Ain't no flower-power thing

Many people don’t pay attention to the occupy movement. They think it’s just a bunch of troublemakers, bored people who only wants to make troubles and have fun with it. Far from that; the occupy movement seems like those of the 60’s but is totally different. In the 60’s the kids who where in the flower-power thing could went to their parents home, eat some apple pie, have a comfy rest and then back to yell in D.C. Today, the parents of the kids can’t afford to make the apple pie, maybe do not have the house with a bedroom for the kid as it was part of the foreclosure wave and the bus ticket is too expensive. And the kids are right. They live in a world upside down, where the government helps the big corporations but not the people. Governments are elected by to people to serve the people. Who came with the idea of serving the corporations…? Oh, right, the elections. If you need to invest one billion to get elected, and that money comes from the corporations, you serve them. People can wait. No, is not a flower-power movement, it's “I’m not going to allow you to sell or mortgage my dignity” movement… without apple pie.

STUPID VS STUPID: WHEN PEOPLE DON’T WANT TO SEE THE BOMB THAT IS IN FRONT OF THEIR NOSES.

I have been stuck in Peru for almost 2 years. Yeap, not that I want to be here but I had to be for family reasons demanding my presence. So, in the meanwhile, while trying to survive and keep my sanity among this bunch of really crazy people - if you live in Lima, Peru’s capital, for more than 3 months you’ll understand – I have been watching how Sendero Luminoso (Shining Path), yes, the same bunch of delirious “we are the 4th sword, we’re going to make the Leninist-Stalinists-Maoist-President Gonzalo struggle into reality” of the 80’s come back. And what the Peruvian society is doing about? Nothing. Worst of all: What the Peruvian government is doing? Nothing. There are many reasons. First, the usual Peruvian structural stupidity. Second, a society that never tried to understand what Shining Path was and why they came to bombard the country and third, a governmental and military structure so corrupt, so unstable and so far away from reality that it’s not capable to understand the society they’re supposed to live in and protect. Peru, with all those structural weakness, is doomed. O.K. First, indeed, Peruvians are deeply stupid. If you’re and educated person who give your seat in a bus to an old lady… you’re a fool. If you see somebody’s dropping a 20 bucks bill and you shout “hey, a bill has fallen from your pocket”, you’re a big fool, if you deal with your partners in a company or whatever in a cordial and educated manner, you’re the king of the fools. You shout orders, you don’t ask. Peruvians believe that to do the right is a symptom of hardcore foolishness. How the same-old Shining Path is gaining terrain again. Actually they don’t have to make a big effort. Former SL leaders, who were on their late 30’s when prisoners now are free. A bit chubby, better seasoned ideologically, but ready to Rock and bomb. The authorities can’t do anything as they’ve already “paid their due to society in jail.” Well, sorry, SL does not think about time like the common people do or less the authorities: For them, they lost a battle; the war stills and is a long one still to win. In SL ideology, their war is one that can go for over a century. They’re sure they will win, no matter how many millions of people could die. Peruvian society never intended to learn what happened and don’t care what could happen. It’s a society where the people in the top just ask for another Margarita, the people in the middle for another Chilcano and the people in the bottom ask for another beer. Peruvians are proud today – and there are good reasons – for their cuisine and chefs. They have humongous food expositions, like “Mistura”, with an attendance of hundreds of thousands PER DAY. However, none of them, as usual, care that everything happens in Lima. What about those provincial cities that had grow so much in the last years? Where are the “Mistura?” They don’t care. Fine, great, enjoy. But that goes with what I mentioned as the 1rst Peruvian stupidity. Peruvians are like those animals that you just point them with a flashlight and they go mesmerized. So now everything is alright, basic groceries prices grow every day, but who cares, we have great food. Then, if you ask anybody in the streets about SL, you can get 3 responses: a) what you’re talking about? Denoting the failure of the governments to teach the kids what happened and why happened. b) Oh, those were freedom fighters but with a bad strategy. Between these people the new SL is harvesting. c) Kill them all! People who lived the SL times and before getting them back they are willing to allow a “go kill, I won’t tell” policy. Of course, there are people in the middle of every position, some even with clear mind. But in general, the majority, and the governments uses the majorities to justify any kind of action, lives like if they’re all in some kind of drug, like in a lot of ecstasy mixed with beer. SL is growing. Slowly but nonstop. They’re recruiting a lot of kids while other portion of the kids are, or trying to get, a job or having a lot of booze. In the meanwhile, what the Peruvian society, or the “thinkers” of it are doing? Nothing. And now we have a president who is a big ass, who's only merit was a stunt of rebellion when the Fujimori government was falling (before... he keep quiet.) He wants to please anybody that can helps him to stay in power, so, like the 3 monkeys, he let the corruption go forward and the big money make their day. So, get ready foreign journalist, in a short time you’re going a lot of work here. Luckily, now we have malls!

