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Related subjects Americas; Countries
|República de Chile (Spanish)
Republic of Chile
| Motto: Por la razón o la fuerza
"By right or might" (Spanish)
| Anthem: Himno Nacional de Chile (Spanish)
(and largest city)
|Official languages
|Democratic republic
|Michelle Bachelet
|from Spain
| First National
Government Junta
September 18, 1810
|February 12, 1818
|April 25, 1844
| 756,950 km² ( 38th)
292,183 sq mi
|Water (%)
|June 2007 estimate
|16,598,074 ( 60th)
|2002 census
|22/km² ( 194th)
57/sq mi
|2007 estimate
|$231.061 billion ( 44th)
|Per capita
|$13,936 ( 54th)
|GDP (nominal)
|2007 estimate
|$163.792 billion ( 41st)
|Per capita
|$9,879 ( 51st)
|Gini (2006)
|54 (high)
|▲ 0.867 (high) ( 40th)
| Peso (
|Time zone
|n/a ( UTC-4)
|Summer ( DST)
|n/a ( UTC-3)
|Internet TLD
|Calling code
|The legislative body operates in Valparaíso.
|Includes Easter Island and Isla Sala y Gómez; does not include 1,250,000 km² (482,628 sq mi) of territory claimed in Antarctica.
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile (Spanish: República de Chile ), is a country in South America occupying a long and narrow coastal strip wedged between the Andes mountains and the Pacific Ocean. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage at the country's southernmost tip. It is one of only two countries in South America that does not have a border with Brazil. The Pacific forms the country's entire western border, with a coastline that stretches over 6,435 kilometres. Chilean territory extends to the Pacific Ocean which includes the overseas territories of Juan Fernández Islands, the Sala y Gómez islands, the Desventuradas Islands and Easter Island located in Polynesia. Chile claims 1,250,000 km² (482,628 sq mi) of territory in Antarctica.
Chile's unusual, ribbon-like shape —4,300 km long and on average 175 km wide— has given it a hugely varied climate, ranging from the world's driest desert - the Atacama - in the north, through a Mediterranean climate in the centre, to a snow-prone Alpine climate in the south, with glaciers, fjords and lakes. The northern Chilean desert contains great mineral wealth, principally copper. The relatively small central area dominates the country in terms of population and agricultural resources. This area also is the cultural and political centre from which Chile expanded in the late 19th century, when it incorporated its northern and southern regions. Southern Chile is rich in forests and grazing lands and features a string of volcanoes and lakes. The southern coast is a labyrinth of fjords, inlets, canals, twisting peninsulas, and islands. The Andes Mountains are located on the eastern border.
Prior to the coming of the Spanish in the 16th century, northern Chile was under Inca rule while Araucanian Indians (also known as Mapuches) inhabited central and southern Chile. Although Chile declared its independence in 1810, decisive victory over the Spanish was not achieved until 1818. In the War of the Pacific (1879-83), Chile defeated Peru and Bolivia and won its present northern regions. It was not until the 1880s that the Araucanian Indians were completely subjugated. The country, which had been relatively free of the coups and arbitrary governments that blighted the South American continent, endured a 17 year military dictatorship (1973-1990), one of the bloodiest in 20th-century Latin America that left more than 3,000 people dead and missing.
Currently, Chile is one of South America's most stable and prosperous nations. Within the greater Latin American context it leads in terms of competitiveness, quality of life, political stability, globalization, economic freedom, low perception of corruption and comparatively low poverty rates. It also ranks high regionally in freedom of the press, human development and democratic development. Its status as the region's richest country in terms of gross domestic product per capita (at market prices and purchasing power parity) is countered by its high level of income inequality, as measured by the Gini index.
There are various theories about the origin of the word Chile. According to one theory the Incas of Peru, who had failed to conquer the Araucanians, called the valley of the Aconcagua "Chili" by corruption of the name of a tribal chief ("cacique") called Tili, who ruled the area at the time of the Incan conquest. Another theory points to the similarity of the valley of the Aconcagua with that of the Casma Valley in Peru, where there was a town and valley named Chili. Other theories say Chile may derive its name from the indigenous Mapuche word chilli, which may mean "where the land ends," "the deepest point of the Earth," or "sea gulls;" or from the Quechua chin, "cold," or the Aymara tchili, meaning "snow." Another meaning attributed to chilli is the onomatopoeic cheele-cheele—the Mapuche imitation of a bird call. The Spanish conquistadors heard about this name from the Incas and the few survivors of Diego de Almagro's first Spanish expedition south from Peru in 1535-36 called themselves the "men of Chilli."
About 10,000 years ago, migrating Native Americans settled in fertile valleys and along the coast of what is now Chile. The Incas briefly extended their empire into what is now northern Chile, but the area's barrenness prevented extensive settlement.
In 1520, while attempting to circumnavigate the earth, the Portuguese Ferdinand Magellan, discovered the southern passage now named after him, the Strait of Magellan. The next Europeans to reach Chile were Diego de Almagro and his band of Spanish conquistadors, who came from Peru in 1535 seeking gold. The Spanish encountered hundreds of thousands of Native Americans from various cultures in the area that modern Chile now occupies. These cultures supported themselves principally through slash-and-burn agriculture and hunting. The conquest of Chile began in earnest in 1540 and was carried out by Pedro de Valdivia, one of Francisco Pizarro's lieutenants, who founded the city of Santiago on February 12, 1541. Although the Spanish did not find the extensive gold and silver they sought, they recognized the agricultural potential of Chile's central valley, and Chile became part of the Viceroyalty of Peru.
Conquest of the land that is today called Chile took place only gradually, and the Europeans suffered repeated setbacks at the hands of the local population. A massive Mapuche insurrection that began in 1553 resulted in Valdivia's death and the destruction of many of the colony's principal settlements. Subsequent major insurrections took place in 1598 and in 1655. Each time the Mapuche and other native groups revolted, the southern border of the colony was driven northward. The abolition of slavery in 1683 defused tensions on the frontier between the colony and the Mapuche land to the south, and permitted increased trade between colonists and the Mapuche.
The drive for independence from Spain was precipitated by usurpation of the Spanish throne by Napoleon's brother Joseph in 1808. A national junta in the name of Ferdinand—heir to the deposed king—was formed on September 18, 1810. The junta proclaimed Chile an autonomous republic within the Spanish monarchy. A movement for total independence soon won a wide following. Spanish attempts to re-impose arbitrary rule during what was called the " Reconquista" led to a prolonged struggle.
Intermittent warfare continued until 1817, when an army led by Bernardo O'Higgins, Chile's most renowned patriot, and José de San Martín, hero of the Argentine War of Independence, crossed the Andes into Chile and defeated the royalists. On February 12, 1818, Chile was proclaimed an independent republic under O'Higgins' leadership. The political revolt brought little social change, however, and 19th century Chilean society preserved the essence of the stratified colonial social structure, which was greatly influenced by family politics and the Roman Catholic Church. A strong presidency eventually emerged, but wealthy landowners remained extremely powerful.
Toward the end of the nineteenth century, the government in Santiago consolidated its position in the south by ruthlessly suppressing the Mapuche during the Occupation of Araucanía. In 1881, it signed a treaty with Argentina confirming Chilean sovereignty over the Strait of Magellan. As a result of the War of the Pacific with Peru and Bolivia (1879–83), Chile expanded its territory northward by almost one-third, eliminating Bolivia's access to the Pacific, and acquired valuable nitrate deposits, the exploitation of which led to an era of national affluence. The Chilean Civil War in 1891 brought about a redistribution of power between the President and Congress, and Chile established a parliamentary style democracy. However, the Civil War had also been a contest between those who favored the development of local industries and powerful Chilean banking interests, particularly the House of Edwards who had strong ties to foreign investors. Hence the Chilean economy partially degenerated into a system protecting the interests of a ruling oligarchy. By the 1920s, the emerging middle and working classes were powerful enough to elect a reformist president, Arturo Alessandri Palma, whose program was frustrated by a conservative congress. Alessandri Palma's reformist tendencies were partly tempered later by an admiration for some elements of Mussolini's Italian Corporate State. In the 1920s, Marxist groups with strong popular support arose.
A military coup led by General Luis Altamirano in 1924 set off a period of great political instability that lasted until 1932. The longest lasting of the ten governments between those years was that of General Carlos Ibáñez del Campo, who briefly held power in 1925 and then again between 1927 and 1931 in what was a de facto dictatorship, although not really comparable in harshness or corruption to the type of military dictatorship that has often bedeviled the rest of Latin America, and certainly not comparable to the violent and repressive regime of Augusto Pinochet decades later. By relinquishing power to a democratically elected successor, Ibáñez del Campo retained the respect of a large enough segment of the population to remain a viable politician for more than thirty years, in spite of the vague and shifting nature of his ideology. When constitutional rule was restored in 1932, a strong middle-class party, the Radicals, emerged. It became the key force in coalition governments for the next 20 years. During the period of Radical Party dominance (1932–52), the state increased its role in the economy. In 1952, voters returned Ibáñez del Campo, now reincarnated as a sort of Chilean Perón, to office for another six years. Jorge Alessandri succeeded Ibáñez del Campo in 1958, bringing Chilean conservatism back into power democratically for another term.
The 1964 presidential election of Christian Democrat Eduardo Frei Montalva by an absolute majority initiated a period of major reform. Under the slogan "Revolution in Liberty", the Frei administration embarked on far-reaching social and economic programs, particularly in education, housing, and agrarian reform, including rural unionization of agricultural workers. By 1967, however, Frei encountered increasing opposition from leftists, who charged that his reforms were inadequate, and from conservatives, who found them excessive. At the end of his term, Frei had accomplished many noteworthy objectives, but he had not fully achieved his party's ambitious goals.
