A Leftist Female for President

Chile elects first female leader
Former political prisoner's victory adds to continent's shift to left

Sunday, January 15, 2006; Posted: 10:43 p.m. EST (03:43 GMT)

SANTIAGO, Chile (CNN) -- Chilean voters have elected their first female president, one-time political prisoner and socialist Michelle Bachelet.
Bachelet, who has also been a doctor and serves as defense minister for the outgoing government of President Ricardo Lagos, defeated billionaire businessman Sebastian Pinera in a runoff Sunday.
With more than 99 percent of precincts reporting, she had 53.5 percent of the vote to Pinera's 46.5 percent.
"I want our government to be remembered as the government by everyone and for everyone," she said.
Airline and broadcasting tycoon Pinera conceded defeat as results showed Bachelet with a solid lead and he thanked Bachelet for "her triumph today."
But the man who studied economics at Harvard vowed the fight would go on.
"We will continue to be a firm and constructive opposition."
Bachelet spent five years in exile following the 1973 coup that bought Gen. Augusto Pinochet to power.
Her father, an air force general, was tortured and killed after the U.S.-backed coup, and Bachelet herself was tortured before being sent into exile in Australia.
"What I want, and have and will always work for, is to build a society in which what happened to me and so many Chileans can never be repeated," she said in a December campaign appearance.
Bachelet completed her training as a pediatrician in East Germany and served as health minister in Chile's center-left government before becoming defense minister.
The new president is an agnostic single mother in a male-dominated, overwhelmingly Catholic society where divorce was legalized less than a year ago.
"To have a woman president shows that we are a freer, more just, more diverse, more prosperous and more modern Chile," Lagos said.
In Washington, the White House congratulated Bachelet and praised Chilean voters "for their strong commitment to democracy."
"We have an excellent, long-standing relationship with Chile and look forward to working with the new president and her team," White House spokesman David Almacy said.
Bachelet's victory adds to a leftward shift in Latin American politics.
Leftists hold presidential power in Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay and Venezuela.
Bolivian President-elect Evo Morales -- a former coca farmer and union leader who promises to nationalize the country's natural gas industry -- is slated to take office January 22. (Full story)
Bachelet is scheduled to take office March 11.

I Agree

"Every person has to seek in their own way to make their own self more noble and to realize their own true worth. You must give some time to your fellow man. Even if it's a little thing, do something for those who have need of help, something for which you get no pay but the privilege of doing it. For remember, you don't live in a world all your own. Your brothers and sisters are here too." --Albert Schweitzer

Quote

Quote
"It is one thing to talk abstractly about human goodness and ourpotential to be kind, but it's quite another to come into directcontact with hundreds of real stories of real people exercising theirpower to heal, to help each other, to make a difference."--Caroline Myss

The Prophet

The Prophet
Alissa X
April 14, 2005
Psych & Consciousness Journal: The Prophet
... And then a woman spoke, saying , Tell us of Love and Letting Go. And he said: It is often said that love, whether it be between friends, lovers or family, can move mountains, but love, great love can also drag you to your knees. It can at times be the most painful experience of your existence, often when it comes time to say goodbye and walk-away; willfully or not, for a short time or forever. I must tell you that it may be painful but valuable nonetheless to understand that not every person we meet and fall-in love with was meant to be in our lives forever, some were only meant to be around for a short time. Take this to heart and remember that when the separation is to be permanent you must move on and try not to think about what might have been; that was then and this, this is now; do not carry the burdens and pains of the past. And it should be known, that when leaving is for only a matter of time, remember that a great and true love never dies, it may like the butterfly change its forms, but it never escapes you. So, when you are apart, hold it near and dear to your heart, let it make you smile and laugh like a child without a care in the World when you are alone, but under no circumstances ever let it go. Even when the separation is because of death, let the love and happy moments carry you through the darker ones, and know that you do not have to continue hearing “I love you” to know that you were and are loved, because love is more than words, its something you already know.

Daily Dose of Motivation

You are, this moment, where you need to be. Take the opportunity to live it with passion and purpose. There is no reason to keep pushing the best of life out of your reach, saving it for another time, another place, or another set of circumstances. Now is the time, this is the place to fill with goodness and richness, with beauty and love. There is no need to wait or to hope for things to get better. For you can be your very best no matter what else may be happening around you. There is nothing to be gained by wishing that the past had been different. Instead, put your energy into living and fulfilling the best of the countless possibilities that are now in front of you. The value, the goodness, the love and effort you give to this moment will come back to you many times over. Now is the time to invest yourself in positive, productive thoughts and actions. Stop making excuses and start being the best you can imagine. Stop waiting and start to truly and fully live.
-- Ralph Marston