Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has a new suggestion for the Western Hemisphere. He wants to give Latin America a new name — Indian America. Chavez says he want to bring “historical justice” by removing the European imposed Latin America. Chavez made the announcement in Mexico.
Of course, Chavez made the announcement in Spanish — the European imposed language. He did not give an indication how he would reconcile the multitude of Indian languages with the European Spanish and Portuguese after correcting the “historical injustice.”
Perhaps Chavez’s idea could have some historical merit if he had not used “Indian.” Columbus and the Europeans mistook the Native Americans for the people of India. Therefore, the Europeans gave the name “Indian” as well. How can the European use of “Indian” be right, but “Latin” wrong? If anything, Indian is more of an insult because it is a “historical injustice” to both Native Americans and the inhabitants of India. Then again, even the word America is European-derived. Following Chavez’s argument ties logic into infinite knots. It makes no sense. That is the problem with so much Chavez has to say. If you think it out to the end, what at first sounds reasonable becomes ridiculous.
Damn! I think that the 1.1B inhabitants of the world’s second largest nation might have something to say about that. Does Venezuela have that many immigrants from the sub-continent?