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Politics in Latin America

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Should Argentina's Cristina Fernandez, wife of President Nestor Kirchner, be allowed to run for the presidency?

Results so far:

Yes
75% 21 votes Total: 28 votes
No
25% 7 votes
Yes

You heard it here first! Coming soon to Broadway, a new musical about the valiant Argentinian lady who was beloved by all the poor people of that South American land. And the hit song is, "Don't cry for me, Cristina."

I'm not familiar with the laws of Argentina concerning eligibility for Cristina to run for president of the country. She wouldn't be the first. Juan Peron's third wife, Isabel ... Isabelita ... became president in 1974 after Peron died. The famed Evita, his second wife, never earned the title of president. However, during her short life, she became an almost-holy icon to the Argentinian people.

Evita was like a combination of Hillary Clinton and Paris Hilton, all rolled up into one fair-haired charismatic celebrity. Like Jean Harlow, Marilyn Monroe, Jayne Mansfield and Anna Nicole Smith, the glamorous South American blonde's sudden death elevated her to near sainthood. So far, Cristina hasn't achieved that high status, but she's working on it.

Maybe the most fascinating aspect of Cristina Fernandez' possible run for president is that her career path seems to eerily parallel that of Hillary Clinton. She's a lawyer and currently a senator, and she became the nation's first lady when husband Nestor Kirchner was elected in 2003. Earlier, like Bill, Nestor was a governor of a rural province.

Rumors are now all over Argentina that Kirchner will not seek re-election in October, and like Bill, travel with his wife as she makes a bid for president. OK, Broadway songsters, are you ready to write that new musical, "Cristina"?

Learn more about this author, Ted Sherman.
Contact this writer Click here to send this author comments or questions.

No

It is unfortunate for me to say this, as women happen to be a great majority in the people I befriend and respect, but Latin America has an unfortunate tendency of having had a marred history of female rulers.

In Panama, the very idea of electing a female president after Mireya Moscoso's election has now become practically extinct. In South and Central America, most, if not all female presidents were overthrown, deposed, or forced into resignation. The only country in Latin America to have elected a female president and held onto her was Nicaragua, and her shining moment was dealing with the military after concluding a truce that ended a ten-year war.

So why not women? Well, the problem with most of the female presidents we have seen is that they are, for the most part, extremely militant for the few issues that truly matter to them, and fail to see that while they -are- in power, they first have to run many of their decisions through -men-. What happens then? Well, most of the president's decrees that need Parliamentary consent get voided, and the few that don't irritate the hard-liner population that believe in democratic process.

Even more problematic for Fernandez is the problem that their last female president, Isabel Pern, was overthrown by the military, with absolutely no violent repercussions. So, given that, would you truly believe that Fernandez has a chance of running, never mind -winning-?

Learn more about this author, Richard Ballard.
Contact this writer Click here to send this author comments or questions.

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