In 1970, Senator Salvador Allende Gossens, a Marxist physician and member of Chile's Socialist Party, who headed the " Popular Unity" (UP or "Unidad Popular") coalition of the Socialist, Communist, Radical, and Social-Democratic Parties, along with dissident Christian Democrats, the Popular Unitary Action Movement (MAPU), and the Independent Popular Action, won a plurality of votes in a three-way contest. Despite pressure from the government of the United States, the Chilean Congress, keeping with tradition, conducted a runoff vote between the leading candidates, Allende and former president Jorge Alessandri and chose Allende by a vote of 153 to 35. Frei refused to form an alliance with Alessandri to oppose Allende, on the grounds that the Christian Democrats were a workers party and could not make common cause with the oligarchs.
Allende's program included advancement of workers' interests; a thoroughgoing implementation of agrarian reform; the reorganization of the national economy into socialized, mixed, and private sectors; a foreign policy of "international solidarity" and national independence; and a new institutional order (the "people's state" or "poder popular"), including the institution of a unicameral congress. The Popular Unity platform also called for nationalization of foreign (U.S.) ownership of Chile's major copper mines.
An economic depression that began in 1967 peaked in 1970, exacerbated by capital flight, plummeting private investment, and withdrawal of bank deposits by those opposed to Allende's socialist program. Production fell and unemployment rose. Allende adopted measures including price freezes, wage increases, and tax reforms, which had the effect of increasing consumer spending and redistributing income downward. Joint public-private public works projects helped reduce unemployment. Much of the banking sector was nationalized. Many enterprises within the copper, coal, iron, nitrate, and steel industries were expropriated, nationalized, or subjected to state intervention. Industrial output increased sharply and unemployment fell during the Allende administration's first year.
Other reforms undertaken during the early Allende period included redistribution of millions of hectares of land to landless agricultural workers as part of the agrarian reform program, giving the armed forces an overdue pay increase, and providing free milk to children. The Indian Peoples Development Corporation and the Mapuche Vocational Institute were founded to address the needs of Chile's indigenous population.
The nationalization of U.S. and other foreign-owned companies led to increased tensions with the United States. The Nixon administration brought international financial pressure to bear in order to restrict economic credit to Chile. Simultaneously, the CIA funded opposition media, politicians, and organizations, helping to accelerate a campaign of domestic destabilization. By 1972, the economic progress of Allende's first year had been reversed and the economy was in crisis. Political polarization increased, and large mobilizations of both pro- and anti-government groups became frequent, often leading to clashes.
By early 1973, inflation was out of control. The crippled economy was further battered by prolonged and sometimes simultaneous strikes by physicians, teachers, students, truck owners, copper workers, and the small business class. A US-backed military coup overthrew Allende on September 11, 1973. As the armed forces bombarded the presidential palace (Palacio de La Moneda), Allende reportedly committed suicide. A military government, led by General Augusto Pinochet Ugarte, took over control of the country. The first years of the regime were marked by serious human rights violations. On October 1973, at least 72 people were murdered by the Caravan of Death. At least a thousand people were executed during the first six months of Pinochet in office, and at least two thousand more were killed during the next sixteen years, as reported by the Rettig Report. Some 30,000 were forced to flee the country, and tens of thousands of people were detained and tortured, as investigated by the 2004 Valech Commission. A new Constitution was approved by a highly irregular and undemocratic plebiscite characterized by the absence of registration lists, on September 11, 1980, and General Pinochet became President of the Republic for an 8-year term.
In the late 1980s, the regime gradually permitted greater freedom of assembly, speech, and association, to include trade union and limited political activity. The right-wing military government pursued free market economic policies. During Pinochet's nearly 17 years in power, Chile moved away from state involvement, toward a largely free market economy that saw an increase in domestic and foreign private investment, although the copper industry and other important mineral resources were not returned to foreign ownership. In a plebiscite on October 5, 1988, General Pinochet was denied a second 8-year term as president (56% against 44%). Chileans elected a new president and the majority of members of a two-chamber congress on December 14, 1989. Christian Democrat Patricio Aylwin, the candidate of a coalition of 17 political parties called the Concertación, received an absolute majority of votes (55%).. President Aylwin served from 1990 to 1994, in what was considered a transition period.
In December 1993, Christian Democrat Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle, the son of previous president Eduardo Frei Montalva, led the Concertación coalition to victory with an absolute majority of votes (58%). Frei Ruiz-Tagle was succeeded in 2000 by Socialist Ricardo Lagos, who won the presidency in an unprecedented runoff election against Joaquín Lavín of the rightist Alliance for Chile. In January 2006 Chileans elected their first woman president, Michelle Bachelet Jeria, of the Socialist Party. She was sworn in on March 11, 2006, extending the Concertación coalition governance for another four years.
Chile's Constitution was approved in a highly irregular national plebiscite in September 1980, under the military government of Augusto Pinochet. It entered into force in March 1981. After Pinochet's defeat in the 1988 plebiscite, the Constitution was amended to ease provisions for future amendments to the Constitution. In September 2005, President Ricardo Lagos signed into law several constitutional amendments passed by Congress. These include eliminating the positions of appointed senators and senators for life, granting the President authority to remove the commanders-in-chief of the armed forces, and reducing the presidential term from six to four years.
Chileans voted in the first round of presidential elections on December 11, 2005. None of the four presidential candidates won more than 50% of the vote. As a result, the top two vote-getters—centre-left Concertación coalition's Michelle Bachelet and centre-right Alianza coalition's Sebastián Piñera—competed in a run-off election on January 15, 2006, which Michelle Bachelet won. She was sworn in on March 11, 2006. This was Chile's fourth presidential election since the end of the Pinochet era. All four have been judged free and fair. The President is constitutionally barred from serving consecutive terms.
Chile's bicameral Congress has a 38-seat Senate and a 120-member Chamber of Deputies. Senators serve for 8 years with staggered terms, while Deputies are elected every 4 years. The current Senate has a 20-18 split in favour of pro-government Senators. The last congressional elections were held in December 11, 2005, concurrently with the presidential election. The current lower house—the Chamber of Deputies—contains 63 members of the governing center-left coalition and 57 from the centre-right opposition. The Congress is located in the port city of Valparaíso, about 140 kilometers (84 mi.) west of the capital, Santiago.
Chile's congressional elections are governed by a binomial system that rewards large representations. Therefore, there are only two Senate and two Deputy seats apportioned to each electoral district, parties are forced to form wide coalitions and, historically, the two largest coalitions (Concertación and Alianza) split most of the seats in a district. Only if the leading coalition ticket out-polls the second-place coalition by a margin of more than 2-to-1 does the winning coalition gain both seats. In the 2001 congressional elections, the conservative Independent Democratic Union surpassed the Christian Democrats for the first time to become the largest party in the lower house. In 2005, both leading parties, the Christian Democrats and the UDI lost representation in favour of their respective allies Socialist Party (which became the biggest party in the Concertación block) and National Renewal in the right-wing alliance. The Communist Party again failed to gain any seats in the election. (See Chilean parliamentary election, 2005.)
Chile's judiciary is independent and includes a court of appeal, a system of military courts, a constitutional tribunal, and the Supreme Court. In June 2005, Chile completed a nation-wide overhaul of its criminal justice system. The reform has replaced inquisitorial proceedings with an adversarial system more similar to that of the United States.
Administrative division
Chile is divided into 15 regions, each of which is headed by an intendant appointed by the President. Every region is further divided into provinces, with a provincial governor also appointed by the President. Finally each province is divided into communes which are administered by municipalities, each with its own mayor and councilmen elected by their inhabitants for four years.
Each region is designated by a name and a Roman numeral, assigned from north to south. The only exception is the region housing the nation's capital, which is designated RM, that stands for Región Metropolitana (Metropolitan Region).
Two new regions were created in 2006: Arica and Parinacota in the north, and Los Ríos in the south. Both became operative in October 2007.
A long and narrow coastal Southern Cone country on the west side of the Andes Mountains, Chile stretches over 4,630 kilometers (2,880 mi) north to south, but only 430 kilometers (265 mi) at its widest point east to west. This encompasses a remarkable variety of landscapes.
At 756,950 km² (292,260 sq mi), Chile is the world's 38th-largest country. It is comparable in size to Zambia, and is about twice the size of Japan.
The northern Atacama Desert contains great mineral wealth, primarily copper and nitrates. The relatively small Central Valley, which includes Santiago, dominates the country in terms of population and agricultural resources. This area also is the historical centre from which Chile expanded in the late nineteenth century, when it integrated the northern and southern regions. Southern Chile is rich in forests, grazing lands, and features a string of volcanoes and lakes. The southern coast is a labyrinth of fjords, inlets, canals, twisting peninsulas, and islands. The Andes Mountains are located on the eastern border. Chile is the longest (N-S) country in the world (over 4,200 km (2,610 mi)), and also claims 1,250,000 km² (482,628 sq mi) of Antarctica as part of its territory. However, this latter claim is suspended under the terms of the Antarctic Treaty, of which Chile is signatory.
Chile controls Easter Island and Sala y Gómez Island, the easternmost islands of Polynesia, which it incorporated to its territory in 1888, and Robinson Crusoe Island, more than 600 km (373 mi) from the mainland, in the Juan Fernández archipelago. Easter Island is nowadays a province of Chile. Also controlled but only temporally inhabited (by some local fishermen) are the small islands of Sala y Gómez, San Ambrosio and San Felix, these islands are notable because they extend Chile's claim to territorial waters out from its coast into the Pacific.
