A most interesting and informative article about a country that I know all too little about. Thankyou.

I wonder if Mendez's Roman Catholic background will be a disadvantage. Paraguay has a population growth rate of about 2.5% per annum, a rate that would double the population in about 30 years. Connected to that high reproductive rate is the very high percentage of people less than 15 years of age - ie of school age. It is hard for a country adequately to educate it's citizens when the percentage of school age is very large. It is very unlikely that the Roman Catholic church will do other than continue to encourage fast breeding.

The new president has a terrible job ahead of him. Some sympathy and constructive aid would not go amiss; and encouragement and cooperation from more powerful neighbours should be forthcoming.

The pink tide that is sweeping Latin America is no doubt why US is sending its 4th fleet to the Caribbean and to the south. The signs of growing US unease/panic over its "backyard" include (a) The recent beat up over alleged data on FARC laptops implicating Venezuela's Chavez in a $300 million payment to FARC with which they were going to buy 50kgs of uranium to make a dirty bomb. (b) US and Colombian forces cross illegally into Ecuador and murder sleeping FARC members.(c) The proposed
US military base in Colombia right on the border with Venezuela at La Guajira. Chavez has said he will regard this as an act of war.
Prepare for a US attack on Venezuela and expropriation of its oil and gas!