Latin America is so f*cked up because of the insistance of the ruling classes to align themmselves with the fat cats of the corporate U.S , and the inherent inability of the ruling classes to see beyond the end of their bank accounts that until there is some concerted kind of revolution ( though I suggest a quiet one rather than a bloody one) things will never change down here. I must say that in the ten years that I have lived here in Brazil, I have seen a change for the better and a lot of the politicians here do seem to be getting some kind of social conscience ( despite the fact of the seemingly insurmountable problems, the last 8 years here in Brazil have seen the instigation of many social reforms that the people have benefitted from). Still, there are more problems than viable solutions, but I put that down to the amount of problems that exist, it will take a long while to chip them down into a reasonable amount.
Kat, hi back at ya...I have been around. Though not asmuch as I would like....PM me some time.