"If I could meet those Buenos Aires taxi drivers again, those Mexican farmers, I would say: 'The United States is a lot like your country. We're going through a rough time. We speak a lot of Spanish. And we're wondering how safe it is to keep our money in the bank.'

"How much deeper will the recession sink us? Can the new regime in Washington rescue us? No one can say.

"Residents of Latin America, generally speaking, have more experience living with that kind of uncertainty.

"There is a Spanish proverb that is resonating in my brain these days. It's a favorite of my mother, who lives in Guatemala, where the people know a thing or two about hard times.

"No hay mal que dure 100 anos, ni enfermo que lo aguante.

"Translation: There is no illness that lasts 100 years, and no sick person who could survive it anyway."

--Hector Tobar, "Coming Home to a New America," LA Times 12/5/08.