By Beatrice E. Rangel

Cecil was a happy lion who presided over a pride of about 30 of his kind who enjoyed the beauty of Tanzania’s prairie together as a healthy community. He was an object of scientific curiosity and thus supposed to be protected from man triggered disasters. But, alas there was a dentist that very much wanted his teeth. And Cecil was killed with an arrow leaving his herd under the custody of Jericho, his childhood companion in the “cooperative coalition” created by them to better compete with other male lions for territory and prides.

The killer, apparently acting in solitaire, hurriedly skinned and beheaded his victim. Jericho took charge of the herd, including Cecil’s cubs and mates. Today they are not only the object of worldwide attention but the constant reminder that so called civilized people are about to exterminate mankind’s patrimony with their abusive behavior.

Indeed, why would anyone in his or her right senses spend what for most people is a fortune to kill African animals? The answer, my friend, is greed and pride.

Back in the US, the summer home of the hunter was vandalized with graffiti painted on the garage door and pig feet through the causeway. This event stood in sharp contrast with Jericho’s behavior, leading us to wonder where civilization and barbarism are exactly. And our unequivocal conclusion is that Tanzania cannot claim to be the home of barbarism. It was not the country of origin of the killer or the vandals. It is the home of a pride that seems to care more for the rule of law than humans.

In Venezuela, meanwhile, barbarism is truly on the loose. While President Maduro urges Pope Francis to help Venezuela install and build a reconciliation dialogue and National Assembly head Diosdado Cabello promises the moon and the stars to U.S. Ambassador Thomas Shannon, their allies the Colectivos -- aka gremlins -- shoot, kill, rape, mob and terrify a population that has to spend half their lives in a line to get sophisticated groceries like cooking oil, salt, corn flour and milk.

Meanwhile the opposition in a perfect casting consumes its time going after its most popular members by means of excluding them from nominations for parliamentary posts or dishing them in conversations with foreign journalists who are the only souls that can publish anything about Venezuela.

But North of the Rio Grande, the weekly epic was not much better. In an awkward extravaganza, Fox promoted the first Republican debate with the ten top contesters participating in the pageant. Needless to say, Donald Trump carried the night both in terms of viewership as well as damage inflicted upon his Republican colleagues.

And while Marco Rubio came through with a compelling personal narrative and well administered jabs at Hillary Clinton, he was unable to remove from Donald Trump the massive attention devoted by TV viewers.

It was not the best night for Jeb Bush neither for Christie or Paul. Carly Fiorina, the only candidate that posed a difficult question to Trump, did not meet the qualifying criteria to be in the debate but outshined most of her Republican colleagues with a strong performance in the afternoon undercard debate. Her content ridden responses to the media on national security, health care and economic policy were not as popular as her jabs to Trump and Bush.

In a sense the American viewership sided with the wrestling show aspects of the event while walking away from substance. Not very civilized indeed!!

Again, one wonders if it would be too much to ask to the Universe to send Jericho to lead the Americas. The lion would probably demonstrate much better leadership and style than any of the incumbents whether in government or the opposition. Because, at tea time, the most fundamental virtue parting civilization from barbarism is solidarity and courage.

These allow individuals to stand for what they think and to protect their patrimony -- the most important being freedom. And these virtues were magnificently displayed by Jericho. If only he could coach deficient leaders in our hemisphere, beginning with the Venezuelans and ending with Donald Trump.
Beatrice Rangel is President & CEO of the AMLA Consulting Group, which provides growth and partnership opportunities in US and Hispanic markets. AMLA identifies the best potential partner for businesses which are eager to exploit the growing buying power of the US Hispanic market and for US Corporations seeking to find investment partners in Latin America. Previously, she was Chief of Staff for Venezuela President Carlos Andres Perez as well as Chief Strategist for the Cisneros Group of Companies.


For her work throughout Latin America, Rangel has been honored with the Order of Merit of May from Argentina, the Condor of the Andes Order from Bolivia, the Bernardo O'Higgins Order by Chile, the Order of Boyaca from Colombia, and the National Order of Jose Matías Delgado from El Salvador.

You can follow her on twitter @BEPA2009 or contact her directly at BRangel@amlaconsulting.com.



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