The climate of Chile comprises a wide range of weather conditions across a large geographic scale, extending across 38 degrees in latitude, making generalisations difficult. According to the Köppen system, Chile within its borders hosts at least seven major climatic subtypes, ranging from desert in the north, to alpine tundra and glaciers in the east and south east, humid subtropical in Easter Island, Oceanic in the south and mediterranean climate in central Chile. There are four seasons in most of the country: summer (December to February), autumn (March to May), winter (June to August), and spring (September to November).
Time zones
Because of the distance between the mainland and Easter Island, Chile uses 4 different UTC offsets:
- The mainland uses UTC-4, and in summer as daylight saving time UTC-3.
- Easter Island uses UTC-6, and in summer as daylight saving time UTC-5.
After a decade of impressive growth rates, Chile began to experience a moderate economic downturn in 1999, brought on by unfavorable global economic conditions related to the Asian financial crisis, which began in 1997. The economy remained sluggish until 2003, when it began to show clear signs of recovery, achieving 4.0% real GDP growth. The Chilean economy finished 2004 with growth of 6.0%. Real GDP growth reached 5.7% in 2005 before falling back to 4.0% growth in 2006. Higher energy prices as well as lagging consumer demand were drags on the economy in 2006. Higher Chilean Government spending and favorable external conditions (including record copper prices for much of 2006) were not enough to offset these drags. For the first time in many years, Chilean economic growth in 2006 was among the weakest in Latin America. GDP expanded 5.1% in 2007.
Chile has pursued generally sound economic policies for nearly three decades. The 1973-90 military government sold many state-owned companies, and the three democratic governments since 1990 have continued privatization, though at a slower pace. The government's role in the economy is mostly limited to regulation, although the state continues to operate copper giant CODELCO and a few other enterprises (there is one state-run bank). Chile is strongly committed to free trade and has welcomed large amounts of foreign investment. Chile has signed free trade agreements (FTAs) with a whole network of countries, including an FTA with the United States, which was signed in 2003 and implemented in January 2004. Over the last several years, Chile has signed FTAs with the European Union, South Korea, New Zealand, Singapore, Brunei, China, and Japan. It reached a partial trade agreement with India in 2005 and began negotiations for a full-fledged FTA with India in 2006. Chile conducted trade negotiations in 2007 with Australia, Malaysia, and Thailand, as well as with China to expand an existing agreement beyond just trade in goods. Chile hopes to conclude FTA negotiations with Australia and the expanded agreement with China in 2008. Negotiations with Malaysia and Thailand are scheduled to continue throughout 2008. The members of the P4 (Chile, Singapore, New Zealand, and Brunei) also plan to conclude a chapter on finance and investment in 2008. The economic international organization the OECD agreed to invite Chile to be among four countries to open discussions in becoming an official member.
High domestic savings and investment rates helped propel Chile's economy to average growth rates of 8% during the 1990s. The privatized national pension system (AFP) has encouraged domestic investment and contributed to an estimated total domestic savings rate of approximately 21% of GDP. However, the AFP is not without its critics, who cite low participation rates (only 55% of the working population is covered), with groups such as the self-employed outside the system. There has also been criticism of the inefficiency and high costs due to a lack of competition among pension funds. Critics cite loopholes in the use of pension savings through lump sum withdraws for the purchase of a second home or payment of university fees as fundamental weaknesses of the AFP. The Bachelet administration plans substantial reform, but not an overhaul, of the AFP during the next several years.
Unemployment stubbornly hovered in the 9%-10% range after the start of the economic slowdown in 1999, above the 7% average for the 1990s. Unemployment finally dipped to 7.8% for 2006, and has kept falling in 2007, averaging 6.8% monthly (up to August). Wages have risen faster than inflation as a result of higher productivity, boosting national living standards. The percentage of Chileans with household incomes below the poverty line—defined as twice the cost of satisfying a person's minimal nutritional needs—fell from 45.1% in 1987 to 13.7% in 2006, according to government polls. Critics in Chile, however, argue true poverty figures are considerably higher than those officially published, due to the government's use of an outdated 1987 household budget poll, updated every 10 years. According to these critics, using the 1997 household budget data, the poverty rate rises to 29%. Using the relative yardstick favoured in many European countries, 27% of Chileans would be poor, according to Juan Carlos Feres of the ECLAC. Despite enjoying a comparatively higher GDP and more robust economy compared to most other countries of Latin America, Chile also suffers from one of the most uneven distributions of wealth in the world, ahead only of Brazil in the Latin American region and lagging behind even of most developing sub-Saharan African nations. Chile's top 10 richest percentile possesses 47 percent of the country's wealth. In relation to income distribution, some 6.2% of the country populates the upper economic income bracket, 15% the middle bracket, 21% the lower middle, 38% the lower bracket, and 20% the extreme poor.
Chile's independent Central Bank pursues an inflation target of between 2% and 4%. Inflation has not exceeded 5% since 1998. Chile registered an inflation rate of 3.2% in 2006. The Chilean peso's rapid appreciation against the U.S. dollar in recent years has helped dampen inflation. Most wage settlements and loans are indexed, reducing inflation's volatility. Under the compulsory private pension system, most formal sector employees pay 10% of their salaries into privately managed funds.
Total foreign direct investment (FDI) was only $3.4 billion in 2006, up 52% from a poor performance in 2005. However, 80% of FDI continues to go to only four sectors: electricity, gas, water and mining. Much of the jump in FDI in 2006 was also the result of acquisitions and mergers and has done little to create new employment in Chile. The Chilean Government has formed a Council on Innovation and Competition, which is tasked with identifying new sectors and industries to promote. It is hoped that this, combined with some tax reforms to encourage domestic and foreign investment in research and development, will bring in additional FDI and to new parts of the economy. As of 2006, Chile invested only 0.6% of its annual GDP in research and development (R&D). Even then, two-thirds of that was government spending. The fact that domestic and foreign companies spend almost nothing on R&D does not bode well for the Government of Chile's efforts to develop innovative, knowledge-based sectors. Beyond its general economic and political stability, the government also has encouraged the use of Chile as an "investment platform" for multinational corporations planning to operate in the region, but this will have limited value given the developing business climate in Chile itself. Chile's approach to foreign direct investment is codified in the country's Foreign Investment Law, which gives foreign investors the same treatment as Chileans. Registration is simple and transparent, and foreign investors are guaranteed access to the official foreign exchange market to repatriate their profits and capital.
Foreign trade
2006 was a record year for Chilean trade. Total trade registered a 31% increase over 2005. During 2006, exports of goods and services totaled U.S. $58 billion, an increase of 41%. This figure was somewhat distorted by the skyrocketing price of copper. In 2006, copper exports reached a historical high of U.S. $33.3 billion. Imports totaled U.S. $35 billion, an increase of 17% compared to the previous year. Chile thus recorded a positive trade balance of U.S. $23 billion in 2006.
The main destinations for Chilean exports were the Americas (U.S. $39 billion), Asia (U.S. $27.8 billion) and Europe (U.S. $22.2 billion). Seen as shares of Chile's export markets, 42% of exports went to the Americas, 30% to Asia and 24% to Europe. Within Chile's diversified network of trade relationships, its most important partner remained the United States. Total trade with the U.S. was U.S. $14.8 billion in 2006. Since the U.S.-Chile Free Trade Agreement went into effect on January 1, 2004, U.S.-Chilean trade has increased by 154%. Internal Government of Chile figures show that even when factoring out inflation and the recent high price of copper, bilateral trade between the U.S. and Chile has grown over 60% since then.
Total trade with Europe also grew in 2006, expanding by 42%. The Netherlands and Italy were Chile's main European trading partners. Total trade with Asia also grew significantly at nearly 31%. Trade with Korea and Japan grew significantly, but China remained Chile's most important trading partner in Asia. Chile's total trade with China reached U.S. $8.8 billion in 2006, representing nearly 66% of the value of its trade relationship with Asia.
The growth of exports in 2006 was due mainly to a strong increase in sales to the United States, the Netherlands, and Japan. These three markets alone accounted for an additional U.S. $5.5 billion worth of Chilean exports. Chilean exports to the United States totaled U.S. $9.3 billion, representing a 37.7% increase compared to 2005 (U.S. $6.7 billion). Exports to the European Union were U.S. $15.4 billion, a 63.7% increased compared to 2005 (U.S. $9.4 billion). Exports to Asia increased from U.S. $15.2 billion in 2005 to U.S. $19.7 billion in 2006, a 29.9% increase.
During 2006, Chile imported U.S. $26 billion from the Americas, representing 54% of total imports, followed by Asia at 22%, and Europe at 16%. Mercosur members were the main suppliers of imports to Chile at U.S. $9.1 billion, followed by the United States with U.S. $5.5 billion and the European Union with U.S. $5.2 billion. From Asia, China was the most important exporter to Chile, with goods valued at U.S. $3.6 billion. Year-on-year growth in imports was especially strong from a number of countries—Ecuador (123.9%), Thailand (72.1%), Korea (52.6%), and China (36.9%).
Chile's overall trade profile has traditionally been dependent upon copper exports. The state-owned firm CODELCO is the world's largest copper-producing company, with recorded copper reserves of 200 years. Chile has made an effort to expand nontraditional exports. The most important non-mineral exports are forestry and wood products, fresh fruit and processed food, fishmeal and seafood, and wine.
