Well, Carl, I'm afraid Act 5 is here.
When you and I wrote about the whole Honduras debacle back when it began in June, we both teased out the humorous aspects of this tragi-comedy: the midnight exile of the Latin American president in his pajamas . . . his little-engine-that-could vow to return from Costa Rica . . . Hugo Chavez stepping in as the heavy. Add to the mix all the racism, matrimonial dysfunction, big oil and imperialism circulating behind the scenes. As you said then, there was something for everyone.
But in the past few days, the situation in Honduras has gone from the absurd to the flat-out tragic. On Monday, exiled President Manuel Zelaya returned to his home country and took up residency in the Brazilian Embassy. By Tuesday, Honduran security forces had barricaded the embassy and cut off all of its power. By Wednesday there were widespread anti-"coup" demonstrations outside the embassy, with allegations of torture and even killings by the Honduran Armed Forces.
Although the curfew was lifted on Thursday, the conflict has already taken a huge toll. Economically, there are reports of looting and food shortages. Business elites estimated that the curfew cost the country $50 million a day. And then there are the alleged human rights abuses.
I think that two things are making this conflict particularly difficult for the American public to interpret.
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