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As far as we know, Ticos/as voted yes (until any concrete proof arises) and this will be an incredibly difficult transition, not at first, as I imagine they will want to remove the bitter “taste” from Ticos’ mouths before really getting down to business, but I wouldn’t give up on Costa Rica just yet. If and when this turns ugly, Costa Ricans will not just be victims. They are a non-violent people, but are some of the most effect “backtrackers” I know. They’ve thrown out other agreements with Bush (oh, I meant Harken 🙂 before and have had to suffer the legal ramifications without backing down. I understand this is much larger, but my bet is still on them. Don’t forget, according to the voting estimates, half of the country didn’t want this to begin with–they will be watching like hawks. Heck, we fared worse here, where more than half of the voting population didn’t want Bush and yet we got stuck with him! Not to mention how Ticos/as practiced their voting rights yesterday–I don’t care what some have said on the post questioning CR’s democracy, there’s a lot to be learned from people, who right or wrong, got up and made their opinion count— and festively to boot! Take heart…
Alfred, thank you for your kind words. We all have to hope for the best for that wonderful country because no matter their choice, the road ahead will be difficult, but I have faith they will find a way.
Lotus, The post was not meant for those in the SI group, it was clearly marked for those that “gloated.” Unless something we don’t know about went down in CR, Costa Ricans practiced their incredible form of democracy yesterday by showing up to the polls as they did. Like I’ve said before, my heart stands behind them as it always has in the past. Forgive me if you or anyone else believed it was directed at the opposition, it most certainly was not….
Simondg, most of us here at WLCR have varied viewpoints, but we have a common bond of our love and respect for Costa Rica and humanity. I think we have all been expressing it as best as possible without loosing sight that whatever views expressed, the people are expressing them because they feel that it would benefit that wonderful country. I prefer a more positive approach, although sometimes highly challenging, because this will not only let you live longer, but your thinking becomes more creative, integrative, flexible and open to all information when your mindset is such. Of course, negativity breeds exactly the opposite. It does the soul & body good to be positive and now scientific research can show it. What’s not to love about a culture that produced an everyday saying/greeting as PURA VIDA! I will forever be enamored with that land and it’s people and also with those that love and support them…Buenas Noches…
I wish the people of Costa Rica only the best and I continue to hope for their total well-being, now and always….Que siempre viva la Pura Vida de Tiquicia…
Simondg, I know the feeling–being a child born in exile, I never quite felt at home where I grew up, but “home” was born in my heart the first year I spent in Costa Rica….when they still said “tuanis” and it sounded cool…(LOL)
To those gloating:
Gloating is an emotion that is motivated when you’re pleased about an event that is undesirable for another. Just a simple definition and so aptly portrayed this evening….
Of which I’ll let Bronte & Tolstoy be the ones to express my feelings as it’s very late here in the sometimes not so gentle Monster of the North:
“Had I seen it depicted in a novel, I should have thought it unnatural; had I heard it described by others, I should have deemed it a mistake or an exaggeration; but when I saw it with my own eyes, and suffered from it too, I could only conclude that excessive vanity, like drunkenness, hardens the heart, enslaves the faculties, and perverts the feelings; and that dogs are not the only creatures which, when gorged to the throat, will yet gloat over what they cannot devour, and grudge the smallest morsel to a starving brother.” Anne Bronte.
“Well then, gloat over it.” Leo Tolstoy in War & Peace
Jose Marti said how I feel best, while I’m in or out of Costa Rica, but most passionately when I’m there (I think maybe others in WLCR may feel similarly):
(If you can read Spanish, please read the original text after my translation–Jose Marti’s words are simply beautiful and it’s difficult to do them justice. For those that cannot, please read my humble attempt to honor his words):
“With the poor of this world
I take my fate:
The mountain stream
pleases me more than the sea.Give the vain tender gold
In crucible smoldering and shiny:
As for me, give me an eternal forest
When the sun breaks through.The Bishop of Spain seeks
Pilars for his altar,
In my temple, in the mountain
The poplar is the pilar!And the carpeting is pure ferns.
The walls of birch,
Light comes from the ceiling,
The ceiling of blue sky.”
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Jose Marti’s original verses:“Con los pobres de la tierra
Quiero yo mi suerte echar:
El arroyo de la sierra
Me complace más que el mar.Denle al vano el oro tierno
Que arde y brilla en el crisol:
A mí denme el bosque eterno
Cuando rompe en él el sol.Busca el obispo de España
Pilares para su altar;
¡En mi templo, en la montaña,
El alamo es el pilar!Y la alfombra es puro helecho,
Y los muros abedul,
Y la luz viene del techo,
Del techo de cielo azul.”I look forward to reading your article–imagine that, another Cuban-Costa Rican connection….Don’t worry Scott, I wouldn’t dream of forgetting the founder of one of my muses, WLCR. I’m always impressed by the love affair farmers have with their land. In Cuba, it was actually moving to see them gently, but knowingly handle the leaves and then transform them into such an elegant product…Again, not that I promote smoking, but I do think it’s beautiful to be passionate about what you do….Rebeca
I don’t think that politicians, Democrats and Republicans alike, are willing to back a sinking ship before the next US elections. Frankly, that’s my only hope that Congress will finally do what’s right and negotiate a better and actually understandable trade deal with Costa Rica if the NO vote wins today. If the YES vote wins, then we’ll get to see what’s in the “Piñata” as my friend’s mother put it, for some people in Costa Rica. I think all sides are holding their breath right now..
