The South Moves Right (As the North Begins to Embrace Socialism), by Max Dublin

With all the hullabaloo relating to the extraction and arrest of Venezuelan narco-dictator Nicolás Maduro, it is easy to forget that in recent years — and even recent months — good things have been happening in the southern hemisphere without America’s helping hand.

Shortly before the recent election in Chile, I visited that country to attend a wedding. However, during my two-week stay, I heard nearly nothing about the election or politics in general unless I raised the subject myself. On the other hand, we talked incessantly about the wedding, not only because it was more personal but perhaps because a wedding is generally more promising than an election. The common experience in most countries today is that people go to the polls in the wake of false promises and outright lies.

That being said, the majority of the Chilean public were yearning for a real change. Chile has a history of great pendulum swings in its politics, moving dramatically from left to right and back again.  …