Still Marking Time

It’s nice to see a new 5-star review on Amazon.com for my book, but sales have not expanded commensurate with the favorable reviews and commendations. I need to find a way to jump-start sales, the recession notwithstanding. I would think that with the down economy, more people might be considering a stint in the Peace Corps and others might want to find out more about Honduras in light of the current crisis. I’d like more libraries to have copies of my book and have donated some to libraries in Florida and know of at least one university library that has the book. However, a copy donated to the DC public library months ago has yet to appear in the online catalog. Some libraries are reluctant to offer self-published books and some imagine such books to be unreadable (though libraries are full of barely readable diet and dating books). I’ve had friends comment that they’d read my book as a favor to me, but were surprised to find they really liked it. “Who was your editor?” they ask. My answer: “You’re looking right at her.” In any case, suggestions about how to promote my book’s distribution and readership would be appreciated. And tell your friends! Give it as gift! Put one in your local library!

Meanwhile, today I can find no real news on Honduras or about is happening with Zelaya here in Washington. At least he still has a visa, unlike some members of the Micheletti team. Zelaya obviously isn’t trekking off to Caracas to make his case. Obama is trying to support Zelaya to counteract Chavez and to maintain credibility with Latin America—to at least keep the US from becoming an obvious target for condemnation. But the interim government is still standing fast. Unless the fall elections are moved up, there are still 4 more months to go. Can it hold out that long? For subsistence farmers, it probably doesn’t matter, but if public employees are not getting paid, that’s a problem. So far, with few exceptions, it seems that Honduran demonstrations on both sides have been peaceful, although Zelaya supporters have been burning tires, a time-honored gesture of protest in Latin America.

The following tongue-in-cheek commentary comes from someone in Venezuela: When an oppressed people is struggling against a right-wing tyranny, anything goes. The "human rights" mafia (all of them in the pay of the CIA, it goes without saying) will try to make out that there's some kind of contradiction between, say, complaining about the Honduras usurper's censoring of the media and our own government's sovereign decision last week to revoke the licenses of 240 radio stations.

They will deliberately misinterpret our leader's call, earlier this year, for student protesters to be given 'a good dose of gas'. And worst of all, they are already suggesting parallels between the brutal ousting of Mel and the entirely constitutional replacement of the opposition mayor of Caracas (elected last November) with a loyal revolutionary appointed by our leader. These are the same ones who can't see the difference between Chavez's rebellion in 1992 (supported by the people) and the Honduran putsch. Or who laugh at Raul Castro's moving defence of democratic rights. The people are not fooled. Viva la revolucion!"