About Chave'z Venezuela and their pathetic middle class.

Today’s Hugo Chavez 3rd electoral win was for me not a surprise at all. I expected it. It doesn’t mean I support or like Chavez or his way of ruling, at all. I have been in Venezuela 3 times; the first at mid 70’s, the second at mid 80’s and the third at the mid 90’s. I didn’t like the country or the people. Too noisy people, too shallow people. I thought "I"m in the land of the Miss Universe queens, so the girls must be gorgeous." Not at all, just the usual girls, only more shallow than in other South American countries. Then somebody told me the cruel truth that all the Miss Venezuela’s misses should go through the plastic surgeon in order to get the OK for being candidates to that Donald Trump yearly show. There's a huge quantity of plastic invested in those girls. The countryside was the usual one of an equatorial place, except maybe for the near Andean zone, in Merida, nice place. However, what shocked me more, in all my 3 times in the country were the following: -In the 70's the huge squandering of money and resources by almost everybody (I was staying with middle class people.) There’s even a documentary called “MAYAMI NUESTRO”. It was then usual that mid-class Venezuelans traveled for the weekend to Miami in order to just… shop. There’s a line in the documentary were the then mayor of Miami says “without the Venezuelans our economy will plunder.” -Everybody from the middle class having 2, 3 or more cars, plus motorcycles and the cost of fuel way cheaper that the cost of a small soda. -Caracas, Venezuela’s capital, have like a bowl-shape, where like one quarter is covered by beautiful green woods, “El Avila”. However I remember asking for the other 3 quarters, with a brownish color. The answer was the same and with the same indifference tone “Those are the “Ranchitos” (the shanty towns.)” In those “Ranchitos” live almost ¾ of Caracas population and the middle class gave a squat for them. They didn’t care about them, at all. It was for them like the ugly spot in their panoramic view. In the 80's, when I went back for a short trip, Venezuela was in the middle of an economic crisis. It was not that they had less petroleum, it was simply that so much corruption and squandering took it's tool. I remember inviting for dinner over 20 people at the same time, with wine and beer included, and the tab was less that 80 bucks. I was pretty young at those times but I remember thinking, every time I saw those "Ranchitos" “if that people decide to take the city, they have the higher ground.” Well, that was what Hugo Chavez did. It was just a matter of time that years of spilling money, turn backs to the poor and make believe everybody that everything was just fine exploded. It happened in 1992, and Hugo Chavez did it. His attempt for a coup badly failed, and the government did him an enormous favor, as the German government did it at the beginning of the 20’s with a ridiculous guy with a funny mustache called Adolph: put him in jail, with access to all the books that he wanted, visits and, the best of all, TIME to think about why his coup failed and how to not fall again in the same mistakes in order to gain power. We all know the rest of the history: Chavez came out of jail, happy, chubby and ready to take what he didn’t took with the guns. And he did it, big time. Did the Venezuelan society changed while Chavez was in jail? Not at all. On the contrary, it grew in its inequalities to make the place perfect for a Chavez to come into power… and he did. So that’s why Venezuela has a Chavez. That’s why no candidate can beat him. I remember a close relative that lives in Venezuela and still don’t get it (he’s a wannabe, very dumb) telling me about the previous candidate against Chavez “he’s just an idiot, kind of rich peasant, but could be useful dor us.” That candidate lost big time. Capriles, the last candidate against a dying Chavez (yes, he’s dying, he knows it, all his entourage knows it) tried a smart move: instead of showing the face of a right-wing candidate in a country that wants something way away from the right, he “transformed” himself and his proposal into something more “progressive”, more “in the center and maybe open to the left.” Well, it was a smart move, but he lost, the people knew what actually he was: the old system trying to regain the power using a mask of "progressive." Venezuela’s problem is not a problem of candidates. The problem is that the old middle class wants to turn the clocks backwards. They can’t. They want to win? Move forward, even forward that Chavez, let Miami goes into the past and build an integrated society. Sadly, they can’t and don’t want, because they don't get it.

WHY THE FAR-RIGHT WING OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH WILL WIN BECAUSE OF THE SCANDALS.

