The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1951-05-18
This Rock
Of Ours "
By BILL GLIB

face conditions.
AS an example, take last weeks
heads" with regard to Panama:
"Arias. Dragged Off To Jail
Dictator Removed" "Arosemena
Takes Over" etc.
The average reader, Swimming
through the news, would decide
that the Republic of Panama had
been confronted with a crisis and
successfully weathered it. Also,
that United States had gained al
friend with the installation of
AroSemena as the new president.
This last is far from true.
Panama, and all of Central
America including the West In
dies. can never be depended upon
as an answering ally of U. S. I'm
not censoring these countries be-
cause feel their antagoniSm is
justified. We ourselves are re-
sponsible for this condition.
We've never relinquished the
big Stick" policy that was so
popular with President Theodore
Roosevelt. The U. S.-sponsored
revolution which made Panama a
republic and gave us the Canal
Zone might be excusable. But our
dealings with the Panamanians
since that date are not.
The policy of gold and silver
employees gave our citizens a
great financial superiority over
the Panamanian employees in
whose country we resided. The
Canal Zone commissary stores are
as unfair to the local stores of
Panama City and Colon as a
policy of allowing the general
public to buy at military estab-
lishments in this country would
be unfair to our own civilian mer-
chants. The superior attitude as
sumed by 99% of Americans in
a foreign country is another con-
slant irritant.
Disposal of Arnulfo Arias and
the installation of Alcibiades
Arosemena is purely a local prob
lem. The real head of the Repub-
lie of Panama is Colonel Jose
Remon - Chief of the National
Police. With his force of approx
mately 1000 men, he can make or
break any so-called politician. He
proved this when in 1949, he GUST
ed Chants and installed Roberto
CHAIR, his cousin, as President.
Rebuked by the supreme court,
he still won merely by substitu-
ting Arias for CHAR. 4 ms]
Coli Remon and fArnulfo Ariasl
were bitter enemiey for years.
Either could be expected to
plunge a knife in the others back
at the first opportunity. It's only
natural that their union could not
last for any length of time:
Our immediate concern here in
the U. S. is not whether Arose
mena or Arias is President. We
need to study and work out
plan that will make the average
citizen of Panama love us as a
people.
The necessity of maintaining al
large number of service men in
the Canal Zone greatly hampers
our achieving this object. Even
here in the u. s., the run-of- the
mill civilian and normal service
man merely tolerate each other
and-except for occasional pa
triotic fervors on the one hand,
and homesickness on the other
each feels that the other, is a no
good Stacker. Imagine then, the
irritatons that are so often caus-
ed between our Armed Service
and the citizens of Panama
Soldiers and Sailors in Panama
City are blinded by few blocks
along Central Avenue that are
given. over to .'honky-tonks." IN
thinkingly, they begin to feel that
all Panamanians fall into a class
with gyp-artists, prostitutes, and
heggars. In reality, the average
Panamanian is a wonderful, kind
hearted, and loyal friend.
Two groups in particular are of
outstanding calibre-the National
Police and the BomberoS fire
fighters). I'm somewhat preiu-
diced because for nearly two
years, | spent most of my spare
time with these men. They treat
&c. me like brother and gave me
a true perspective of the friend
ship possible between different
nationalities If it IS based on per
sonal relations instead of race or
creed,
Living as close as we do to all
the Latin-American countries, and
because we are SO often required
to travel in them, we should take
time cut TO study their histories
to evaluate their citizens as a
people. Above all, to conduct our
selves as well-mannered guests
not ruthless irltruders = of any
country we visit Their domestic
problems such as the recent dis
posal of AriaS are for thenl-not