Ronald Reagan Smiles Down on Daniel Ortega

The irony. 

President Ronald Reagan spent jillions of taxpayer dollars — while preaching about “limited government” — trying to overthrow Nicaragua's President Daniel Ortega.  The American-backed “Freedom Fighters” were as bloodthirsty as any terrorist group ever was.

And it was all for naught.  Despite the mass slaughter and terror perpetrated by our Freedom Fighters — Reagan used to compare them to America's Founding Fathers — Ortega stayed in power.  He stepped down in 1990 (two years after Reagan's presidency ended), and now he's president again (since 2007).

But the good news is, Daniel Ortega isn't that different from Ronald Reagan.  Sure he's a dictator, but that wasn't the reason Reagan wanted him out.  Conservatives only hate dictators who try to redistribute wealth and improve the lives of the masses.  Generations of rightwing dictators throughout Latin America — most of whom were hand-picked and propped up by the United States — were just fine and dandy.

And now it turns out Ronald “If you've seen one redwood you've seen 'em all” Reagan and Daniel Ortega have a lot in common.  They both hate trees, lakes, all that sissy nature stuff; they both love massive development projects; and they both have nothing but contempt for the peasants whose way of life is erased by said development.

Nicaragua's Grand Canal will ultimately stretch 170 miles from the Caribbean to the Pacific.  The Grand Canal is being financed by China.  It will supposedly create thousands of jobs (sound familiar?), but it will displace hundreds of thousands of people who had the nerve to be born where the Grand Canal will be dredged.  There's a lot of public fear and anger, and Daniel Ortega doesn't want to hear about it.

At the center of the controversy is Lake Nicaragua.  It's the largest lake in Central America — 3,000 square miles.  The lake is home to a lot of endangered species as well as being the only water source for hundreds of thousands of people.

A local farmer, whose family has lived in this area for generations, described a visit from Chinese and Nicaraguan engineers who surveyed his property without bothering to ask permission:

“They measured everything, including the laundry, houses, and sheds.  They said they wanted the farm for a five-star hotel.” 

Ronald Reagan is beaming from his grave.