Facing the Truth about Facebook 2018

Melinda Palacio





Before ringing in the New Year, I am taking advantage of the quiet everywhere to get some writing done. I realized only too late that I had not prepared a piece for this week's La Bloga. My New Year's Resolution will involve being better prepared and better organized. It's safe to say that a few of my husband's good habits have rubbed off on me. After ten years, I see the benefits of having less clutter and an organized closet. One change Steve has made in his life that I continue to resist is his decision to close his Facebook account for good. He has pointed out how FB has gotten rich over the concept of using people like me, people who regularly put up free content on a website that they get rich off of by selling my information and those of my 'friends' and reading my posts and messages and learning what I like and dislike and sharing that information with their advertisers. See the NYT article for 5 Ways Facebook Shared Your Data or yesterday's article which breaks down Facebook's rule book and how the company makes about $5 billion in profit per quarter thanks to our sweet posts and rants. The bottom line is Steve does not appreciate being used or manipulated and he values his privacy more than I do.

Earlier this month, La Bloga learned that Facebook had unblocked and restored all of our posts. Now, that have a platform again, I'm not eager to give it up. I suppose I can point to vanity of wanting to share that photo of me in Ireland or of me eating a fabulous meal or wearing a new dress that keeps me buying into the deal with the FB devil, all under the guise of being connected to over a thousand friends and of being a writer who will reach a bigger audience with this great deceit that we've all signed up for. In reality, every private message, every red heart or smiley face means data that the FB sells to other companies like Netflix and Yahoo. And if you think you're too savvy to fall into the traps of how FB is using you, think two words: President Trump. Sure, neither you nor I voted for the thing in white house, but a whole bunch of other people did and a whole election was stolen thanks to FB giving access to real and fake accounts in exchange for the product: you.

Before I was addicted to photographing my food and looking at random videos of people that I vaguely know, I viewed the internet as a source for useful essays and information that might help my writing. It was here on La Bloga, before I joined my fellow esteemed Blogueros, that began my day in anticipation of what I might find on La Bloga. After all, being a fan of Daniel Olivas's column led to my first published story, and eventually, my first published novel. I trust that there are still La Bloga readers who turn to our site before turning to the a highly curated website where users manipulate their reality and post what they want you to see. Better yet, I trust readers of La Bloga will choose to lose themselves in a book and wonder where the time went.

As 2018 comes to a close, I've published a a new poetry book, Bird Forgiveness (3: A Taos Press) two of the Bird Forgiveness poems were nominated for the Pushcart Prize. Readers of La Bloga know I've written several journalism and personal memoir pieces on La Bloga, as well as poems in literary journals, the most recent in Fifth Wednesday Journal, a special issue, Fall 2018 Issue 23, coedited by Ana Castillo and Vern Miller with cover art by Claudia D. Hernandez. La Bloga's own, Amelia Montes, contributed an excerpt from her upcoming memoir that was nominated for the Pushcart Prize. The call for Fifth Wednesday Journal's special issue on immigration was earlier this summer before the deaths of two children: Felipe Gomez Alonzo and Jakelin Caal. I also found out about the call for entries through a message on Facebook.

Frontera NorteSur, Denver's Festival de Cine Mexicano, y un chiste

La Bloga readers have various reasons for coming here, not the least of which is news we share from the Spanish-speaking world--from Spain's Semana Negra to cultural news from all over the Southwest. Despite being primarily an arts/literary blog, real-world events necessarily affect our art and how we live in each of our niches.

The Internet, the WWW have provided us with floods of information--as countless as the over a billion Tweets or two hundred million blogs in existence (incl. Chinese). But the reliability of news and searches for "the truth" threaten to be buried by the staggering number of pieces out there. At the same time, mainstream sources of reliable journalism are declining. We the public, Chicano and otherwise, don't necessarily know as much as we once did.

For instance, how many know there have been at least ten suicides at Ft. Hood this year, an increase in domestic violence on-base and a rise in local crime? And who in the world of journalism is analyzing that for us and tying it to Obama's adding another 40,000 troops to "our" wars?

