| Photos courtesy of Susan G. Komen on Unsplash
Part XXXV of the “United States 2024 Election
This columnist opines that President-elect Kamala Harris will be better positioned than her male predecessors to ” reinvent” diplomatic relations, trade, commerce, immigration, mutual defense, and other issues leading to treaties. Why?
As the first woman president, Kamala Harris is lucky to have a lady counterpart in Mexico in the person of President Claudia Sheinbaum. Perhaps sooner, if not later, President Harris will be negotiating likewise with other female heads of state not only in the two continents of America but also in some other countries of the world. Perhaps, as this writer has predicted, the 21st and 22nd centuries will be the age of able-and-honest female presidents and lady prime ministers or heads of state.
An American president-elect usually sends invitations to heads of state and their respective spouses. It is respectfully suggested that a special Summit (not an inaugural ball) be held at Camp David after the formal inauguration for all the First Ladies (present and former) and women heads of state of the United States and all its closest allies.
It is respectfully suggested that President Harris use an all-woman Summit to discuss a collective agreement to promote the Spanish proverb “Amor con amor se paga.” The adage can be the new cornerstone of geopolitics, beginning with U.S. relations with Mexico and other Spanish, Portuguese, or Italian-speaking nations. The usual literal translation of the adage is “Love is repaid with love” or “Love with love pays off.” But a better figurative translation is “One good turn deserves another.”
Our rector in Sorsogon City, Philippines, at Divine Word High School, Rev. Panfilo Gianan, SVD (now deceased), was our teacher in Spanish and Latin in 1961. Nobody paid particular attention to his teachings about Spanish and Latin. It was the same when this student took the required Spanish and history classes — as he majored in journalism at San Beda College in 1962-1966. It is a Benedictine-run university (now), where Rev. John Garduce, OSB (also deceased), was our Spanish professor.
My classmates and this budding storyteller at both schools should have exerted more effort in learning Spanish because Filipino languages have many Spanish derivatives. Many countries are trying to learn Spanish, as the United States of America is becoming a bilingual country. It is also said that one-sixth (1/6) of the world speaks Iberian languages. It is reported that both China and Russia are teaching Spanish, which may become their second-favored foreign language after English.
Eventually, many Chinese and Russians will speak at least three languages: their national first language (Chinese-Mandarin — or Russian), English, and Spanish.
This would-be columnist made an extra effort to learn the adage by heart and thus broadened his friendship with Spanish-speaking new pals—even if he is not fluent in Iberian tongues.
“Today is an age of speaking and acting in politically correct ways. It means more. “Carino” translates not only to a politically courteous, affectionate way of doing things but also to a loving use of more diplomacy, especially in geopolitics and socioeconomic affairs or events.”
Both educators (with Roman collar) postulated that many of the world’s problems could be solved (or mitigated) if only leaders and their followers practiced the “Amon con amor se paga” dictum. And add to it another Spanish word, cariño. It means “being loving or affectionate.”
Today is an age of speaking and acting in politically correct ways. It means more. “Carino” translates to a politically courteous, affectionate way of doing things and a loving use of more diplomacy, especially in geopolitics and socioeconomic affairs or events.
This columnist fearlessly forecasts that in the proposed All-Woman Summit at Camp David, solutions — in theory — for many international problems can be agreed upon. Indeed, the new female presidents of the United States and Mexico can negotiate and sign a “New Deal” that solves common problems at their borders. Of course, if the agreement becomes a treaty, it would undergo the approval process by their respective Congress. Thus, significant headaches like illegal migration, refugee crisis, transport of prohibited drugs and firearms, etcetera may start to disappear in less than a decade. Or less — like in four years. The common denominator in all the proposed agreements is the adage, “Amor con amor se paga.” As usual, the provisional talking points for the suggested Summit at Camp David may be worked out after the official proclamation that Kamala Harris is the president-elect.
Perhaps — as this column has been written since 2021 — there is a viable way to assure complete peace and progress at the Mexican-American and Mexican-Central American borders. Both new woman presidents should also look at the vision of former Mexican President Vicente Fox. His grand vision? Help Mexico become the world’s fifth-biggest economy in 2050 (at the earliest). All the problems between the two countries, as well as North, Central, and South America, could be solved quickly and efficiently. Or dramatically mitigated.
This journalist met with former President Fox in 2014 during the U.S. launching of his book, “Revolution of Hope,” at the Milken Foundation head office in Santa Monica, California. But before 2014, this wordsmith coined “ReVOTElution,” which means revolutionary changes done through ballots, not bullets. It was first used by this writer in 2007.
The manuscript for a book about this columnist’s writings on the idea of former President Fox is being finalized. It also details Filipino-Mexican joint ventures anchored on a “Pueblo Filipino” socioeconomic, cultural, and retirement resort in Manzanillo City (Colima State). The book can be published on or before Labor Day on September 2, 2024. Many of the book’s contents have been published already in this column. Readers who are curious about the proposed ventures can easily search the articles by typing “Vicente Fox,” “Pueblo Filipino,” or “BAMOS” on this website. They can still add comments or suggestions on improving the conceptual frameworks of approach for a trilateral agreement for a new NAFTA, which will necessarily include Canada.
