NO REST FOR THE AWAKE - MINAGAHET CHAMORRO

If you look at pictures of Chamorros a hundred years ago, we look markedly different today. I do not mean in terms of skin color and so on, but I mean in terms of size. If you look at images of Chamorros a century ago there are some who look healthy and comfortable in their size, but most, especially men are quite skinny. Descriptions of Ancient Chamorros allude to them being a bit on the larger side, healthy, but slightly overweight. A happy and comfortable plumpness.  Chamorros today are a very large and very unhealthy people. Some of this can be blamed on environmental factors, such as poisons in the land and sea due to militarization. It can also be blamed on the diets of people today, which are a combination of poor health choices but also structural conditions that go all the way back to the end of World War II and the drastic changes that took place in the Chamorro way of life. Chamorros are not unique in this regard but it is a tragic story we find across the Pacific, wher

Wrote this last year for the Marianas Variety, forgot to post it here. I almost get teary eyed thinking about how crazy the Republican contenders for the election were. Sad to be down to just Romney, Satorum and the ghost of Newt Gingrich. ********************************** “Flirting with Disaster” Michael Lujan Bevacqua 5/12/2011 The Marianas Variety Donald Trump isn’t running anymore for the Republican nomination for the Presidency in 2012. It’s a shame really. Technically, he never was really running, but rather participating in what seems to be the current national pastime of leaders in the Republican Party, flirting with the idea of running for President. It is a lucrative game and one which takes clear advantage of the problem that the Republican party lacks a clear leader or vision for their brand in the next election. Trump’s candidacy was ridiculous but had to be taken seriously for a few weeks because the media and opinion polls ended up turning the mere