Information on Mexico and the shared border is important to us, not only because of our proximity or cultural ties, but the nature of that border is changing. Narco violence has crossed the river and no one can say how far north it will travel or how it might change our lives in Phoenix, San Antonio and even Denver.

None of this relates to you? Heading south of the border for an affordable vacation soon? Do you know which beaches are hygienically dangerous, unfit for swimming?

Are you an academic whose dissertation or published piece suffers because your pocho Spanish won't let you navigate la idioma journalistic waters?

Or are you in education and public service where you daily work with Mexican immigrants, but lack info about what it is that made them leave their mother country?

I speak only for myself when I say that my world revolves around the Southwest. I tend not to realize I need to encompass more to understand how and why things are transforming around me.

Luckily, years ago I found Frontera NorteSur. Their purpose: "FNS provides on-line news coverage of the US-Mexico border." They do this by analyzing and summarizing U.S., Mexican and other news agencies each week, providing sources at the end of each post.

Spend a few minutes on their website and you might come to realize how little the mainstream press tells us, how volatile conditions have become in Mexico, and how abruptly we might learn how intertwined our lives are with those who live on the border and southward.

You don't need to read many of their articles to understand this. Here's a sampling of headlines:

The Summer of Sewage?
Pollution Flows into the Rio Grande
Tomato Pickers Demand Bilingual Education
The Lost Daughters of the Rio Grande
Will Mexico Recuperate from the Tourism Crash?
From Narco War to War of Extermination

I include the letter below because it would be detrimental to an informed public to no longer have access to Frontera NorteSur's service. I leave it to La Bloga readers to decide for themselves how valuable a site this is.

Dear Esteemed Reader,

Although some declare the recession over now, tight budgets continue to be a reality for the foreseeable future. We know you appreciate receiving Frontera NorteSur, and we know you value journalism that provides an informed lens on critical stories, issues and personalities. In the case of the US-Mexico border, the issues are more important than ever. Immigration, the narco war in Ciudad Juarez and other places, economic challenges, and environmental crises are among the burning issues that will define the border region in the year to come and beyond.

Unfortunately, getting the information you need to know is not getting easier. In the El Paso-New Mexico region alone, a major Internet news service has recently suspended its service, while a Spanish-language newspaper has disappeared from the streets in recent months. Major international media like the New York Times continue to hemorrhage journalists, and news reporting in Mexico and many other places in the world remains a risky endeavor.

With our very limited resources, Frontera NorteSur does its modest part in helping fill the information gap. In previous years, reader donations assisted us in overcoming budgetary challenges and actually helping to expand this news service to some degree. In 2009, now more than ever, we are counting on you, the reader, to step up to the plate and help us into the new year. We know times are tough for everyone and really appreciate any donations that you can afford. After all, every little bit helps. Donations of $25, $50, $100 or more are especially appreciated.

Any contributions to Frontera NorteSur are tax-deductible.

We are also exploring a possibility of matching larger donations with a sizeable grant, which would lead to a much bigger expansion of Frontera NorteSur as a news service. If you know of any foundations or individuals willing to assist in this project, please contact Dr. Neil Harvey at nharvey@nmsu.edu

Again, thank you so much for your generous support and interest. We know you cannot afford not to be informed about US-Mexico border and related issues. If you would like to support us, please follow the instructions below for making a contribution.

Sincerely,
Dr. Neil Harvey, Director
Kent Paterson, Editor, Frontera NorteSur
Center for Latin American and Border Studies,
New Mexico State University

If you prefer to donate online, please go to the Foundation’s website.
Click on "Tell us how you want your gift applied" and the amount. Please insert “Frontera Norte Sur” in the box that opens below.

You can donate by sending a check or money order to:
NMSU Advancement
Attn: Nick Franklin, VP for University Advancement, Box 3590, Las Cruces, NM 88003

Checks and money orders should be made payable to: New Mexico State University Foundation Inc.
On the memo line of the check, in the bottom left hand corner, put: Frontera NorteSur
Include a brief cover letter with the check that states you are donating to Frontera Norte Sur, NMSU and includes your name, address, daytime phone and email address. Also please state if you graduated from NMSU (with year of graduation and degree if applicable).

