By ANDRES OPPENHEIMER Good news for those of us who want increasingly closer U.S. ties...will be not just for them, but for the country as a whole. ? Andres Oppenheimer is a Latin America correspondent for the Miami Herald. Readers...

...the announcement was long expected, he probably anticipated it to divert attention from the suitcase scandal. Andres Oppenheimer is a Latin America correspondentfor the Miami Herald; e-mail: aoppenheimermiamiherald.com.

...and revises NAFTA, these same blue-collar states will lose far more jobs - as will the rest of the country. Andres Oppenheimer is a Latin America correspondent for the Miami Herald. he can be reached at aoppenheimer@miamiherald.com.

...could turn ugly. Now, both sides have stronger evidence against each other than they had when this spat started. Andres Oppenheimer is a Latin America correspondent for the Miami Herald. He can be reached at aoppenheimermiamiherald.com.

A Tweet I received from a Spanish follower hours after the death of Apple founder Steve Jobs caught my attention.

Latin America's response to the massacre of more than 100 civilians, including 49 children and 34 women, in the Syrian town of Houla has been, with a few exceptions, shockingly tame for a region that has suffered gross human rights violations in the past.Last week, the United States, Canada, Germany, France, Spain and at least five other major nations expelled their Syrian ambassadors following the slaughter in Houla, which United Nations observers say was carried out to a large extent by pro-government militias who entered homes and executed entire families at close range.

...presidents-for-life in Latin America is muffling the media indirectly while claiming to continue defending freedom of the press. Andres Oppenheimer is a Latin America correspondent for the Miami Herald, 1 Herald Plaza, Miami, Fla. 33132; e-mail: aoppenheimermiamiherald...

Good news for those of us who want increasingly closer U.S. ties with Spanish-speaking countries: a new study shows that more U.S. college students are enrolling in Spanish classes than in any other foreign language.

...As it often happens, what started as a civil rights crusade will end up prevailing for pure economic reasons. Andres Oppenheimer is a Latin America correspondent for the Miami Herald.

I have seen many strange things over the past three decades in Latin America, but Ecuador's national referendum on Saturday may be a first: Voters are likely to support a proposal to censure the press, which will encourage government corruption.