Successive Chilean governments have actively pursued trade-liberalizing agreements. During the 1990s, Chile signed free trade agreements (FTA) with Canada, Mexico, and Central America. Chile also concluded preferential trade agreements with Venezuela, Colombia, and Ecuador. An association agreement with Mercosur—Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay—went into effect in October 1996. Continuing its export-oriented development strategy, Chile completed landmark free trade agreements in 2002 with the European Union and South Korea. Chile, as a member of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) organization, is seeking to boost commercial ties to Asian markets. To that end, it has signed trade agreements in recent years with New Zealand, Singapore, Brunei, India, China, and most recently Japan. In 2007, Chile held trade negotiations with Australia, Thailand, Malaysia, and China. In 2008, Chile hopes to conclude an FTA with Australia, and finalize an expanded agreement (covering trade in services and investment) with China. The P4 (Chile, Singapore, New Zealand, and Brunei) also plan to expand ties through adding a finance and investment chapter to the existing P4 agreement. Chile's trade talks with Malaysia and Thailand are also scheduled to continue in 2008.
After two years of negotiations, the United States and Chile signed an agreement in June 2003 that will lead to completely duty-free bilateral trade within 12 years. The U.S.-Chile FTA entered into force January 1, 2004 following approval by the U.S. and Chilean congresses. The bilateral FTA has inaugurated greatly expanded U.S.-Chilean trade ties, with total bilateral trade jumping by 154% during the FTA's first three years.
Chile unilaterally lowered its across-the-board import tariff for all countries with which it does not have a trade agreement to 6% in 2003. Higher effective tariffs are charged only on imports of wheat, wheat flour, and sugar as a result of a system of import price bands. The price bands were ruled inconsistent with Chile's World Trade Organization (WTO) obligations in 2002, and the government has introduced legislation to modify them. Under the terms of the U.S.-Chile FTA, the price bands will be completely phased out for U.S. imports of wheat, wheat flour, and sugar within 12 years.
Chile is a strong proponent of pressing ahead on negotiations for a Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) and is active in the WTO's Doha round of negotiations, principally through its membership in the G-20 and Cairns Group.
Chile's financial sector has grown quickly in recent years, with a banking reform law approved in 1997 that broadened the scope of permissible foreign activity for Chilean banks. The Chilean Government implemented a further liberalization of capital markets in 2001, and there is further pending legislation proposing further liberalization. Over the last ten years, Chileans have enjoyed the introduction of new financial tools such as home equity loans, currency futures and options, factoring, leasing, and debit cards. The introduction of these new products has also been accompanied by an increased use of traditional instruments such as loans and credit cards. Chile's private pension system, with assets worth roughly $70 billion at the end of 2006, has been an important source of investment capital for the capital market. Chile maintains one of the best credit ratings (S&P A+) in Latin America. There are three main ways for Chilean firms to raise funds abroad: bank loans, issuance of bonds, and the selling of stocks on U.S. markets through American Depository Receipts (ADRs). Nearly all of the funds raised through these means go to finance domestic Chilean investment. The government is required by law to run a fiscal surplus of at least 1% of GDP. In 2006, the Government of Chile ran a surplus of $11.3 billion, equal to almost 8% of GDP. The Government of Chile continues to pay down its foreign debt, with public debt only 3.9% of GDP at the end of 2006.
Chile's Armed Forces are subject to civilian control exercised by the President through the Minister of Defense. The President has the authority to remove the commanders-in-chief of the armed forces.
The commander in chief of the Chilean Army is General Oscar Izurieta Ferrer. The Chilean Army is 45,000 strong and is organized with an Army headquarters in Santiago, seven divisions throughout its territory, an Air Brigade in Rancagua, and a Special Forces Command in Colina. The Chilean Army is one of the most professional and technologically advanced armies in Latin America.
Admiral Rodolfo Codina directs the 23,000-person Navy, including 2,500 Marines. Of the fleet of 29 surface vessels, only eight are operational major combatants (frigates). Those ships are based in Valparaiso. The Navy operates its own aircraft for transport and patrol; there are no Navy fighter or bomber aircraft. The Navy also operates four submarines based in Talcahuano.
Air Force (FACH)
Gen. Ricardo Ortega Perrier heads a force of 12,500. Air assets are distributed among five air brigades headquartered in Iquique, Antofagasta, Santiago, Puerto Montt, and Punta Arenas. The Air Force also operates an airbase on King George Island, Antarctica. The FACH took delivery of the final 2 of 10 F-16s, all purchased from the U.S., in March 2007. Chile also took delivery in 2007 of a number of reconditioned Block 15 F-16s from the Netherlands, bringing to 18 the total of F-16s purchased from the Dutch.
After the military coup in September 1973, the Chilean national police (Carabineros) were incorporated into the Defense Ministry. With the return of democratic government, the police were placed under the operational control of the Interior Ministry but remained under the nominal control of the Defense Ministry. Gen. Eduardo Gordon is the head of the national police force of 40,964 men and women who are responsible for law enforcement, traffic management, narcotics suppression, border control, and counter-terrorism throughout Chile.
Foreign relations
Since the early decades after independence, Chile has always had an active involvement in foreign affairs. In 1837 the country aggressively challenged the dominance of Peru's port of Callao for preeminence in the Pacific trade routes, defeating the short-lived alliance between Peru and Bolivia, the Peru-Bolivian Confederation (1836-39) in the War of the Confederation. The war dissolved the confederation while distributing power in the Pacific. A second international war, the War of the Pacific (1879-83), further increased Chile's regional role, while adding considerably to its territory.
During the nineteenth century, Chile's commercial ties were primarily with Britain, a country that had a decisive influence on the organization of the navy. The French influenced Chile's legal and educational systems and had a decisive impact on Chile, through the architecture of the capital in the boom years at the turn of the century. German influence came from the organization and training of the army by Prussians.
On June 26, 1945 Chile participated as a founding member of the United Nations being among 50 countries that signed the United Nations Charter in San Francisco. With the military coup of 1973, Chile became isolated politically as a result of widespread human rights abuses.
Since its return to democracy in 1990, Chile has been an active participant in the international political arena. Chile completed a 2-year non-permanent position on the UN Security Council in January 2005. Jose Miguel Insulza, a Chilean national, was elected Secretary General of the Organization of American States in May 2005. Chile is currently serving on the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Board of Governors, and the 2007-2008 chair of the board is Chile's ambassador to the IAEA, Milenko E. Skoknic. The country is an active member of the UN family of agencies and participates in UN peacekeeping activities. It is currently bidding for a seat on the UN Human Rights Council. Chile hosted the Defense Ministerial of the Americas in 2002 and the APEC summit and related meetings in 2004. It also hosted the Community of Democracies ministerial in April 2005 and the Ibero-American Summit in November 2007. An associate member of Mercosur and a full member of APEC, Chile has been an important actor on international economic issues and hemispheric free trade.
The Chilean Government has diplomatic relations with most countries. It settled its territorial disputes with Argentina during the 1990s. Chile and Bolivia severed diplomatic ties in 1978 over Bolivia's desire to reacquire territory it lost to Chile in 1879-83 War of the Pacific. The two countries maintain consular relations and are represented at the Consul General level.
Chile's 2002 census reported a population of 15,116,435. Its growth has been declining since 1990, due to a decreasing birth rate. By 2050 the population is expected to reach approximately 20.2 million. About 85% of the country's population lives in urban areas, with 40% living in Greater Santiago. The largest agglomerations according to the 2002 census are Greater Santiago with 5.4 million people, Greater Valparaíso with 804,000 and Greater Concepción with 666,000.
Racial structure
The bulk of the Chilean population features a considerably homogeneous mestizo quality, the product of miscegenation between colonial Spanish immigrants and Amerindian females (including the Atacameños, Diaguitas, Picunches, Araucanians or Mapuches, Huilliches, Pehuenches, and Cuncos). Chile's ethnic structure can be classified as 30% white, 5% Native American and 65% predominantly white mestizos. Whites are mostly Spanish in origin (mainly Castilians, Andalusians and Basques), and to a much lesser degree from Chile's various waves of immigrants ( Italians, Germans, Israelis, Yugoslavians, Arabs, etc.). Foreigners have always been scarce in Chile, totalling 600 in the whole colonial period. At the 1960 census they numbered 105,000 (55% being Spanish, German, Italians or Argentines, in that order). Besides being small in number, they mixed quickly with the locals. The black population was always scant, reaching a high of 25,000 during the colonial period; its racial contribution is less than 1%. The current Native American population is relatively small (see below) according to the censuses; their numbers are augmented when one takes into consideration those that are physically similar, and those that are linguistically or socially thought to belong to them.
Indigenous communities
|Those belonging to recognised indigenous communities (2002)
In the 1992 Chilean census, a total of 10.5% of the total population surveyed declared themselves indigenous, irrespective of whether they currently practiced or spoke a native culture and language; almost one million people (9.7% of the total) declared themselves Mapuche, 0.6% declared to be Aymara, and a 0.2% reported as Rapanui.
At the 2002 census, only indigenous people that still practiced a native culture or spoke a native language were surveyed: 4.6% of the population (692,192 people) fit that description; of these, 87.3% declared themselves Mapuche.
Relative to its overall population, Chile never experienced any large scale wave of immigrants. The total number of immigrants to Chile, both originating from other Latin American countries and all other (mostly European) countries, never surpassed 4% of its total population. This is not to say that immigrants were not important to the evolution of Chilean society and the Chilean nation. Basque families who migrated to Chile in the 18th century vitalized the economy and joined the old Castilian aristocracy to become the political elite that still dominates the country. Some non-Spanish European immigrants arrived in Chile — mainly to the northern and southern extremities of the country — during the 19th and 20th centuries, including English, Germans, Irish, Italians, French, Croatians and other former Yugoslavians. The prevalence of non-Hispanic European surnames among the governing body of modern Chile are a testament to their disproportionate contribution and influence on the country. Also worth mentioning are the Korean, and especially Palestinian communities, the latter being the largest colony of that people outside of the Arab world. The volume of immigrants from neighboring countries to Chile during those same periods was of a similar value.
