October 10th, 2007
- Friend of Brad Will writes:
Former Mexican President Vicente Fox faced a skeptical, if not hostile crowd on
October 9th during what was supposed to be a tame and uneventful book
signing event at Barnes and Noble in New York City's Union Square
park neighborhood. In town to shill for his new tome, "Revolution of
Hope", Fox has lept upon the Bush bashing parade full bore, joining
the ranks of Alan Greenspan and others who were in positions of power
to speak out loudly against world wrecking policies, but chose to
wait until out of office and on the writing circuit to cash in on the
now almost universal disdain for America's leader. Such is the
courage of this ill begotten ilk.

Vicente Fox sounded like a stilted Mitt Romney, and of the same tall
height, or some such christo-fascist with his wanting to "thank god,
publicly" numerous times. Fox further enlightened the unimpressed
crowd of over 150 with snippets like, "Information is important," and
that the first Spaniards on these continents "came through Ellis
Island" while calling the Barnes and Noble mega chain bookstore a
"library", more than once.

Fox did not actually read from his book, completed with the support
of a ghost writer. Fox was spoon fed questions written by audience
members and placed in a fishbowl, at the heavily policed event. Fox
is regularly confronted with dozens of demonstrators, whether in the
States, or in Mexico, and the same was expected in New York. Most
recently, he faces corruption charges and allegations of illicit
gain, bolstered by tabloid photo spreads of his grandiose and
recently renovated mansions.

Two questions were read aloud by the droning public relations flak of
Barbes and Noble and Fox stated that his heroes included Ghandi. An
audience member then inquired loudly to Fox whether he though that
Ghandi would have sent in thousands of soldiers to squash dissent and
allow the murder and disappearances of the Oaxacan people while he
was President. The audience member, part of an organized group
affiliated with Friends of Brad Will, a nation-wide brand of
activists, also asked him to comment on the murder of Brad Will, and
how it could be that the federal authorities under his purview at the
time could not identify or arrest anyone in connection to that crime.

Security closed in from all directions, ala the Kerry scene in
Florida, while the questioner remained seated. Fox, to his credit, or
that of pr handlers who have prepped all world "leaders" for similar
circumstances in light of Kerry's embarrassing and cowardly inaction
while a questioner was tased, said aloud that this is still a free
country and that people have a right to speak and the audience
erupted in applause and the goons backed off.

The Barnes and Noble people wanted to continue with the softball
fishbowl screened questions when another audience member said he too
was a friend of Brad Will, who was loving and compassionate as the
peaceful people Fox had just indicated, and please answer the
questions. The PR flak zipped through two more silly inquiries which
Fox just answered with one line each and then she called the event
over. Fox insisted on answering the points made from the audience, to
get himself off the hook in front of the Spanish speaking media in
attendance and stated that what happened in Oaxaca was a local
matter, and as President he couldn't do anything about it. This
despite first stating that he gave the teacher's union all that they
demanded until the ouster of corrupt Governor's Ruiz became a demand.

His lies continued on for a bit, and when he finished another
audience member asked why then did he send federal troops to tear gas
and shoot and arrest hundreds of people, and why did he not launch a
federal investigation and handling of the inquiry into the murder of
Brad Will. Security swarmed the audience members who were in three
different sections of the seating area while all the cameras and
photographers turned to the activists and audience members piqued by
so paltry and pathetic a performance by Fox. Most of the questioners
left, while one was grabbed and carried down the stairs and pushed
through the front door, breaking a window. Meanwhile, the first on
many media interviews highlighting the situation in Oaxaca and Brad
Will occurred just feet from where Fox was still trying to sign some
of his pawning books, before security and police could muster another
push out the door. Hundreds of fliers were distributed in the event
and in the store and outside featuring friendsofbradwill.org and
bradwill.org.

This month will mark an entire year since Brad was killed and the
Oaxacan uprising was violently, if temporarily suppressed.

Check the websites and do what you can, from NYC, to DC, to
Cincinnati to Oaxaca and beyond.

source:  http://nyc.indymedia.org/en/2007/10/91737.shtml