We read it every day in the papers or the internet. We watch it on TV or hear it on radio. Finally, it exploded: the long known-don´t-tell-nobody scandal of molester catholic priests and their vicious acts against innocent children for decades are now public, very public… and that´s good (to goes public, not the acts.)
As most of you, I too feel that it´s outrageous, it´s a shame, it horrifies me. We can use thousands of adjectives and even using all they will not be even closer to describe how much pain the victims have suffered.
Of course, the media is having a tasteful brunch with the news. Many in the Catholic community blame them for all the fuzz. Wait, there was not a series of journalists who molested child for decades, there were priest, Catholic priest. Yes, maybe we don’t like the news, but don´t shoot the messenger, that´s their business, like it or not. No journalist took an oath to protect, guide, support and help people, those molester priests did.
By the way, no matter that the media –most of- spread the news in the most scatological way: There´s millions of people who trust their children every day into Catholic schools. They have the right and they must be informed.
Now, looking forward, what concerns me now is that, contrary to what many people believes, the ones who are going to win with all the media thing, trials and so, are going to be the far-right wing radicals who had been tirelessly working hard in the last decades and are taking the church´s power. I called them the Church´s Talibans.
Yeah, Joseph Ratzinger, A.K.A. Pope Benedict XVI, is a conservative. However, his conservative side came more from his long-carefully crafted path to become Pope than a real believe in the hard line conservative church line. He´s a curial politician.
So, now that he´s Pope, all these scandals explode. Many reporters – with very little knowledge of how the church and the Vatican works, actually – talk about how all this is going to affect the faith of the believers.
Indeed, a lot of believers are shacked… but their faith? Hard to tell. Most Catholics are clear that one thing is Jesus´ gospel and other the work of man, who instead of build the Catholic Church, sadly, try to tear it down because they can´t control their genitals.
As a Catholic, those priest indeed will go to hell, or God will decide. But in any case, they also HAVE to go to jail.
Pope Benedict XVI is in a difficult position right now. Not because the treats of taking him to court. The real problem is that all the scandal can´t make happier that far-right wing Catholic side.
You see, they don´t believe that the Catholic Church should spread Jesus´ message or get more to the faith. They believe that the world is doomed, All, except them are lost causes as sinners, etc. So what they want is a small, enclosed and “traditional” church.
That´s why they will wait a few months and then start their attacks: “¿Don´t you see? The church is weak, there´s so many rotten apples BECAUSE all the liberal ideas who have ruled it since John XXIII,” the will say.
They will star from that ´till getting the power and change the Catholic Church in what they want: Something similar to the beginnings of the middle ages.
Is in our hand, those who clearly, openly and with great shame condemn the atrocities of those corrupt and evil priests, but at the same time knows that to be a Catholic means have faith in an institution made by the love of God through his son, Jesus, to do something.
That institution and his simply but clear message “Love each other” and “Love the other as yourself” will survive because we have faith, as also the good sense that the sins of man are not the faults of God.
And to be open to condemn any one who broke the man´s law and God´s law as also support any sister or brother who suffered any kind of abuse.

Download my last brief novel

As mentioned, the previous was my first post in Spanish, so here goes the translation for those who "no habla español."
I think the first in-Spanish post deserves some proper honors.
So, a brief novel, in which I was working for the last years is ready and you can get it in .pdf format.
Its name is "DEATH, A PARTY." It is a comedy, based on a compilation of events, phrases, people, real situations of which I took note while attending, like everybody else, somebody else´s funerals.
Showing it in this way (it has not been published yet) will allow me to collect commentaries, critics, tips and stuff from the readers.
If you want/like to share it with a friend or anybody else, go ahead. Just send the link or a copy of the downloaded novel.
To get a copy just send an email to tatoperu@gmail.com with the subject "DOWNLOAD DEATH" (I like the subject title.)
By the way, ITS FREE.
As soon I get the email I´ll send you a reply attached with the .pdf document.
I´ll deeply apreciate your comments. They will be very useful for the real thing, the ink and paper edition.
Thanks!

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Descarga mi última novela breve

Este es el primer post en español de este blog.
Creo que vale la pena hacerle los honores correspondientes con algo importante.
Por ello, una novela breve, en la que he estado trabajando durante varios años está lista y puedes recibirla en versión .pdf
La novela se llama "LA MUERTE, UNA FIESTA". Es una comedia basada en una recopilación de hechos, frases y personajes reales que se fueron sumando a medida que, como cualquier persona, asistía por obligación a velatorios, entierros y demás hierbas.
La idea de presentarla en esta forma se orienta a obtener comentarios, críticas, aportes y demás de aquellas personas que la lean.
Si te provoca o se te ocurre que a alguna persona amiga podría interesarle, tienes toda la libertad para pasarle la dirección o enviarle una copia de la novela.
Para obtener una copia, simplemente envía un email a tatoperu@gmail.com con el encabezado "DESCARGAR LA MUERTE" (me gusta el encabezado).
Por cierto, ES GRATIS.
En cuanto reciba el email responderé con una copia adjunta de la novela (82 páginas).
De todo corazón agradeceré los aportes. Serán muy útiles al momento de pasar a la versión real, con papel y tinta.
¡Gracias!