After independence and during the republican era, English, Italian, and French merchants established themselves in the growing cities of Chile and incidentally joined the political or economic elites of the country. The official encouragement of German and Swiss colonization in the Lake District ( Los Lagos Region) during the second half of the 19th century was exceptional. Small numbers of displaced eastern European Jews and Christian Syrians and Palestinians fleeing the Ottoman Empire arrived in Chile. Today they spearhead financial and small manufacturing operations. Croats have also immigrated to Chile and have formed a notable ethnic identity.
Currently, immigration from neighboring countries to Chile is greatest, and during the last decade immigration to Chile has doubled to 184,464 people in 2002, originating primarily from Argentina, Bolivia and Peru. Emigration of Chileans has decreased during the last decade: It is estimated that 857,781 Chileans live abroad, 50.1% of those being in Argentina, 13.3% in the United States, 8.8% in Brazil, 4.9% in Sweden, and around 2% in Australia, with the rest being scattered in smaller numbers across the globe.
Northern Chile was an important centre of culture in the medieval and early modern Inca empire, while the central and southern regions were areas of Mapuche cultural activities. Through the colonial period following the conquest, and during the early Republican period, the country's culture was dominated by the Spanish. Other European influences, primarily English, French, and German began in the 19th century and have continued to this day. German migrants influenced the Bavarian style rural architecture and cuisine in the south of Chile in cities such as Valdivia and Puerto Montt.
Music and dance
The national dance is the cueca. Another form of traditional Chilean song, though not a dance, is the tonada. Arising from music imported by the Spanish colonists, it is distinguished from the cueca by an intermediate melodic section and a more prominent melody. In the mid-1960s native musical forms were revitalized by the Parra family with the Nueva Canción Chilena, which was associated with political activists and reformers, and by the folk singer and researcher on folklore and Chilean ethnography, Margot Loyola.
Chileans call their country país de poetas—country of poets. Gabriela Mistral was the first Chilean to win a Nobel Prize for Literature (1945). Chile's most famous poet, however, is Pablo Neruda, who also won the Nobel Prize for Literature (1971) and is world-renowned for his extensive library of works on romance, nature, and politics. His three highly individualistic homes, located in Isla Negra, Santiago and Valparaíso are popular tourist destinations.
Chilean cuisine is a reflection of the country's topographical variety, featuring an assortment of seafood, beef, fruits, and vegetables. Traditional recipes include cazuela, empanadas, humitas, and curanto.
Chile's most popular sport is association football (soccer). Chile hosted the 1962 FIFA World Cup and its national football team finished third. Other results achieved by the national football team include four finals at the Copa América, one silver and two bronze medals at the Pan American Games and a bronze medal at the 2000 Summer Olympics. The main soccer clubs are Colo-Colo, CF Universidad de Chile and CD Universidad Católica. Colo-Colo is the country's most successful club, winning 41 national tournaments and three international championships, including the coveted Copa Libertadores South American club tournament.
Tennis is the country's most successful sport and second most popular. Its national team won the World Team Cup clay tournament twice in 2003-04, and played the Davis Cup final against Italy in 1976. At the 2004 Summer Olympics the country captured gold and bronze in men's singles and gold in men's doubles. Marcelo Ríos became the first Latin American man to reach the number one spot in the ATP singles rankings in 1998. Anita Lizana won the US Open in 1937, becoming the first women from Latin America to win a grand slam tournament. Luis Ayala was twice a runner-up at the French Open and both Ríos and Fernando González reached the Australian Open men's singles finals.
At the Olympic Games Chile boasts two gold medals (tennis), six silver medals (athletics, equestrian, boxing and shooting) and four bronze medals (tennis, boxing and football).
Rodeo is the country's national sport and is practiced in the more rural areas of the country. A sport similar to hockey called chueca was played by the Mapuche people during the Spanish conquest. Skiing and snowboarding are practiced at ski centers located in the Central Andes, while surfing is popular at some coastal towns.
Tourism in Chile has experienced sustained growth over the last few decades. In 2005, tourism grew by 13.6%, generating more than 4.5 billion dollars of which 1.5 billion is attributed to foreign tourists. According to the National Service of Tourism (Sernatur), 2 million people a year visit the country. Most of these visitors come from other countries in the American continent, mainly Argentina; followed by a growing amount from the United States, Europe, and Brazil with a growing amount of Asians from South Korea and PR China.
The main attractions for tourists are places of natural beauty situated in the extreme zones of the country: San Pedro de Atacama, in the north, is very popular with foreign tourists who arrive to admire the Incaic architecture and the altiplano lakes of the Valley of the Moon. In Putre, also in the North, there is the Chungará Lake, as well as the Parinacota and the Pomerape volcanoes, with altitudes of 6,348 m and 6,222 m, respectively. Throughout the central Andes there are many ski resorts of international repute, like Portillo and Valle Nevado. In the south, the main tourist sites are the Chiloé Archipelago, Patagonia, the San Rafael Lagoon, with its many glaciers, and the Towers of Paine national park. The central port city of Valparaíso, with its unique architecture, is also popular. Finally, Easter Island in the Pacific Ocean is probably the main Chilean tourist destination.
For locals, tourism is concentrated mostly in the summer (December to March), and mainly in the coastal beach towns. Arica, Iquique, Antofagasta, La Serena and Coquimbo are the main summer centres in the north, and Pucón on the shores of Lake Villarrica is the main one in the south. Due to its proximity to Santiago, the coast of the Valparaíso Region, with its many beach resorts, receives the largest amount of tourists. Viña del Mar, Valparaíso's northern affluent neighbour, is popular due to its beaches, casino, and its annual song festival, the most important musical event in Latin America.
In November 2005, the government launched a campaign under the brand "Chile: All Ways Surprising," intended to promote the country internationally for both business and tourism.
The Spanish spoken in Chile is distinctively accented and quite unlike that of neighbouring South American countries due to the dropping of final syllables and 's' sounds, and the soft pronunciation of some consonants.
English language learning and teaching is popular among students, academics and professionals, with some English words being absorbed and appropriated into everyday Spanish speech, although they might seem unrecognizable due to Non-native pronunciations of English.
Indigenous languages
There are several indigenous languages spoken in Chile: Mapudungun, Quechua, Rapa Nui, Huilliche, Aimará, Kawésqar, and Yámana. After the Spanish invasion, Spanish took over as the lingua franca, and the indigenous languages have become minority languages with some now extinct or close to extinction.
National symbols
The national flower is the copihue (Lapageria rosea, Chilean bellflower), which grows in the woods of southern Chile.
The coat of arms depicts the two national animals: the condor (Vultur gryphus, a very large bird that lives in the mountains) and the huemul (Hippocamelus bisulcus, an endangered white tail deer). It also has the legend Por la razón o la fuerza (By right or might or By reason or by force).
The flag of Chile consists of two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and red; there is a blue square the same height as the white band at the hoist-side end of the white band; the square bears a white five-pointed star in the center representing a guide to progress and honour; blue symbolizes the sky, white is for the snow-covered Andes, and red stands for the blood spilled to achieve independence.
Chile is a traditionally Catholic nation, with an estimated 70% of Chileans belonging to that church. According to census data other declared denominations or groupings include: Protestant or Evangelical (15.1%), Jehovah's Witnesses (1%), The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (0.9%), Jewish (0.1%), Atheist or Agnostic (8.3%), and other (4.4%). Less than 0.1% are either Orthodox or Muslim. (For the precise numbers of declared religions among the population ages 15 and over as indicated by the results of the latest census, see: 2002 Census data.) The LDS church statistics claim to have 543,628 members within Chile.
International rankings
|Overall ranking
|Lat. Am. ranking
|Countries surveyed
|% rank.
|Freedom House
|Freedom in the World 2008
|2005 Environmental Vulnerability Index
|Heritage Foundation/The Wall Street Journal
|2008 Index of Economic Freedom
|Fraser Institute
|Economic Freedom of the World - 2007 Annual Report
|Fund for Peace
|Failed States Index 2007
|18 (159)
|1 (20)
|Transparency International
|2007 Corruption Perceptions Index
|The Economist
|The Global Peace Index, 2008
|World Health Organization
|The world health report 2000 - Health system performance (overall)
|The Economist
|The World in 2007 - Democracy index, 2006
|World Bank
|Doing Business - Ease of Doing Business, 2008
|Yale University/ Columbia University
|2008 Environmental Performance Index
|World Economic Forum
|The Global Competitiveness Report 2007-2008's Global Competitiveness Index
|World Bank
|Logistics Performance Index
|Responsible Competitiveness Index 2007
|Human Development Report - Human Development Index 2007
|Reporters without borders
|Worldwide Press Freedom Index 2007
|International Living
|Quality of Life Index 2008
|World Economic Forum
|The Global Information Technology Report 2007-2008's Networked Readiness Index
|World Bank
|Where is the Wealth of Nations? (2005) - Total wealth per capita
|The Economist
|The World in 2005 - Worldwide quality-of-life index, 2005
|EFA Global Monitoring Report 2008 - EFA Development Index
|Yale University/ Columbia University
|2005 Environmental Sustainability Index
|Freedom House
|Freedom of the Press 2007
|The Power of Access - 2006 Access Index
|Brown University
|Seventh Annual Global e-Government Study (2007)
|IMD International
|World Competitiveness Yearbook 2008
|Economist Intelligence Unit/ Business Software Alliance
|IT industry competitiveness index 2007
|World Economic Forum
|The Global Gender Gap Index 2007
|A.T. Kearney/ Foreign Policy Magazine
|Globalization Index 2007


text:
For the Mara Hoffman show at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Swim in Miami, Make Up For Ever key artist Lottie created a "spacey" tribal make up look with bright accents of fuchsia and turquoise that put the focus on the eyes. This was inspired by Hoffman's muse, who goes on a mystical journey through the jungle, visiting crystal caves, rivers, oceans; a tongue-in-cheek Amazonian tribeswoman in a bikini following her White Horse spirit guide.
