Dr. Carmelo Delgado Cintrón
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English, equally prevalent in whatever form decolonization takes, derives from the practical, rather than the formal, allocation of power in the world. In 1998, there is only one super-power, and it is the United States.‖ ―Some have decried the domination of the United States in the world marketplace and the cultural sphere as a form of ‗neocolonialism.‘ Neo-colonialism is, however, a very different institution than colonialism, and in my view, nothing is gained by eliding the two. Arguably, both forms of colonialism may pose a threat to self-determination, broadly and generously understood, but a crucial difference arises from the nature of the threat to the ideal: one is governmental, the other pragmatic. On a purely moral plane, a difference in the nature of the threat may make no difference -a denial of self-determination is a denial of selfdetermination- but at the very least, the remedies will be extraordinarily different. How does one possibly end neocolonialism?‖ ―Again, none of this meant to blunt Trías‘ essential point or to lessen the moral appeal of his argument, but only to place it in proper perspective. We should do the right thing simply because it is the right thing. We should end the colonial relationship because it is a denial of the principle of self-determination and thus is wrongful. However, we should not assume that this course of action, essentially moral in nature, would solve the practical problems that have their roots in sources other than colonialism.‖ Professor Efrén Rivera Ramos read his review. He said that, ―It is my opinion that this book is the sharpest description Trías has made of our status of subordination.‖106 Professor Rivera Ramos continued with his critic of the book: ―In first place, Trías recognizes the colonial character of our relationship with the United States. In the penultimate chapter, he gives twelve reasons to arrive to that conclusion. The author arguments that this acknowledgment is the first necessary step in a serious effort to reconstruct 106
Rivera Ramos, supra note 120, p. 114