Chapter 9: Latin America — So Far from God, So Close to the United States
The Andes wall off the west. The Amazon jungle isolates the interior. And the United States looms to the north. Latin America has the resources of a superpower but the geography of fragmentation.
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The colossal Andes mountains form an impenetrable wall along Latin America's western coast, isolating nations and hindering east-west connection.
Earth's largest rainforest, the Amazon, renders Brazil's interior an impenetrable jungle. Roads vanish, railways impossible, leaving millions of square miles empty.
Brazil's population clings to the Atlantic coast. Its vast interior, jungle and savanna, confines the continental-sized nation to a narrow coastal strip.
The Panama Canal, a narrow isthmus, controls hemisphere shipping. Built by the US, its strategic importance is undeniable.
Mexico's 2,000-mile border with the world's richest country. Northern deserts and southern jungles create immense migration pressure.
Argentina's Pampas offer Earth's best farmland. Yet, isolation from major global markets curses its immense agricultural potential.
The US shadow looms large: Monroe Doctrine, interventions, trade dependency. Latin America's proximity traps it under this constant influence.
