The Mexican Revolution is very interesting to learn about. If I am being completely honest, I had no idea the Mexican Revolution happened. In this course, I have gained much knowledge on the revolution and I would like to comment on this newly learned content.
Firstly, there are many names involved in this revolution and it can be hard to keep track of who is who. After listening to the lectures and reading Gonzales, I still do not have a solid grip on each individual's involvement and their beliefs. I am constantly going back to look at my notes and the book to remind myself of a one's role in the revolution.
The correlation between power and corruption is clearly seen with Porfirio Diaz. It is interesting to me how someone could gain the presidency with a vision for Mexico and it's people but end up becoming a tyrant after holding onto power for more than 30 years. I wonder how the revolution would have been affected if Diaz stepped down and chose a successful successor. What if the leaders listened to the peoples' grievances?
My view of the United States has dramatically changed after learning about U.S. involvement to protect their national interest. The US Ambassador, Henry Lane Wilson, overstepped his role and infringed on Mexican sovereignty by supporting a coup to overthrow Morelos. Uggg..why won't the U.S. leave Latin America alone!
I am so thankful that I got to learn about the Mexican Revolution because I have gained awareness of how the United States gets involved when their national interests are threatened and I learned about a critical part of Mexican history.
AJ, I love how concise your writing is! Your message comes across quite clearly and all of your thoughts are in line. I did not have any background on the Mexican Revolution prior to this class either. I believe it is more a fault of education systems in general though rather than strictly the United States. For example, I wonder if Latin American countries (or other foreign nations) learn about the American Civil War. If they do, props goes to their education because they probably learn more in depth than we do. To go along with your comments on Porfirio Díaz, it is interesting to me as well how he had an advancing vision for Mexico but ended up a tyrant! I do feel as if this could happen to many leaders. They begin to be so comfortable in the authoritative position that they refuse to step down. My opinion of the United States has not changed after what we have learned. No matter how frowned upon it may be in this class, I grew up loving this country and I will continue to do so. Now saying that, I do recognize faults we have and mistakes we have made... but I don't think we will cease to learn from them and make changes.
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