Complexion & Cheeks: The skin was bronzed and dewy with highlights on the brow bone and high cheek. Aqua Cream #7 in Fuchsia was applied lightly to the cheeks and blended heavily so only a slight pink flush remained.
Eyes: To create this tribal chic make up look, Lottie applied MAKE UP FOR EVER Aqua Cream #4 in white to the entire lid, up to the brow bone, blending it out. The eyes were defined using MAKE UP FOR EVER Aqua Eyes #0L in black on the bottom lash line only, and then MAKE UP FOR EVER Aqua Smoky Lash on both the top and bottom. Using a lip brush for added precision, Lottie drew small white dots at the top of the cheek bones starting from the outer corner of the eyes and over the blower bridge of the nose, following the natural shape of the eyes.
Lips: Lottie applied Lipstick #502, a matte nude lipstick, to keep the focus on the eyes.
From this look we will be giving away 3 of the new Aqua Creams in #4, (a white pearl shimmer), #7 (hot pink with gold flecks) and #21 (vibrant torquoise). To enter, simply leave a comment below on this entry by midnight on Wednesday, July 28th. A winner will be chosen at random and notified via email on Thursday. Good luck!
Check back with us tomorrow for the look created for the Aqua Di Lara swim show and giveaway. And don't forget to check back with us later in the week for the looks created at the Luli Fama, Marysia Swim and Tyler Rose. Good luck and don't forget to enter our Ed Hardy and Dolores Cortes giveaways!

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Thanks so much for bearing with me this past week here at THL as I heavily promoted this Money Bomb, and thanks so much for your support of Rand Paul today.
This week, I've got some great commentary and analysis planned in the mix in addition to some more info on the fantastic opportunities we have over the next two years for electoral activism.
I'll be live-tweeting the Money Bomb for a couple hours tonight and then all day tomorrow. Look forward to seeing ya there! Hashtags: #THL #$bomb #R&Paul
UPDATE: Just made my donation-
And Rand's website sends you this neat little e-mail message afterward:
Thank you for your generous donation to Rand Paul for US Senate Exploratory Committee. Your contributions provide the fuel for a well coordinated, effective, and successful campaign. With your help, we will bring honesty, responsibility, and constitutional leadership to Washington D.C.
Honesty and Responsibility and Constitutional Leadership- oh my! We definitely need more of those in Washington.


text:
Last week in this space,
I tried to lobby each of you to consider the schedule for fantasy
purposes and presented some pretty daunting evidence as to why
owners should be thrilled to see teams from the AFC and NFC West
on their fantasy players' schedule. I mention this again for two
very important reasons: 1) it is pertinent considering that each
of the teams that I am spotlighting this week will be playing
against one or the other and 2) each top-place fantasy RB finisher
since the NFL moved to its current eight-division format prior
to the 2002 season has seen his team play at least four games
vs. the teams from the West. For the purposes of this article,
that would seem to be good news for the likes of Steve Slaton,
Chris Johnson, Maurice Jones-Drew and LaDainian Tomlinson, who
has obviously made his living in part by feasting on his own division,
scoring 53 of his 141 total TDs against the likes of Denver, Kansas
City and Oakland.
But any fantasy owner worth his/her salt needs more than just
a strong case for RBs as to why he/she should subscribe to my
line of thinking. All I can say is this: in the passing game,
fantasy owners have to trust that offensive coordinators will
earn their paycheck by getting their players in the most advantageous
positions to score points for us. (However, not all of them do,
which is one reason why I spend so much of the offseason talking
about coordinators and their philosophies
in this space.) Conversely, we also have to believe most defensive
coordinators will do their best to shut down said weapons, but
due to any number of factors - including but not limited to lack
of personnel, ineffective schemes or general breakdown in coverage
- a top WR or TE may get his numbers anyway. Because very few
teams subscribe to the thinking of "our best corner vs. your
best WR" and even fewer teams have one specific safety or
linebacker who shadows an opponent's TE, sometimes all we have
is history to look back on to see how a player produced against
a similar defensive approach.
But think of it this way: I don't need any of my wideouts going
against the Raiders' Nnamdi Asomugha or the Jets' Darrelle Revis
in any fantasy playoff game. Similarly, I'd just as soon not count
on my QB or TE - no matter how good he is - to put up his new
career-high total against Pittsburgh or Baltimore.
Bear in mind that while the final numbers are important, they
are 15-game totals because most fantasy seasons have a Week 16
title game. For those unfamiliar with the way I project player
stats and individual week-to-week consistency (or for those who
need a refresher), please give my PSA:
RB article a read for an introductory course in Preseason
Schedule Analysis. By now, I'm hoping that each of you have a
pretty good understanding of my methodology, so let's see how
I think the AFC South and AFC West shake down in 2009.
Note: The grey
highlight in each team's schedule reflects a road game.
While it may not be good for their actual playoff hopes, the
Texans figure to help any fantasy owner investing in their passing
game breathe a sigh of relief considering that Houston faces the
Jets in Week 1 and New England in Week 17. If any defenses on
the Texans' 2009 schedule have the scheme and talent in place
to silence their offensive attack, those would be the two, so
any owner heavily invested in Matt Schaub or Andre Johnson should
consider themselves pretty lucky. As it stands, only division
rivals Indianapolis and Tennessee stand out as defenses on Houston's
schedule that should challenge them in the passing game, although
I do expect strong defensive showings from Cincinnati and Seattle
this season. Even with that, I can only identify four matchups
that Johnson will be severely tested and just five games in which
Schaub may struggle - and that's assuming both the Colts and Titans
pick right up where they left off with new defensive coordinators!
In short, Schaub and Johnson are both set up to enjoy career years
if both can stay healthy, a notion that is no small concern. (Johnson
hasn't put together consecutive 16-game seasons since his first
two years in the league back in 2003-04 while Schaub has played
just 11 games in each of his first two seasons with Houston.)
Much like the passing game, big things should also be in store
for the Texans' running game. There doesn't seem to be any consensus
yet on what will happen to Steve Slaton's goal-line carries. Slaton
added nearly 10 pounds in the offseason in order to hopefully
address the team's woes in red zone scoring (30th in the league
in 2008) and red zone touchdowns (26th). Conversely, HC Gary Kubiak
made several mentions during the offseason about his desire to
pair Slaton up with a bigger back. The head coach usually wins
these types of battles, but counting on Chris Brown for a full
season would be foolish and, while the team likes undrafted rookie
Arian Foster, one has to question whether the Texans will honestly
feel better taking the ball out of Slaton's hands inside the five-yard
line. Why does it matter? For a RB corps that accounted for over
2,200 total yards and 15 scores last season against the likes
of Pittsburgh, Baltimore and Tennessee (twice), the potential
is there for even more with only one negative matchup and the
NFC West on the schedule. For now, I'll believe that HC Gary Kubiak
lets Brown and Foster take the goal-line work, but the fact is
that if Slaton beats them both out, he could easily be the No.
1 overall fantasy draft pick in 2010.
Now that the most talked-about consultant role in the history
of the league has been clarified, the Colts should retain their
place among the elite offenses in the league. Late last month,
the league informed its teams that consultants such as former
OC Tom Moore and ex-OL coach Howard Mudd would be allowed to take
on as much of a role as the team wanted, meaning Moore and Mudd
will be able to assume their old roles with the team, in a matter
of speaking. Unlike the Texans' slate, the Colts' schedule is
much more heavily backloaded with potential negative matchups.
Even though Indianapolis has mostly neutral matchups in the first
eight games, that fact is somewhat negated by the notion that
four of the Colts' next seven games are against some fairly tough
projected defenses. Note that I have the Jaguars listed as a neutral
matchup as well, so Indy could easily slide a bit offensively
in the second half of the season. It should come as some relief,
though, that only the Jets are a team Indy is not intimately familiar
with, but even then, the Colts are no stranger to Rex Ryan's pressure
defense either. Fantasy owners shouldn't expect much more output
from Peyton Manning, Dallas Clark or Reggie Wayne than they gave
us a season ago, but a serious upgrade needs to be considered
for Anthony Gonzalez, as the absence of Marvin Harrison should
allow him to double the 57 targets he saw a season ago. The most
likely player to step into Gonzalez's old role will be Pierre
Garcon, who carries a fair amount of super-sleeper potential.
It wasn't long ago that Joseph Addai was the next big thing,
but after an injury-plagued season for him and his offensive line,
the former LSU standout goes from sure-fire first-round fantasy
pick to a committee back. While the workload split should still
be 60-40 in Addai's favor, it may not take a lot of persuasion
from first-round pick Donald Brown to make this backfield a true
RBBC. With that said, the schedule (and the Colts' health up front)
lines up nicely for an early-season bounceback from Addai. For
right now, Addai is the more complete back of the two and is certainly
the most trusted option of the two in the passing game. However,
while the passing game has the strength to survive the second
half of the Colts' schedule, fantasy owners should be advised
that a committee backfield vs. the likes of the Patriots, Ravens
and Jets during the most important weeks of the season is not
the ideal way to wrap up a fantasy league championship. If Addai
cannot complete a full season once again, Brown has more than
enough skill to step up and carry his owners, so he certainly
qualifies as a fairly low-risk, potential high-reward RB.
