Since I have been glued to Univision and it's cable counterpart, Galavision (thanks to the World Cup) I've been catching my fair share of international news reporting. Let me correct that : I've been catching my fair share of excellent international news reporting.

Whenever I watch the news on Univision and Galavision it reminds me of how, even with their biased reporting, it still is far and above better than most TV news hours in the United States. Lord, CNN and FoxNews just suck in comparison.

The most talked about piece of news? The teacher's insurgency in Oaxaca, Mexico.

Yes, you read it right. It's not just a strike. It's an insurgency.

[via BBC NEWS | Americas | Mexico teachers clash with police]

Mexican police have fought running battles to dislodge thousands of striking teachers from the main square in the southern city of Oaxaca.

Officers fired tear gas as they evicted the teachers, who have been protesting over pay for the past three weeks.

Several people were hurt but officials denied claims that people had died.

The government says the teachers have agreed to attend talks on Thursday to try to end the strike, which has left a million pupils without classes.

Reports of the police sweep and alleged deaths prompted a CUNY protest in front of the Mexican embassy:

[via blog.myspace.com/mamute]

More than 50 people came out today to the second protest at the Mexican Consulate in New York, against the massacre of striking teachers in Oaxaca, Mexico. Initiated by the Internationalist Group, the picket drew many members of the CUNY teaching staff union (the Professional Staff Congress), as well as students from several CUNY campuses, members of AELLA (Latin American Students Association at the Grad Center), representatives of left and community groups and others. Demonstrators chanted "Protest the Massacre of Mexican Teachers,""Atenco, Oaxaca, massacres in Mexico," "¡Viva la huelga de los maestros mexicanos!" and other slogans. Union speakers stressed international solidarity with our Mexican compañeros and compañeras.

Isn't it amazing that I have to get this piece of news from a MySpace blog because no NYC newspaper is reporting on this?

Lest I am accused of spreading misinformation, a representative of the the Mexican Red Cross* was interviewed yesterday by Univision and she had claimed that even though they had treated hundreds for injuries, they had gotten no reports or attended anybody who died. Sources all across the internet claim 3 to 14 people have been killed but no evidence has been provided.

Oaxaca is burning because 40,000 teachers have taken over the city during their general strike. They've set up a tent city right smack in the middle of the city. They've been at it since May 25th. With their strike, more than a million kids have been out of school and the whole city has been basically shut down.

Last night a riot broke out as the Oaxacan police tried to disperse and destroy the tent city. They shot tear gas and unleashed attack dogs. It was pretty horrible what they presented on Galavision --and, by the way, this a TV station affiliated with Televisa, which is kind of like the Fox News of Mexico. So it must have been really bad out there if Televisa was willing to show the violence and devastation they just broadcasted.

Check out :
Democracy Now!

Edwize.org

Noticias de Oaxaca

(*Sorry, I don't have her name because was actually watching TV not working to report on it).

So I am reading You Can't Fight City Hall, but You Can See How Much Everyone There Makes - New York Times and I am getting all mad and jealous because a blog that is not this one broke the story of the NYC employees' pay scale published in the Civil List.

Then, as I read more, I am getting more incensed. The aticle reads like many New York Times articles of late : It mentions obliquely (if at all) the blog from whence the idea for the article (or the whole article) came from and then in Grey Lady fashion, it goes on NOT to link to the people that basically are making it possible for the journaleech to get a paycheck.

The blog in question is Backroom Deal Breaker. The original artcile is at Backroom Deal Breaker: Let Your Fingers Do the Talking! It is a good blog, go check it out.

Well, so I now go to the list and download it. To give it a whirl, I decide to look for all and any employees with the last name Sabater. Well what do you know? Yours truly is on the list (at the bottom):

Click on the image to enlarge.

WOW! I am almost at $100 /hr? So this means I can go back to CUNY to teach? Awesome.

For those of you who do not know, mamacita used to be an adjunct instructor of Spanish language and literature at CUNY. I taught in the system for a few years while working on a PhD in Latin American Literature at New York University. Mamacita though enjoyed exploring the web and working as a net art producer more than teaching the difference between ser y estar or writing articles about the neobaroque aesthetics in the work of contemporary Latin American writers like Reinaldo Arenas. So I packed the few belongings I still had at 19 University, took the ABD (or MPhil or whatever they call it these days) and gave up writing a thesis along with almost 10 years of teaching for having a baby and exploring the world wide web.

Yes, mamacita is a nerda who became the blogdiva she is today.

As an aside though, I miss teaching horribly. I would love to go back to it but not as a Spanish instructor. Hire me for a citizen journalism class, an online communications strategies and technologies lecturer or a real-life philosopher exploring the neobaroque aesthetics of online creative work and you've got yourself a deal ... for $87.62 an hour.