Chile still shaking, Pinera inaugurated

Teletón

Chilenos raised nearly $60 million USD during their weekend telethon. The event featured Inti-Illimani, Juanes, Los Tres, and Shakira (via video). It was hosted by the Jerry Lewis of Spanish-language telethons, Don Francisco of Sabado Gigante. Taking up way too much time between musical acts were the appearances of business leaders decked out in company fleeces, fleece vests, etc...promising funds which incidentally probably are all coming out Sebastian Pinera's pocket, titan of business that he is.

Closing out the show was Diego Torres performing "Color Esperanza", something of an anthem for Chile at the moment. 

Musica para animarse

It's been a difficult couple of months across the Americas. Chile confronts bouts of social breakdown that it believed its economic progress had inoculated it from, Cuban dissidents suffer stepped up repression, and Bogota endured a major transit strike. It's a really good time for some music. All week long, Armar una Bronca will feature music from across the region. Hope you enjoy.

First up is Beken from Haiti.

As Haitians tries to imagine a way forward, one of its most beloved troubadours recently picked up his guitar for the first time since the earthquake. “Beken usually sold best after a hurricane,” an admirer said, referring to the singer. “But since the earthquake, demand for his music is the strongest in years, the customers love the way he sings about suffering.”

His music can be heard here, courtesy of the NYT.

Chilean Surf Report: Edición Terremoto

Weighing on my mind and that of plenty of other surfers around the world since last week's terremoto is the state of Chile's incredibly pristine surf spots and the pueblos that support Chile's surf community. I have dreamt about breaks like Punta Lobos (right) in Pichilemu and Buchupureo, since my friend Zach returned from studying in Chile nearly a decade ago weighed down with surf flicks and stories of cold water, tree covered bluffs and plenty of left points. 

Patrick J. McDonnell, an LA Times reporter with a long history in Chile (read his play by play on how he and photographer Michael R. Chavez got to Chile in the hours post-sismo), provides some answers on how several of these coastal villages fared following the earthquake and multiple tsunami waves. 

"A quick tour Saturday indicated that quake damage in the area was spotty, but downed buildings, damaged bridges and severed roads were in evidence everywhere. Especially hard hit was Pelluhue, about five miles to the north, where a scuba team searched for bodies in an estuary."

Also, a first-hand account from Pichilemu describes how people instinctively headed for higher ground under the light of the full moon. There are accounts of campers drowned by the surging ocean and whole swaths of coastline have been reshaped.

The Save the Waves Coalition, an organization that works to protect coastal areas and strengthen local communities, has worked in Chile for years and is collecting donations to assist in the recovery.

The Most Interesting Man in the World?

One of the bright spots in the coverage of the Chilean terremoto has been the work of TVN periodista, Santiago Pavlovic Urrionabarrenechea. If not "the most interesting man in the world", then certainly his brother in arms. As a war correspondent with an eye patch, he may in fact be his superior.

For your viewing pleasure, I present to you some of the reporting, more like commentary (and who wouldn't want this man's opinion?), of Don Santiago de la Cordillera de los Andes. The text reads, "the rage held by a reporter of a thousand battles".

"His organ donor card also lists his beard"

El saqueo de los panales en Chile

Marc Cooper reports that Chile has imposed the first nightly curfews since the Pinochet period. Chaos is mounting in Concepcion, Constitucion, Talca, and other towns in the Maule and Biobio regions as residents seek out necessities such as diapers.

90 Seconds

From the BBC:

Terremoto

Webcam chat at Ustream

A terrifyingly large magnitude 8.8 earthquake has shaken Chile. The epicenter appears to have been between Concepcion and Santiago. Buildings, bridges and roads have been destroyed. The live stream above comes courtesy of Television Nacional de Chile.

Both this earthquake and that of Haiti seem to have struck at particular times of promise for their respective countries. In the case of Chile, I am reminded of an interview I recently read with the president-elect of Chile, Sebastian Pinera. In the interview with Andres Oppenheimer he says:

"the big goal we have set for ourselves is that within eight years, by 2018, Chile becomes perhaps the first country in Latin America that with great pride, but also with humbleness, will be able to say, `We have defeated underdevelopment. We have defeated poverty.' Chile today has a per capita income of about $14,400 [a year], and we hope to reach to $24,000 by 2018..."

These priorities will no doubt now have to be reappraised. However, Chile is most certainly not Haiti. The response from the Bachelet government and chilenos thus far appears to have been proactive. Time will tell if this earthquake dramatically changes the national psyche.