Tag Archive

Featured Story – Barillas At The Crossroads

Rocael is Q’anjob’al Maya. He lives in Cantón Recreo B, in the Guatemalan highland town of Santa Cruz Barillas, Huehuetenango. He is married and has one daughter. He is 20 years old and studying to be a teacher. And for the first time in his life, on May 1, 2012, he understood the fear that his… full story HERE »

Surly Bartender – Absolutists In Context

There’s an old saying back in the States that I just made up and it goes something like this: “If there is a zombie in the well, you probably shouldn’t drink the water.” Apropos of which, for all the buzz in El Norte regarding a civil war brewing within the ranks of the Republican Party, I’m… full story HERE »

The Surly Bartender – Beyond Newtown

Just over two months ago, we all heard the same soul-gouging news from Newtown, Connecticut. In a nation that has seen more than its share of firearm-related atrocities, a crime had been committed that was so dark, so unrelentingly awful, that none of us could look away — and few of us could shake off a… full story HERE »

Terrible But True – Reckless Abandon

The barred doors and shuttered windows, the knotted groups of soldiers twitching their fingers against the triggers of their Kalishnakovs, the sand-bagged bunkers sheltering pairs or trios of camouflaged kids all huddled around a massive belt-fed machine gun, the complete lack of civilians: Perhaps, had we not been so utterly stoned, we would have noticed these… full story HERE »

Around Latin America A Zapatista Anniversary

January 1, 2013 was the 19^th anniversary of the first public appearance of the EZLN, the Ejército Zapatista de Liberación Nacional, in 1994. From late in the night of December 31, 2012, thousands of families arrived, carrying food, blankets and supplies, in the Zapatista town of Caracol de Oventic to celebrate the day.

Caracol is the Spanish word for the shell… full story HERE »

The Surly Bartender – When The Loonies Take Over

The Surly Bartender has spent far too little time slinging mezcal and far too much time watching CNN International in the past few weeks and he has one burning question: Am I the only one who finds CNN International to be physically painful to watch? It’s like resting your eyeballs on a bed of nails while some… full story HERE »

Traveler’s Journal – Freedom-Fighting Brothers at The International Museum of Toilets

It should come as no surprise that I visited the International Museum of Toilets primarily as a joke. While there was part of me that thought the visit might be instructive in a “development of civilizations” kind of way, mostly I just thought it would be hilarious.

I found reference to the museum in the New Delhi… full story HERE »

Featured Story – Drug Trafficking 101

On April 3, 2012, Guatemalan authorities displayed their latest trophy in the War on Drugs: Walther Overdick, handcuffed and behind bars in a jail cell. This man was the main contact in Guatemala for the Zetas. The Zetas, once the security wing and muscle of the Mexican Gulf Cartel formed their own cartel in January 2010,… full story HERE »

New Video – One Big Union, by Matthew Grimm

Dear Ninety Nine Percenters,

The anthem song you’ve been looking for is on the next page. Now go tear down a system or two, would ya?

Happy May… full story HERE »

Surly Bartender – Clown Car Politics In The USA

With a few exceptions, The Surly Bartender has held his tongue for the better part of the past year, but like a carbonated bottle of rage into which the world has dropped too many Mentos of crazy, it’s time to explode. Really, when one has to look to the Guatemalan political scene to find honesty, reason… full story HERE »