It would come as a surprise to no one if Maurice
Jones-Drew emerged as fantasy's best RB this season. He is
a complete back with no viable threat pushing him for touches
in the Jags' backfield. In three seasons, he has scored 38 rushing
or receiving TDs, so he obviously has a nose for the end zone.
Moreover, Jacksonville should start this season with a much better
and healthier offensive line after adding rookies Eugene Monroe
and Eben Britton along with free agent Tra Thomas. Last but not
least, there is not a lot of red on MJD's schedule and he has
the benefit of padding his numbers against the likes of the Rams
and Chiefs. In fact, only the Jets and Patriots qualify as defenses
on the 2009 schedule who strike me as teams who could bottle up
Jones-Drew. But as we have seen already, "Pocket Hercules" is
one of the few RBs in the league who can consistently produce
no matter the opponent, much like a young Brian Westbrook. The
biggest question will be whether or not the Jags elect to take
some of MJD's red zone touches from him in order to preserve him
(the team has some pounders behind him), but it would seem ridiculous
to remove him from the goal line when he has established himself
as one of the best in the league in that role and is compact enough
to handle the punishment.
Assuming the Jags will return to their run-heavy ways and with
the lack of an elite receiving threat, it's hard to hand out many
favorable matchups to any of the members of Jacksonville's passing
game. What this team does have is receiving talent, so it is conceivable
that David Garrard takes advantage and puts up some surprising
passing yards (like he did last year) while also posting a stellar
TD:INT ratio (like he did in 2007). In all honesty, the six red
matchups could end up being as few as two if the Jags open things
up and teams like the Colts and Titans fail to react favorably
to their new defensive coordinators. Despite being on the downside
of his career, Torry Holt is undoubtedly the most dependable target
(on and off the field) Garrard has enjoyed since becoming the
team's #1 QB midway through the 2006 season. Pairing him up for
16 games with a healthy Mike Walker (always a question mark) would
make Garrard a viable mix-and-match fantasy starter and give the
running game even more opportunity to pound opponents.
As is usually the case with HC Jeff Fisher's teams, the offense
begins and ends with the running game, all the while hoping the
passing game does just enough to get by. The same could be said
for the Titans' first-half slate, which presents the team with
the stiffest challenges it figures to face all season. The Steelers,
Jets and Pats are three of Tennessee's first four road games,
all of which come prior to the team's Week 7 bye. As a result,
a slow start by Chris
Johnson and LenDale
White (to a lesser degree) should not be ruled out. With that
said, the post-bye slate opens up quite nicely for Johnson as
only the Dolphins and Chargers (during the fantasy playoffs) project
as defenses that should be expected to mount any kind of resistance
against the Titans' running game, although the Jags and Niners
could stand up to them more than expected. Johnson has as strong
of a case as Jones-Drew or Slaton for becoming not only the division�s
best fantasy player, but also the league's most valuable fantasy
property at RB. He is an adept receiver while his offensive line
� which returns in full after a dominant showing from last season
� is the most established of the three.
Just like the running game, the Titans should be forgiven if
the Steelers, Jets, Colts and Pats stymie their passing game before
the bye. Nate Washington and Justin Gage will go up against some
solid CBs after that, but it could be argued the Cardinals and
Chargers have the most talent in the defensive backfield of any
team Tennessee faces in the second half. While I expect a return
to form from San Diego, Arizona seriously downgraded in my opinion
when it fired former DC Clancy Pendergast and hired Bill Davis
as his replacement. Thus, only two teams strike me as opponents
who will serve as a serious deterrent when the Titans want to
go play-action and hit Washington (and possibly rookie Kenny Britt)
down the field. It should be noted that while I expect Bo Scaife
and Gage to lead the team in receptions, it would not be a bit
surprising to me if Washington scores 6-7 times and becomes the
receiver opponents start game-planning for late in the season.
Given the nature of the offense and the likelihood that Kerry
Collins makes it through another full season at his age, he shouldn't
be counted on for much in fantasy circles. However, with better
weapons and a full training camp as the starter under his belt,
his per-game numbers should markedly improve in 2009.
Earlier in the offseason, I made a bold statement when I proclaimed
that Kyle Orton would outproduce Jay Cutler. I may need to reverse
course on that one (right now I have them finishing in the same
neighborhood), but not because I believe Cutler is that much better.
As with just about every judgment I make in fantasy football,
I base my opinion on the schedule and current events. As schedules
go, this entire division will have it rough in 2009, especially
the Broncos. The Bengals got a neutral ranking, but could easily
finish as a top 10 defense this season. Cleveland and Oakland
should give Denver a bit of a break, but after that, the Broncos
embark on an unforgiving nine-week stretch that any offense would
find difficult, let alone one trying to find its way with a new
offensive system. During the run, the Broncos face three of the
four teams from the NFC East, Baltimore, Pittsburgh, New England
and San Diego (twice). To top things off, they have two more challenging
road contests vs. the Colts and Eagles during many owners' fantasy
playoffs. Regarding the current events I mentioned above, Brandon
Marshall's recovery from offseason hip surgery further complicates
matters as he is having trouble making it through a full practice
so far in camp. A full recovery from his surgery is supposed to
take between 6-12 months and September only gets him to most optimistic
outlook (no wonder he wanted a new deal done over the summer).
Because Denver has such a deep and talented offensive supporting
cast, Orton could actually see his way through and put up some
decent fantasy performances, but I no longer am entertaining any
thoughts of him emerging as a top-10 QB option this season. If
Marshall is only a shell of himself for 2009, Eddie Royal stands
to benefit the most although Jabar Gaffney would likely become
a starter if the man-child WR needed to miss time. In the off
chance Marshall completely overcomes his injury woes and contract
squabbles, he and Royal should maintain some semblance of fantasy
relevance but the schedule could potentially squash the value
of the rest of the passing game. The one saving grace for Orton,
Marshall and Royal is that since the Broncos defense figures to
finish among the league�s worst again this season, the trio
may be able to pad their passing and receiving totals while attempting
a late comeback or during garbage time.
Thankfully, the running game doesn't have it quite as tough as
the passing game, but I am also not quite as high (as I was earlier
this summer) on this part of the Broncos' offense. Because the
Broncos have such a proficient run-blocking line, they should
be able to get Knowshon Moreno near the 1,000-yard mark despite
six poor matchups, although he needs to report to camp soon and
assert his rightful place as the unquestioned lead back for that
to happen. While I don't believe it would be in the team's best
interests to pull the rookie out and insert LaMont Jordan for
short-yardage work, apparently the team does, so Moreno could
disappoint in the scoring department. If his fantasy owners can
deal with a rollercoaster ride during the heart of Denver's schedule,
he could reward his owners over the final four weeks when he should
have a couple of opportunities to shine against division rivals
Kansas City and Oakland. Indy may also struggle against the run
and it would come as no surprise to me if the passing of DC Jim
Johnson leaves the Eagles as an unpredictable defense week in
and week out in 2009. Given his abilities as a receiver, I expect
Moreno to be much more consistent in PPR leagues for the simple
fact that: 1) he will be the team's third-down back and 2) considering
the number of aggressive defenses on the schedule, Denver will
probably run its fair share of screens and swing passes on the
early downs to slow down the pass rush.
As I mentioned in earlier columns, the Chiefs cleaned house at
the top. But, as we know with any project worth doing right, it's
going to take some time to get Arrowhead Stadium rocking again
eight or more times a season. And as far as the schedule, new
HC Todd Haley couldn't timed his first head coaching job any worse
as far as walking into a situation in which he was able to build
his team's confidence early on with a few hard-fought wins against
some weak opponents. By the time Kansas City hits its Week 8 bye,
it will have faced five of last season's top eight defenses (Baltimore
and the entire NFC East). As a result, it is really hard to find
much to love about the running game. It appears that Haley will
let holdover OC Chan Gailey make the play calls with the team
operating out of the spread more often than not. While Larry Johnson
was able to enjoy moderate success out of the spread, he isn't
a good fit for the scheme and his schedule doesn't figure to help
him out any in that regard. Depending how healthy (physically
and emotionally) they are after the break, the Chiefs do get a
bit of a reprieve in the second half of the season as four of
the worst run defenses (according to my projections) make up half
of the remaining slate of games. But because I know of no fantasy
owner who can afford to sit his RB2 for 50% of the season in any
year, draft LJ as a RB3 if you decide to take him. The fact he
is turning 30 during the season, is unpredictable off the field
and runs behind a below-average line should only convince you
further that he isn't worth the trouble in 2009.
Things weren't going to be easy for the Chiefs this season even
with Tony
Gonzalez, but trading away the most complete TE of his time
will only put more burden on the passing game. While the trade
was the right thing to do to help a team icon play for a contender
and a good move for the Chiefs� future, the team has put an inordinate
amount of pressure on Matt
Cassel - who is already learning a new offense, along with
the rest of the team - but also Dwayne
Bowe, who should now be mercilessly double-teamed. When healthy,
Mark Bradley
is a more-than-capable real-life WR2 for this team while free
agent pickup Bobby
Engram is only a season removed from a 94-catch campaign in
Seattle. Unfortunately, the former can't seem to consistently
stay on the field and the latter is a 36-year-old who played hurt
last season but also looked nothing he did in 2007. If that wasn't
enough, Kansas City gets even fewer breaks from its schedule.
When they aren't facing the likes of stellar team defenses like
Baltimore, Philly, Pittsburgh or the Giants, Bowe gets the pleasure
of facing Asomugha and Antonio Cromartie twice as well as Rashean
Mathis and Champ Bailey. Because he is such a talent and KC has
few other attractive options, Bowe may very well set career highs
all across the board despite all the attention he will receive.