I sure hope so Alfred–that embargo has only served to harm the people not Fidel’s resolve. I don’t promote smoking, but I have to admit that Cuban cigars are some of the best. If trade opens up then I’ll buy some of my uncle’s fresh rolled cigars for you and some other WLCR friends–he’s been growing and rolling cigars almost all of his life. 😉
I can only hope you’re right and the US stops this ridiculous embargo with Cuba–for whatever the reason! Then, the games are on! Cubans, with Fidel or without him, are not likely to allow anyone to tell them what is in their best interest and have proven to be incredibly creative in order to survive their current economic conditions–I can only imagine what they’ll come up with if given half the chance. Opinionated bunch of people these Cubans 🙂 From your Cuban/Tica amiga, Rebeca.
PS. Just spoke to my sister in CR & she feels that many will abstain from voting because they’re still so confused about what CAFTA really means. Unfortunately, this is not a novel approach, “if you can’t dazzle them with brilliance, then baffle them with…” My heart goes out to all Ticos/Ticas today….
“Why not….wander off into the jungle for a little while. Meditate on the transitory nature of life and feel part of this vast universe…live the Pura Vida! Soon enough it will all be gone and on your death bed gold, universal health care, TLC, socialism and every other ism will all seem so pointless. Why are you here and who are you? No one can tell you that but when you know it; then your life is a success and a deep peace will come over you…”
I love that Lotus….
As for health concerns, unless it’s an emergency, come to Costa Rica, they really do have great doctors and facilities there. While in CR I unexpectedly needed surgery in 2001, I had to make a choice between US and Costa Rica. The cost difference was huge (and at the time I didn’t pay over $12,000/yr in NJ for family health insurance), but mostly I’m glad to have chosen CR because the doctors were magnificent and I was able to enjoy the typical ‘chineo’ (pampering) of my Costa Rican friends/family thru my recovery period. No better place to be to feel PURA VIDA! 😉 Rebeca.
You are right, CAFTA is NOT just about economy in the same way USAid is NOT just about charity….Only that US interests are not always expressed so transparently… Hopefully, Ticos & Ticas have figured that out already and will vote accordingly today…
No, it was a son & a nephew that were incredibly kind to offered to drive my friend and I back to San Jose from Golfito–an 8 hr drive. He was a very charming man and shared some very comical Monge father & family moments that I still recall whenever I see someone ‘a bit robust’ sit on one of those white plastic garden chairs (LOL). Just the kind of hospitality I have always encountered in that wonderful country. I never worry if I get into a jam over there (anywhere) because someone has always offered to help me–
Gotta love that place! :->Funny thing about perception and how it colors what we think we see and hear! This was what I put on the post:
“Why in the world do you want to live in CR if you want to make it like the Czech Rep? Costa Rica welcomed you into her territory, have some respect for their right to have a different culture than your own…”
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Just because you have been less than polite doesn’t mean I was following suit. I did NOT at any time try to tell you to leave Costa Rica (as you can read for yourself), I simply asked you to RESPECT it and it’s culture. If you love it, then help make it better without obliterating what it is today. Otherwise, it starts to sound like a bad marriage destined for divorce (and not because of any request from me)…As for having more than enough well reasoned thoughts–there’s that arrogance again….I really think it’s time I stop wasting them on someone who can’t seem to face how he/she devaluates those you disagree with (calling stupid=lack of reasoned thoughts, lazy, lacking work ethic, visionless, etc.) and reads my posts as if she/he had written them. I was taught by a wonderful woman in Monteverde, CR that it’s not enough to tolerate others, you must do everything in your power to respect them. You obviously have your business/personal reasons for defending CAFTA in CR. It makes me sad that you’re proposing they transform a culture and place you say you love even more than your homeland. I also have my personal reasons–I love Costa Rica and although I don’t believe Ticos/Ticas are perfect, I love and respect them enough to accept who they choose to be…Take a deep breath JanKozak because you need to stop attacking in order to stop feeling attacked….in all earnest, Be well and Pura Vida!Your words inside quotes JanKozak: “We had to tie our belts, work hard and adjust to a new way of life…I feel that those in the NO crowd are principally those individuals and groups that are unwilling to change the status quo. They are individuals and groups who are unable to envision a better future not only for themselves but for the country as a whole…. Ticos will need to slowly but surely start changing their ways, improve their work ethic…Free trade and capitalism is not for lazy people… On the other hand, those who work hard will find themselves better off!”
