By the way, you are mistaken if you think Uribe is a rightwinger. He comes from the center-left of Columbian politics: before running for presidency he had been a member of the (left-of-center) Liberal party. The only thing he is a "rightwinger" on is defeating the rebels, and that's something that unites much of Columbian political spectrum. Hence - and because he has been rather competent at that - his popularity. What's more, he is not even that authoritarian, given the fight he is in - just compare him with the self-coup prone Fujimori. In the absence of the war he is likely to have been very similar to Chilean Sociallists in outlook. He isn't a Pinochet, or even a Fujimori.
I don't care if he's a right winger or not. He's pro-American enough for me.