My biggest fear for this offense, however, is the likelihood that
Cassel will miss some games. While there is something to be said
about a new QB having a full offseason and training camp knowing
that he is the starter, Cassel took 47 sacks behind a pretty good
Patriots line. Therefore, it is conceivable that if he doesn't
speed up his reads for this season, he could give David Carr's
record-breaking 76-sack season in 2002 a run for the money. While
the left side of KC's line is strong, the right side will be where
opponents attack and neither LJ nor Jamaal
Charles will be mistaken as great pass blockers in blitz pickup.
The point to all this is that while I have Cassel projected for
15 games above, I highly doubt he will make it that far.
It�s hard to believe in this day and age that an NFL offense
could be inept at passing the football. Believe it or not, it
doesn't figure to get any better so long as JaMarcus
Russell continues to pretend he never left college. Until
football becomes important enough to the talented signal caller
so he shows up to camp in shape and spends his offseasons working
on routes with his receivers, all he will be is an enigma at best.
Russell shouldn't be handed all the blame; he has arguably the
least talented group of receivers in the league catching his passes
and an owner who believes that upgrading that position means finding
the fastest player. Russell does have TE Zach
Miller, however, who is a stud trapped in a running offense
with an inaccurate QB. Interestingly, the lack of receivers actually
works in Miller�s favor, though, so not all is lost. In the Raiders'
passing game, he is the one player opponents need to game plan
for each week. Since the AFC West was a pretty gracious division
when it came to defending the TE a season ago and Kansas City
and Denver should remain as shaky on defense, Miller should have
enough opportunity to repeat his 2008 numbers, at the very least.
Unfortunately, there are at least six teams that should have the
personnel necessary to keep him in check, so the onus falls back
on a receiving corps that is hoping for a dramatic increase of
production from young wideouts Chaz
Schilens and Johnnie
Lee Higgins. Help is one the way, but the most immediate impact
player may very well be rookie Louis Murphy, not 2009 No. 7 overall
pick Darius Heyward-Bey or 2008 prize free agent Javon
Walker. Fantasy owners should consider 2009 a redshirt season
for DHB because it is becoming fairly obvious he is every bit
as raw as his consistency in college suggested he was. As for
Walker, he is saying all the right things after undergoing a top-secret
offseason surgery, but it is anyone's guess what his future holds
in Oakland.
Any improvement the passing game makes over 2008 should only
benefit a healthy Darren McFadden. While he will contribute to
Russell's bottom line and could possibly be the team's second-leading
receiver this year, it would be a major upset if he doesn't see
something in the neighborhood of 225 carries. The second-year
speedster was hobbled by a toe injury for most of last season,
but HC Tom Cable saw enough in last season's game tape to convince
himself the Raiders were noticeably better when McFadden was in
the game. So assuming a similar injury doesn't befall him in 2009,
the former Razorback should start living up to his draft position
this year. If the Raiders have anything going for them on offense,
it is the fact they can run block and feature a zone-blocking
system that complements DMC's athletic ability well. His role
seems to be secure; he will get his touches. The great debate
appears to be who will share his workload more often: Justin Fargas
or Michael Bush. Bush impressed during a brief stint late last
season and is easily the more gifted of the two backs, but Cable
loves the lift that Fargas brings to the team with his hard-charging
style. How much it will matter again depends on the passing game,
because a repeat of 2008 won't allow any Oakland RB to score all
that much if Russell & Co. doesn't pick it up. Schedule-wise,
things get interesting during Weeks 15-16, when Oakland should
have ample opportunity to dominate on the ground in road games
vs. Denver and Cleveland. Just like the rest of their division,
the Raiders have to contend with some of the best defenses in
the league from the NFC East and AFC North, so a repeat of a top-10
finish in rushing appears unlikely.
Over the years, San Diego has become more proficient in the passing
game, probably to the point now where it relies on Philip
Rivers just as much as it does on LT, if not more so. That
point has really been driven home over the past couple of seasons,
especially since Rivers has matured into one of the league's best
QBs, in part because any of his three main receivers could go
for 100+ yards, two TDs or both in any game. Turner has long been
able to get the best out of his QBs and another year with Rivers
should only mean more headaches for opponents. Last season could
have been a career year for Rivers - as a repeat of seven 3-TD
games seems unlikely against the aforementioned schedule - but
it could have just as well been a launching-off point for him,
too. For now, I've conservatively predicted a small dropoff in
the TD department for him (mostly because I expect the Chargers
to run more effectively), but an injury to LT or a repeat of the
run-blocking issues from a season ago could easily boost Rivers'
totals on the levels they reached last season. With the talent
and depth San Diego has, only the Steelers and Giants strike me
as teams that may hold this offense down for four quarters. Gates
is said to be healthy as well, so I have little reservation saying
he could reclaim his title as fantasy's best TE. With Vincent
Jackson and Chris
Chambers around, Gates will no longer monopolize all the receiving
scores from Rivers as he did earlier in his career. But, just
like LT, Gates is in good shape after an offseason to recover
from a lingering toe injury - I fully expect his end-of-the-year
numbers will reflect that.
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text:
Just this new commercial "Child of the 90s". Boy does time go by fast or what. Now that I am all grown up, it seems the best times in life were most from my childhood. It would be pretty awesome to take a time machine and go back to the past and see yourself from the outside in. One thing for sure, life was so simple and innocent back then.
Views: 587
Never left it.
Not my childhood so much as my college years. I'd try to get laid a bit more than I was.
I don't miss my childhood as much as I miss the i could do anything i wanted feeling. I didn't worry over the tomorrow. I took chances, tried new things, and didn't worry over consequences.
I had an absolutely horrific childhood. My mother dropped me off at an asylum for 5 years because she didn't want to be bothered with children. That's 5 birthdays and 5 Christmases without so much as a phone call. It was hardly a "simpler" time and was miles from "innocent." It was dauntingly complex and I spent my days studying the sociological hierarchy of the tiny environment that was my life for my entire adolescence.
What I remember the most from my childhood was being raised by the television. (Perhaps why I'm pursuing my Master's in Media Studies.) I retained every commercial jingle and every obscure television reference from age 10-18.
When I moved out I took a strong position on mass media, gave away my television and radio, and haven't touched one in 13 years. (The last Simpsons episode I saw was "The Telltale Head.")
I've spent my adult years collecting childhood things, perhaps in an effort to re-construct the childhood I never had. Jim Henson was an innovator, a role model, and a hero from my youth, so I've collected over 40 Jim Henson-related records, and 360 television shows, movies, ad spots, and specials connected to the man - right down to his existential college art film.
Looking around my room I see Fraggle dolls, 15 volumes of the Sesame Street Treasury, and other childhood favorite items living happily beside my "grown-up" items like Hofstadter's Gödel Escher Bach, Cage's 50th anniversary edition of Silence: Lectures and Writings, my silver and china set, etc.
Perhaps the most iconic example of my child/adult coexistence is my Fisher Price wind-up "Record Player" (music box) that shares a shelf with my Denon DP-60L Rosewood turntable and McIntosh amplifier. I will never sell that little music box.
My childhood was bleak and dismal, but I refuse to grow up completely. Sure I'll give lectures around the city on experimental sound art and music history, but when I get home I'll cue up Ernie singing, "I Don't Want to Live On The Moon" before I turn it for bed.
Never forget that, "Elmo loves you!"
Hugs just hugs. Mine was bad but wow. I'm glad you found an escape though music and it lead you to your career.
That's a work-in-progress. My first degree was in graphic design. My company now emails all our design jobs to a design farm in India because they do the work cheaper.
In the meantime I started an educational music foundation with potential for a rare music 24hr web radio station (in the works) and began delivering music lectures around my city.
A local university has offered me a free ride plus a $35k stipend to attend their school, and the media arts department wants my most recent multimedia art piece to be submitted for my Master's project.
The only challenge that remains is A) how to pay the rent while I'm earning this glorious degree and B) what the hell to do with a Media Studies degree in my rut of a town.
Regardless, every night I come home and drop the needle on some beautiful music. And while I listen, time stands still and I am at once a child and an old man, relishing every note.
Yes.. Up until around the age of fourteen it was great. Then it got a bit tough for me with social pressures, girls, drama, fighting and so on. It was a constant struggle that didn't go away until I entered college. I read a study that said on average the most stressful years of life are those early teen years.


text:
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Roaring engines, enormous sand trails and deep tyre tracks in the dunes: a desert safari is a popular excursion for visitors to Dubai. Race across the blistering hot sand in a large four-wheel drive, or maybe ski down some sand dunes – anything is possible in Dubai.
As it's usually too hot to race through the desert during the day in Dubai, most people prefer to take an evening safari. It is only a 45-minute drive from the centre of the city to the desert where the adventure begins. On this private tour the guide will explain the tricks to driving through the sand dunes, and anyone with a valid driver's license can try their hand at driving the jeep.
A desert safari by jeep is best described as a combination of a ride on a roller coaster and a bumper car. Racing through the sand dunes at high speed, the powerful SUVs cling to the steep dunes at such an angle that they seem almost about to roll over. For those who want a more relaxed safari, a camel ride through the sands is also a fun thing to do. Have a go sand-skiing or perhaps enjoy a visit to a Bedouin village.
Conclude a thrilling desert safari with a sumptuous barbecue and live music, hookah pipes and of course a belly dancing performance. Another possibility is to spend the night in the desert. Nothing compares to the experience of sleeping out in the open under a blanket of stars.
"Arabian nights in the desert of Dubai"


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