AMLO and I... pondering our next move

AMLO first Hector Tobar and Richard Boudreaux, of the Los Angeles Times, do their usual excellent job of unkinking the lastest twists in the election saga. I've redacted quite a bit of the whole article, mostly because it is "registration required", though the same article will be reprinted within a few days all over the U.S. Lopez Obrador Challenges Mexican Election Results

MEXICO CITY -- Top aides to leftist candidate Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador called Friday for a recount of nearly half the votes cast in Sunday's presidential election and edged close to demanding that the entire vote be nullified. The statements by the Lopez Obrador camp of the Democratic Revolution Party, or PRD, revealed a two-part strategy to deny a victory to Calderon, who on Thursday was proclaimed the winner of the vote by a margin of just over half a percentage point. By demanding a recount of about 18 million of the 41 million votes cast, aides said Lopez Obrador hopes to overcome the 244,000-vote margin proclaimed for Calderon. Lopez Obrador has been asserting since Monday that there were widespread irregularities in the tally. Simultaneously, Lopez Obrador's aides charged that President Vicente Fox improperly had influenced Sunday's presidential vote -- an accusation that could provide grounds to ask the Federal Electoral Tribunal to nullify the election and order a new one. ... Lopez Obrador's allies have been arguing that the president's many television and radio commercials touting the successes of his administration were a thinly veiled attempt to aid his party's candidate. Mexican law forbids the incumbent to intervene in the election of a successor. Fox "violated the principles of equity, impartiality and objectivity," said Ricardo Monreal, a top official with the Lopez Obrador campaign.Calderon, for his part, said he would prevail in any legal battle. If his victory stands, he would take office on Dec. 1. ... Mexico's electoral tribunal has overturned the results of several gubernatorial and mayoral elections in recent years, ordering new votes to take place. In those cases, the losing candidates made charges similar to Lopez Obrador's: that local leaders used their influence over media and control of government coffers to violate the principle of "equity" in the competition between the candidates. But legal experts said it was not clear if the tribunal had the authority to overturn a presidential election. ... The court has until September to validate the result of the election. Until it does, Calderon's victory has no legal standing.

AND NOW, ME... I've taken a job as Assistant Editor of an on-line newspaper because... well... besides needing to find a job at this point... it's rare to find anything that integrates skills you acquire over a lifetime, but usually only get to use one at a time (I've been a software document specialist, a journalist, an ESL teacher and a business administrator at various times) ... and -- as an added bonus -- this job requires keep my interest and ties to Mexico, and fostering my interest (some will say obsession) in Mexico's culture, politics and history. I will shortly be relocating to Alpine Texas (believe it or not, with a population of 6000, it's the big city in the Big Bend), and probably shuttling back and forth between Chihuahua and Alpine (ONLY 320 Km... about 200 miles for the metric system-challenged). And, I'll have to go to City Council meetings, edit articles (something I don't always bother with here) and deal with underpaid, overworked reporters. You know... work. I learned today someone is filiming a movie about a terrorist invasion across the Rio Grande/Bravo del Norte in the Big Bend -- obviously, my work is cut out for me in the Big Bend. While I expect I'll be writing more on border issues than national politics, this never was intended to be a "Mexican Political Blog" -- I'd started out just writing on the everyday weirdness of Mexico, especially the weirdness of Mexico City. At some point, I realized what was needed -- but I didn't have the resources, knowledge or contacts to bring off (and, I've never had the time to edit myself -- especially when I can barely see straight, writing at 3:30 in the morning) -- is something more substantial than one person can handle. I'd much prefer writing about Princess Salm-Salm or Alemeda Park on a Sunday Afternoon or Luche Libre, but the political issues are important, and gathering the news items is about the best I can do right now. There are tourism sites everywhere, and more than a few "These Damn Mexicans Should Listen To Me" sites, and a few wonderful "My Life and Welcome To It" sites, but not much for those who accept that Mexico is not the United States, that it has its own (generally "leftist", "far leftist" compared to the U.S.) politics, culture, history and perversities that are all well-worth exploring. So... Mexicans, Mexiles and Mexophiles ... those of you who enjoy sharing your own twisted versions of the eccentricities and everyday surprises of Mexico... send me an email, so I can add you to as a "team member". Provided they behave themselves, promise not to steal posts or corrupt traditional lefty values, I might even let in a PAN apologist or two.