i found a free like mother who names her son simon bolivar. or now come the point is that these baby bolivars, really represent a cross-section of the country. not only to their mothers and fathers have access to information on latin america, which they are probably getting through newspapers and word-of-mouth. but, they are emotionally and personally invested in what is happening there, to the extent that they are naming their sons, and sometimes themselves, after this spanish-speaking catholic revolutionary. i should add, this is more than just rhetoric. this is more than just superficial excitement. because people in the u.s. actually do several concrete things, in support of latin american independence. i scoured diplomatic archives in the u.s. and latin america, as well as thousands of pages, and the u.s. congressional record. i found three concrete things that resulted partly from this popular enthusiasm. first, thousands of u.s. citizens took up arms for latin american independence, usually as privateers, but sometimes they enlist direct