Talk:Council on Hemispheric Affairs

This article is very similar to the copyrighted material an this site: 1. I'm not exactly sure how different it has to be to be safe from copyright infringement; does this pass?


 * The version of the article referred to here was deleted after being listed on Copyright problems. --rbrwr&plusmn; 10:14, 6 Feb 2005 (UTC)

Biased article
The entry for "Council on Hemispheric Affairs" is more than a little slanted, as clearly evidenced by the use of the sarcastic quotation marks around council. It clearly reflects very little actual knowledge of the organization, and is more concerned with defaming than informing.

Here are some facts to refute the entry: Yes, COHA is staffed almost entirely by interns, but this does not indicate a lack of intellectual capacity. Rather, those who accept internships at COHA are highly knowledgeable individuals, including several pursuing masters and Ph.D's in the field of Latin American studies (be it politics, history etc) and their decision to take an internship there reflects the organization's prestige and their passion for the subject. Past COHA interns have included such noteables as Sebastian Junger (author of The Perfect Storm).

Furthermore, COHA counts upon the support of many experts in the field, and has connections to with top-flight academics (see the listing at: http://www.coha.org/senior_res_fellows.php) as well as people with backgrounds in the foreign service.

And to underscore the lack of truth in the existing entry, COHA press releases are read by thousands of members of the mainstream media, and COHA is regularly cited in such publications as the Houston Chronicle, the Guardian, the Washington Times, not to mention stories by Reuters and the AP. If COHA's work was really the thinly veiled garbage that the author of the current entry makes it out to be, would this be the case? Doubtful.

Anyhow, a quick glance at the information on COHA's website (www.coha.org) should help.

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This: "All Souls College, Oxford's military seminar" is definitely weird. All Souls College is a college, not a 'seminar', nor is is particularly based on the military (it's the most prestigious college at Oxford and is ridiculously academic, English and tweed-y -- about as far from military as you can get). Can we delete one or the other here, and if we leave 'Oxford's military seminar' specify what that is exactly. I'm at Oxford and trust me this does not make sense. 163.1.167.7 17:24, 20 February 2006 (UTC)

I came to this discussion page to make the same point about All Souls.

David Harley

Unprofessional reply from COHA director Larry Birns
I sent the following letter to the editor of Caribbean Net News, after he published an article by Council on Hemispheric Affairs:

The Editor,

Caribbean Net News.

Dear Sir,

Larry Birns and Joen Kellberg, Director and Research Associate respectively of the Council on Hemispheric Affairs, described by a member of the US Senate as,

“One of the nation’s most respected bodies of scholars and policy makers” contributed a commentary in your Thursday 30th November issue which included the most unbelievable and outrageous characterizations of Manuel Rosales, the opponent of Hugo Chavez in Venezuela’s upcoming presidential election on this Sunday, December 3rd.

I quote, ”the modus operandi of the opposition, led by Manuel Rosales, viciously discredits Chavez by using a mélange of invented tales, gross distortions, painful exaggerations and outright lies, rather than try to deal with Venezuela’s complex realities. Furthermore, Rosales routinely accuses the country’s strongman of seeking to erect a dictatorship.”

Whilst this characterisation happens to be a very accurate description of Chavez’ tactics, it is horribly wrong about Rosales. I have not heard every word Rosales has said, but I have listened to some of the speeches he has made to mammoth crowds of hundreds of thousands of supporters, and what characterises him is a cool and level-headed declaration of his intentions, very much to address Venezuela’s complex realities. It is this complete contrast to Chavez’ bombast that accounts for much of his popularity. Rosales avoids mudslinging, and we don’t need him to point out that Chavez is seeking to erect a dictatorship; it is only too obvious to the most casual observer.

If this commentary is an example of the work of the Council on Hemispheric Affairs, I shudder to think who the Council “advises”.

Incidentally, Reuters, A.P., BBC, CNN and the international media in general have all been giving amazingly slanted reports on Venezuela, always in favour of Chavez, and often ignoring the existence of Rosales. Why this should be is a complete mystery to me.

Yours faithfully,

Gregory Charles GRENADA.

I also forwarded that letter to Larry Birns, Director of COHA, and this is his reply:

Dear Gregory,

The fact is that you apparently are a man of the Conservative persuasion and we’re not.

But why must you be so unpleasantly shrill, it’s guys like you – true believers all - that make Iraq such a dangerous place. You would serve your cause all the better if you feature fewer rants and more reasoned dialogue…

Our best,

Larry Birns,

Director of COHA

Council on Hemispheric Affairs 1250 Conn. Ave. NW Suite 1c Washington D.C., 20036 Phone: 202 223 4975 Fax: 202 223 4979 E-mail: coha@coha.org Website: www.coha.org

Founded in 1975, the Council on Hemispheric Affairs (COHA), a nonprofit, tax-exempt independent research and information organization, was established to promote the common interests of the hemisphere, raise the visibility of regional affairs and increase the importance of the inter-American relationship, as well as encourage the formulation of rational and constructive U.S. policies towards Latin America.It has been described on the Senate floor as being “one of the nation’s most respected bodies of scholars and policy makers.” Visit our webpage at www.coha.org or contact us at coha@coha.org

Gregchar 22:49, 6 December 2006 (UTC)


 * And this is relevant to the COHA Wikipedia article because...? Nareek 20:38, 7 December 2006 (UTC)