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Festival de Cine Mexicano

The 32nd Starz Denver Film Festival will showcase many of Mexico's most recent and influential films. The festival began Thursday Nov. 12 and runs through Nov. 22, 2009.

From contemporary films such as Rudo y Cursi, Sin Nombre, Y Tu Mamá También, and numerous others, the Mexican film industry is making its cinematic presence known.

Norteado is a beautiful film and the director of La Ultima y Nos Vamos will be in attendance for her entertaining film following the lives of three friends in Mexico City. Below are films and times that will be presented as a part of the program:

Cruzando (Crossing) - When hapless Manuel, a janitor at a Mexican strip club, hears that his father is about to be executed in Texas, he embarks on a picaresque trek for the border with his pal Diego in a quirky road movie that is by turns comedy and tragedy.
Wed. Nov 18 6:45 pm
Thurs. Nov 19 9:15pm

Corazón del Tiempo (Heart of Time) In this political narrative styled as a documentary, a young woman in the volatile Mexican state of Chiapas brings the threat of chaos to her community when she breaks her engagement with a local boy in order to pursue her love for a Zapatista rebel.
Sun. Nov 15 6:45pm

Norteado (Northless) In Oaxacan-born director Rigoberto Perezcano's first feature, Andrés, a young farmer from the south of Mexico, has made several attempts to cross the border into the United States - all dashed by the danger of the desert. On the verge of giving up, he decides to try one last brilliant if surrealistic plan.
Sun. Nov 15 7:15pm
Mon. Nov 16 9:15pm

La Ultima y Nos Vamos (One for the Road) Three well-heeled young men looking for action in Mexico City and find it when they cross the boundaries that divide them from the city's working classes to discover an entirely new world. Director Eva López-Sánchez based her drama on the real-life experiences of her coauthor, Alfredo Mier y Terán.
Sun. Nov 15 9:30pm
Mon. Nov 16 6:45 pm

Rabioso Sol, Rabioso Cielo (Raging Sun, Raging Sky) In the experimental filmmaker Julián Hernández's mystical celebration of sexual desire, two young lovers are torn apart by circumstance and seek divine guidance to help bring them back together. On the brink of reunion, tragedy strikes again, but their passion is so pure that the gods immortalize them in myth.
Sun. Nov 15 12:30pm
Mon. Nov 16 6pm

El Arból (The Tree) Santiago, a Madrileño bartender, is trying to come to terms with the deteriorating circumstances of his life. Thrown out by his wife, barred from seeing his children, and fired from his job, he walks the streets searching for salvation - which he might just find on a high bridge in the middle of the city.
Tues Nov. 17 8:45pm
Wed. Nov. 18 5pm
Wed. Nov. 18 7pm

The Festival de Cine Mexicano program will also include a special presentation of the feature film, Up, in Spanish subtitles, as a part of the Saturday-at-the-Movies program Saturday, Nov. 21 at the Ellie Caulkins Opera House.

Sponsors of this program: Cinema Latino, Consulate General of Mexico in Denver, Festival Internacional de Cine en Guadalajara, Idea Marketing, Mexican Cultural Center, Mezcal, Museo de las Americas, Que Bueno 1280AM, Tambien, Telefutura, University of Guadalajara and Univision Colorado.

To purchase tickets or for more information visit www.denverfilm.org

Nos vemos en los movies!

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Lover's advice, translated from the Spanish:

If your lover trembles when you embrace him,
If his body flames with desire at your touch,
And if he chokes up when you tell him you love him,
Get rid of the sucker--he's got H1N1.

RudyChG

Thania's Chilean travelogue & a Denver journalism forum

(See Thania's previous posting here.)

Finishing off the summer in Santiago - Travelogue

After a few days of walking around Santiago’s plazas, streets, visiting old friends, eating sopaipillas, empanadas, and dancing, I’m exhausted, but with a big smile on my face. This second visit to the country of Nobel poets Gabriela Mistral and Pablo Neruda was full of non-touristy stops.

This time I didn’t go to La Chascona (“the uncombed”), one of Neruda’s houses in Santiago, in honor of Matilde Urrutia, his lover until 1955 and later his third wife. But I had the opportunity to talk with a novel poet of Pablo Neruda’s foundation, Ignacio Elizalde, one of only ten poets chosen this year to be part of a poetry workshop sponsored by the foundation. He is a young poet who along with the other nine is taking advantage of this workshop to polish his craft. I met him the last time I was in Chile, back when he was already writing poetry and participating in recitals all around Santiago, so it was uplifting to find he is still writing and that his country values his talent.

