[Dub]

TR,
I emailed the girl from my class your response, telling her that I was not attacking her, but just wanted to give her a different opinion on the situtation. Also I put in NDD info about gap states. Here is her reply. Which is excellent!

Hey Don,

No worries! I always like to learn more about a subject,
especially hearing opposing viewpoints.

Your first email related many times to the Breeze article
written about Guatemala. I would not even begin to know
whether or not her sources are credible, and I certainly do
not assume all of the accusations that are presented in the
article. During our short walk the other day, there was not
exactly the opportunity to discuss the issue in detail, so I
chose the information that had appeared most shocking to me
on my trip. I should have articulated my opinion more
clearly.

On my trip we learned about several of the factors that the
US Special Forces Soldier discussed in his email
(corruption, wealth distribution, etc.) In addition, we
learned about the lack of a well-established property
system, as well as the lack of motivation among impoverished
inhabitants of Guatemala to improve their conditions (a very
interesting subject if you get a chance to read about it!).
However, I also was able to speak to many Guatemalan
citizens about their perspective on America and American
policies. Granted their opinions will be tainted, just as
the opinions of American citizens may easily be tainted;
however, it definitely opened my eyes to the possibility
that there may be more factors contributing to the current
circumstances in Guatemala than I was aware of.

I completely agree with you on many counts; it always
bothers me when I see people making assumptions about
situations based on minimal or not credible sources.
Therefore, I am embarrassed in the sense that I chose words
that made me come across as America-bashing and believing
solely that America is responsible for the poverty in
Guatemala. However, I am definitely not “simply accepting”
the fact that America is responsible for any of the current
issues in Guatemala and have been constantly researching the
topic since I returned home from spring break.

I am always looking for more information, so thank you again
for sending the information you received! The email
response was very interesting, in addition to that website.
I definitely am interested in hearing any new viewpoints on
the subject if you get any other information.

See ya in class!