Oh heaven’s forbid, you’ve been a real doll implicating Mexico’s problems after NAFTA on themselves and expressing your highest regard for all of us “lazy” and visionless people in the “NO” crowd and Ticos alike who may not want your type of lifestyle….Who knows, maybe it’s a language problem for you and not a perceptual one, but somehow I doubt it because the arrogance is not punctual, it’s perrvasive…Why in the world do you want to live in CR if you want to make it like the Czech Rep? Costa Rica welcomed you into her territory, have some respect for their right to have a different culture than your own…
For my friends in the Forum:
A frustrated professor once demanded to know from an indigenous person why he was so irresponsibly late for their trip down the river. “Don’t you understand the concept of time,” he shouted as he nervously looked at this watch, the indigenous man smiled and said, “you are sadly mistaken professor, I have ALL the time in the world, YOU just have a watch.” …Funny thing about perception…..Pura Vida!
It seems you’ve had a very difficult, but successful experience in the Czech Republic and EU, as per your accounts–and you were there right? You have a right to your opinion. If you express a contrary one with respect, people will listen even if they don’t agree, but if you express it with disdain then you’ve lost your audience. I tell you what, I won’t pretend to know what happened in your country and you need to consider that your associating your vastly different experience with what has happened in Central America & Mexico–a totally different context. Part of the problem is that CR has not been held back by communism and the EU is not the US. On the respect issue, your assumption that the “NO” crowd is lazy or just seeking to maintain the status quo is as arrogant as your assumptions regarding the Mexican situation. I for one own and run two business, study at Columbia University, have lived in CR for almost a decade, first visited CR in 1982 and continue to visit often and have family & friends there–Needless to say, I don’t consider myself a slacker and I do believe I’ve lived thru much of what your pretending to assess in CR. As far as Ticos/Ticas who say “NO”, it has nothing to do with their laid back nature or lack of work ethic, it has to do with their belief that although they may not ALL be able to drive around in BMWs–there is MUCH more to LIFE than $$$$. I can’t say what the whole country will choose on Sunday, but it should be on their terms and not based on transplants from other places with vastly different cultures, backgrounds, struggles and goals. Stop to consider that Costa Rica’s #1 export is tourism NOT manufactured products. A tourists comes to see the natural beauty of this wonderfully diverse country. Do you really think CAFTA will worry about CR’s environment, my friends at MINAE (Ministry of Environment) are absolutely sure it won’t and as a Tropical Biologist, I agree with them. One of the unfortunate legacies of communist governments has been devastated environmental conditions, maybe to your country this was not something you were used to protecting, but Costa Rica still has immense beauty that should not be squandered not only based on an economic factor–I mean really, why kill the goose that lays the golden eggs of tourism? Also because LIFE has a value greater than CAFTA could provide and one that CAFTA does NOT respect. That agreement will create irreversible damage to the diversity of life, any chance of striving for a more sustainable development in a country I love deeply and obviously see from very different eyes than you. Not to mention the negative social impact it will have. As a Cuban who also became a Tica at heart at the tender age of 19, I say to you, Pura Vida JanKozak–think about what that means for a moment….PS. Unless you choose to express your concerns with more respect towards those you disagree with, I will not be responding any further. Of course I understand your inclination, I have had to practice great restraint to respond respectfully to your rude and arrogant remarks…
100% behind you Simondg!
Jankozak: If you would like to make the case that the immensely strong correlation evident between NAFTA and the damage to the average Mexican’s economy does not prove causation, may I remind you that it ALSO doesn’t disprove it! I much prefer to obtain my information regarding how someone’s life was altered, after a “free” trade agreement or any other form of calamity, from a human being that actually had to survive the process than from a highly educated, unethical, posturing economist sitting behind a desk anywhere in the world, especially Washington D.C. Easy for them to spin what happened since they certainly did not experience their family’s life and dreams go up in flames at the same time NAFTA kicked in–of course, so very coincidentally. Please don’t misunderstand me, I place great value on education and have had the privilege of assisting wonderful universities in the US, including Ivy League. I also graduated from a public university in CR and I can truly tell you that some of the best lessons I’ve ever learned about local situations have come from speaking with real people–residents, farmers, community leaders–what you may call regular folk and I call honest folk. They may not be as educated, but their experience is invaluable and irreplaceable. It takes a huge amount of arrogance to tell someone that you just ran over with a tractor trailer that they really weren’t hurt by you at all, to tell them that they were REALLY hurt because their country’s poor infrastructure allowed it! I guess the correlation rule doesn’t apply here, hmm? Trade agreements such as NAFTA and the like have done enough damage to show that CAFTA will only serve to run over Ticos/as and then come up with some Costa Rican defect to explain the root cause of their new woes. Coincidentally (there goes that word again), it will be a defect that was there before the agreement (as your Mexican example illustrated) yet had miraculously not caused X or Y problem, but now it could. I’ve seen Costa Ricans take on huge bullies before and other times I’ve only read about it, but be assured that wonderful loving Ticos/as have the intelligence and plain common sense to see beyond such spins!