I also attended a high school poetry workshop led by poet Agustín Hidalgo Johnson, who in 2007 was awarded an honorable mention for his participation in Chile’s national, concurso de creación literaria joven Roberto Bolaño (contest of young literary creation). I instantly become excited when I see teenagers reciting their poetry; they are making the world a better place, one verse at a time.

This time around I didn’t take any tours. I simply walked the streets every day to hear the Chilean accent, to admire the ancient architecture that melds with new apartment complexes and see on the horizon the enormous Andes completely covered with snow. Neither did I eat at fancy restaurants, which promised a taste of Chile’s cuisine; I bought delicious sweet treats or sopaipillas from street vendors, whose hands looked clean enough. It was exciting to be back and recognize idioms and streets, to know shortcuts and how to handle Chilean currency with mastery.

One thing I did repeat--in honor of my good friend Daniel Astorga, who now lives in the USA--was to go to bars and clubs. Each city has its particular party scene, and Santiago is no exception. Bellavista for example is a long street full of bars and clubs. Some have outside tables and offer drink specials, such as pisco sour, a cocktail made of lemon, egg whites, simple syrup and regional bitters or beer Escudo--both of them, emblematic Chilean drinks. Since the bars and clubs in Bellavista are next to each other, it's customary to simply go from bar to bar, or club to club, taking advantage of the specials or the wide variety of music. There you can catch up with new trends and idioms, which are always changing.

As I mentioned in my first travelogue, I was aware that during my second stay in Chile I wasn’t going to be as anxious and full of questions as on the first. I knew Santiago had a lot to offer me, but I wasn’t sure if it was going to live up to my expectations. What I didn’t mention was that I was scared of this becoming a reality.

I love this country and my first journey is an integral part of this love. In a way I feel like Isabel Allende in My invented country: a memoir: I “invented” my own Chile. My memoir can’t compare to Allende’s beautiful book, but I believe I understand how she created her own country, nostalgically pieced together from memories and old pictures.

Chile didn’t disappoint me this time, and not being anxious nor having as many questions, I comfortably submerged myself in its culture. I learned much more about the country because I didn’t approach people with an uncontrollable sense of awe and thirst; they were more willing to converse and talk as if they were talking to any of their friends because they knew they didn’t have to slow down or speak in a neutral accent to make sure the “foreigner” understood what they were saying.

I still cherish my first visit to Chile, and on this visit I discovered that my memories of this country won't be destroyed by a second or even a third visit. I was afraid of losing the dreamy, nostalgic tones of first experience, but being here has reminded me why I fell in love with this country and why I want to keep returning. I guess I just simply added another chapter to my Chilean memoir. Let’s hope it's not the last.

Thank you, La Bloga, for hosting my travelogues.

Saludos,
Thania Munoz

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Journalism Town Hall in Denver

For too long, local citizens have been left out of the debate over the future of journalism. As Big Media get bigger, newsrooms are closing down and more and more journalists are losing their jobs. No one knows this better than people in Colorado. It’s time for us to stand up for the news we need.

Next week we will host a free community forum in Denver to bring together concerned citizens, journalists, lawmakers and community leaders to discuss the future of journalism.

Forum: Saving the News: Denver and the Future of Journalism Date: Sept.16, 2009, 6:30 - 9:30pm Location: Colorado History Museum, 1300 Broadway, Denver

The forum will be an interactive event, designed to amplify your voice and give you the chance to debate key issues in Denver’s media. Join community leaders and journalists like John Temple, Polly Baca, David Sirota, Wick Rowland, Laura Frank and others for this important community forum.

Our media have always been shaped by policy decisions made in Washington, D.C., and policy will help decide what's next for journalism. That means that each of us has a role to play in the fight to save journalism.

Now is the time for Colorado citizens to have their say.

For more information, to help spread the word, join our Facebook event page and download posters, visit www.SavetheNews.org/Denver.