz, as well as soon-to-be former governor, the ill-famed protector of pederasts, Mario Marín of Puebla - a man who belongs in a federal prison rather than as an invited (presumably) guest to a gubernatorial inauguration ceremon
The state was wrested from the PAN, following the six-year rule of Héctor Israel Ortiz Ortiz. González Zarur promised a thorough house cleaning of the former state administration; notably, in the inauguration ceremony, the eight chairs set aside for PAN's state deputies were empty.
The state was wrested from the PAN, following the six-year rule of Héctor Israel Ortiz Ortiz. González Zarur promised a thorough house cleaning of the former state administration; notably, in the inauguration ceremony, the eight chairs set aside for PAN's state deputies were empty.
PRD national leadership organs to be renewed March 19
This weekend's meeting of the PRD's national council decided as expected that the party's key organs - its presidency, secretary general and secretariat, as well as its national political commission and a couple of autonomous party commissions. The council meeting was chiefly a formality; an upcoming meeting in mid-February will address the contentious issue of the PRD's possible electoral alliance with the PAN in 2-3 state elections in 2011, most importantly in Mexico State.
While Lázaro Cárdenas Batel, son of Cuauhtémoc, was prominently presented as a possible "unity candidate" to head the party the next three years, LCB has evolved into the sphinx-like character of his father, opting to remain silent virtually until the very end right before any decision will have to be made - that is, he has not expressed interest for the presidency, nor rejected it.
Regardless: Ahead of two crucial state elections - Guerrero and Baja California Sur - the PRD is wisely doing all it can to maintain a modicum of unity. Even Dolores Padierna argued for a "consensus candidate" - which presumably would mean that she the extremely controversial and tainted leader of the IDN faction has dropped her own candidacy.
While Lázaro Cárdenas Batel, son of Cuauhtémoc, was prominently presented as a possible "unity candidate" to head the party the next three years, LCB has evolved into the sphinx-like character of his father, opting to remain silent virtually until the very end right before any decision will have to be made - that is, he has not expressed interest for the presidency, nor rejected it.
Regardless: Ahead of two crucial state elections - Guerrero and Baja California Sur - the PRD is wisely doing all it can to maintain a modicum of unity. Even Dolores Padierna argued for a "consensus candidate" - which presumably would mean that she the extremely controversial and tainted leader of the IDN faction has dropped her own candidacy.
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