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Back, after many moons

Many months has been since my last posting.
Well, it was because I´m not a blog-freak but also many things happened in the last months.
Since my last posting I asked my wife for divorce, so now we live apart and the divorce process goes its legal way.
It was pretty nasty this thing of divorcing.
Anyway, I´m doing it for my son.
Also, I got tired of trying to do business with social content as this is the worst place to do business and even more with social content.
I kept writing, but way less that my usual quota as I was in the middle of all that personal turmoil.
Now, with things more settled, goals again defined and less trash in the road, I´m back into writing and bloging.
I´ll start to include some material in Spanish, as some local friends asked me (this blog was originally oriented for my many friends around the globe who mostly doesn´t speak Spanish.)
The next post is my coming back to the "show your writings" world.
Let´s see.
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BACK IN SURREAL-CORRUPT LAND

OK, many people from this south side of the globe will criticize the headline... but is totally true, I have lots of proofs.
I'm back in the place where I was born (not grew) with my family and dog - also family, come'on.)
We're going to spend just a few years here, 2 o 3, nothing more, then somewhere in Europe.
Lots of things has changed in this place, physically, but in the core, it's the same old chaotic place.
I started with some of my savings a company to take local talents (cinema, music, arts, etc) and expose them outside the country. The idea was: if I'm going to stay here this years, let's do something for the place, let's give them an opportunity.
It has worked, we have now a real company with great clients and superb potential.
So, now it's the time to water and take care of the plant we have seed.
The problem, as usual, is the country. Simply doesn't work.
As a good friend of mine told me long ago, this country is a pastiche glued with chewing gum.
To do anything you must have tons of paperwork, forms, approvals, etc... just to get a small approval or only the request for a meeting with that someone with the authority to do give you the approval.
Now, money speeds everything.
I forgot how corrupt was this society, in particular the police service. It's outrageous.
It doesn't matter that you have all your paper in rule, it doesn't matter that you follow the rules... there's going to be ALWAYS a policeman or public employee trying to get some money from you.
So, it's hard to make enterprise in a country like this... but you can.
There's so much talent, there's so much potential, there's so much good people and good professionals.
Just be patience, do a deeep Ohmmm breath, when one of this assholes crosses your path and think: even with all this I' can make beauty... and money (actually, you can make a lots of money here.)
I went away from this place to be forgotten. Well, it was not possible but there's a nice group of people who doesn't stop me for signatures or pictures with them.
So, in the meantime, I''m doing my part and at the same time conquering the land: a great short screenplay contest, producing one of the biggest artistic events of the year, producing one great drama plays of our time, producing and taking on international tour the next great movies scores musicians, and so...
It's not, in the end, as "Always look to the bright side of life". It's simple, work hard to light the bulb which lights the bright side of life.
An in the meantime, I keep writing (and shooting here is so cheap!)

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ALL ABOARD!

After Six years, two months and some days and hours, the decision was taken: we're leaving New York City.
We could have stay for many more years but, since around November of last year a had a hunch. It was like a voice saying to me "get out before November 2008, get out."
My wife always says that I have some kind of radar to detect dangers in advance, and indeed there's something that has allowed us to avoid some weird situations.
So, after finishing our business here, we'll be back to our home country, at least for a few years, very soon.
My wife has almost finished here PhD thesis defense with outstanding results. I'm extremely proud to say that along this time, studying in one of the toughest universities of the world, after and investment of close than half a million dollars, she is going to came out with a Masters and a PhD having only "A"as grades in all her courses.
I love this city, we love this city, and very dearly.
New York has been most generous, kind and amazing with us. We came with some ideas, some goals, and she has help us to achieve not only each one of them but many more.
We even have a child that is a fully, real, unique NATIVE NEW YORKER. As beautiful as the most beautiful moments we have live here.
I came just as a writer with some good background and New York turned me into a grown up writer.
How can you say thanks for all that?
Impossible.
But New York is more than a city, is indeed a state of mind.
That's why I'm going to keep that name for my blog. No matter where we're going to land, when feeling inspired, admired, smooth, all at the same time, I'll be in a NY State of Mind.
I love you NY.

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RAVEL'S PRINCIPAL PHOTOGRAPHY - NOV 2008

While advancing the pre-production the final schedule for Ravel's principal photography is almost done.
As always, it's going to be great to have Rob Muraskin in charge of the camera, this guy rocks in his craft.
From late August to mid november, the light will change, but the mood to make the short film is still in the best shape.
I'll keep those interested informed.

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