"The Good the Bad and the Ugly"....

It’s really amazing, the confusion in Puerto Rico and even in the States, regarding the philosophies of both the Democratic and the Republican parties. And if you add to the equation, how they have affected the development of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the misinformation and confusion is even greater. Why, you may ask? Well, the reasons are many; they range from just plain natural and cultural apathy about these things, political strategies of misinformation, individual fanatism, and lack of an official entity, with the duty to disseminate the right information. “Whishfull Thinking”?

 Just the other day, I was passing time at “Plaza Las Americas”, the biggest shopping center in San Juan, and I dare to say: in the Caribbean, when I found myself in front of a bunch of old fogies (like myself), debating this issue. Boy….did they have a heated one! I don’t usually eavesdrop on other peoples’ conversations, but being this one so loud and public, I just stopped and the rest came naturally.

It acquired little by little, a certain crescendo in tone, volume, and an alarming effect on passer byes; to the point, where a couple of security guards, showed up and started to pace up a down, watching if it would all end in a brawl. But…no, it just continued its pace without spilling blood. It occurred to me, how similar it went, to the way these things usually develop in our country. Yes… right now, we are about to fall into one of these infants-like tantrums, the country finds itself in, from time to time. And to be frank, one is not to be surprised at all, considering the way our society has splintered. Because the way the factors in the economy work here, and in the states, it is no wonder. “Rich and poor, and poorest”… that’s all; So how in heavens then, are we not to experience these commotions? Our history shows that the resulting confrontations, are as old as time. Political parties themselves have developed from this syndrome.

So, based on this assumption, let us start our brief essay right here and now. First, we for instance, will focus on the influence of both parties: Democrats and Republicans on the development of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico; just to keep the “debate” as manageable as possible. It would anyhow, show at the end, the variants and differences among the two.

For us, if “shoves comes to push”, these differences should be at best, a moot question, inasmuch as we don’t ever vote in national elections down here, unless we had moved to any state and establish residence there. Why the big “mambo” then? From a historical perspective alone: every time they sneeze up there, we develop a cold down here. And that has been the case for the past hundred and so many years, the island has been under United State’s jurisdiction. For which reason, it’s paramount that we know, why and what, has happened here, if we are to know, were we are eventually going. And to all our readers we tell you, that this has a tangency with been a Democrat or a Republican. Yesss…sirr; it all hinges on their philosophical postulates; and… “rich and poor, and poorer”, of course.

In Puerto Rico, we have three political parties: “Partido Popular Democratico”; The New Progressive Party” and “Partido Independestita Puertorriqueño”. The first two: “Popular Democratic” and the “Partido Nuevo”, have, or share more o less, the same philosophical attitudes with the states’ side Democratic or Republican Parties. The last one: the “Partido Independestista Puertorriqueño”, has a more socialistic approach and advocates separation from the United States.
It has been the case, that many of the people militating in the two main local parties, also militate in the national’s parties as well. When puertorricans move to the states, they continue their affiliation there. Of course, our people living in the states, many years and perhaps for generations, develop their own political inclinations. But for the most part, they tend to be Democrats. And why is that?

Even in Puerto Rico, the “Partido Popular Democratico” or PPD, has been more receptive to the needs of the majority of the people. We can categorize it of “center-liberal’ inclination. It has been responsible, specially under Luis Muñoz Marin, for the amazing development of the Island. Operation Bootstrap, being the core engine with its industrialization efforts that made it all possible. Lineated for years with the National Democratic Party (NDP),. Muñoz was able this way, to craft great social and economic changes in the Island. When he left, things slowed down and other currents of thought seeped in, and corroded the political scene to the point we find ourselves in today.

The “Partido Nuevo Progesista”: or PNP, is a rightist oriented movement, more “rich than poor”, and traditionally, represents the interests of the banks, the big industry, etc., etc., and of course, lineated with the National Republican Party. Not until recently, did some of its members, crossed over to the NDP. One can question their reasons; some say: due to strategical, more than on ideological terms. Nevertheless, these individuals, that so has done, live in a rare limbo of divided loyalties, and you find them most of the times, in these ideological malabarisms.

Through the years, the record shows, that the National Democratic Party, has represented and enacted almost all the legislation of Social justice that you can think of; ie: Social Security; Minorities protection (Civil Rights Act); Equal Employment Act; War on Poverty; Medicare; Health Reform, to mention a few. In equal proportion, the National Republican Party, as they did recently with Health Reform, had opposed all these aforementioned legislation. It’s a fact folks, and its all in the records; you can check it out.
The inclinations to help the un-franchised by the NDP, goes as back as far as Franklin Delano Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy; Lyndon B. Johnson; Jimmy Carter and now with Barack Obama. It is deeply ingrained philosophy of their party. To the contrary, and in equal proportion, the record shows that the National Republican Party, has opposed systematically all of the aforementioned legislation. But why we can ask: is this not the party of Abraham Lincoln, its greatest exponent? There were deep and profound principles upheld by him. Why the change? Wasn’t Lincoln the liberator of the Negroes? The champion of racial causes?

By Kennedy’s times, the GOP, the Lincoln’s party, nevertheless, is not the same. Something happened! Some illustrated minds say, that he alienated and polarized the nation to it’s pre Civil War period. From then hence, the Nation has been a deep canyon or divide: in one side the so called liberals, and in the other the so called Conservatives. What a pity…such a great Nation! Well, they say that’s what Democracy is all about. In essence, my friends, it all boils to: “Is this good for the Nation” “or I don’t like it”; “or it’s