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Preface to the Third Edition
- University of Georgia Press
- Chapter
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Preface to the Third Edition In the decade since the last edition of this book, Panama-lLS. relations have shrunk and become stabilized beyond anyone's prediction , certainly mine. Panama's success following a century of dependence on the United States has been phenomenal, a tribute to the resourcefulness and talents of Panamanian leaders and citizens. It also attests to the constructive planning by U.S. officials, who during the 19905 committed to a seamless handoff of the canal and hands-off regarding Panama's internal affairs. To paraphrase the subtitle of Mark Falcoff 's clever 1998book, "positive things can happen when the United States gives a small country what it wants/' I feel privileged to have witnessed and to a small degree participated in nearly a half centuryof Panamanian-U.S. relations. A small number of new and important historical studies have come out in the past ten years. These are included in a bibliographical essay at the end of the book. Please consult these carefully, because Ihave not added new sources to chapters i through m In previous editions I have listed large numbers of academics, writers , politicians, professionals, and friends who have guided my research over the years, beginning in 1966 with a course on Panama-U.S. relations taught by ErnestoCastillero Pimentel at the University ofPanama. With the passage of time my debt to colleagues has continued to grow. Yet to simply list them would not do justiceto their help along the way. Most are acknowledged in previous editions. In the last year, however, a number of Panamanians and U.S. specialists have helped me with interviews and have read portions of the manuscript. Let me thank Gene Bigler, Alfredo Castillero Calvo,Marco Gandasegui, Robert C. Harding, Stanley Heckadon, Alfredo Castillero Hoyos, Eric Jackson, Thomas Pearcy, Olando Perez, and Berta Thayer. None of them bear any responsibility for errors or misinterpretations in this book. XI Xll PREFACE TO THE THIRD EDITION Lester Langley deserves special thanks for conceiving this series, the United States and the Americas, and leading us to a full and successful conclusion. His was a grand vision seldom encountered in academe, and he shouldered a tremendous workload to finish the job. I gratefully acknowledge financial support from the Fulbright-Hayes program, the American Historical Association, the University of New Mexico, and the Tinker Foundation. Finally I must thank the many librarians and archivists who helped along the way. [44.221.45.48] Project MUSE (2024-03-29 15:19 GMT) Panama and the United States ...