Political Chaos

Lots of weird political shtuff going on down here. The future is uncertain. Last week, these two former presidents came back to the country after years of exile. The current president is in cahoots with the old corrupt ones, and he has played the game such that his current president of the supreme court fired all the judges opposed to the old corrupt presidents. They were supposed to go immediately to jail if they returned to the country, but last week, that decision was overturned, and now they’re back. These two presidents, Bucaram and Noboa were really corrupt thieves. Here in Quito, the people absolutely loathe them. But in Guayaquil, where they’re not as smart, the people like at least Bucaram. They celebrated his return and didn’t think twice when he said, “The pope couldn’t die until I returned to Ecuador.”

Guayaquil is the biggest city in Ecuador, with about 3 million inhabitants. There are 13 million in the entire country. And since it’s actually a requirement for every citizen to vote, Guayaquil has big influence. But it’s been interesting talking with Quitenos during the past week. They don’t really believe that all people from Guayaquil are idiots, just as I don’t believe that everyone from Texas is a dumbass. But Bush was the governor there, and they have some pretty backward policies when it comes to schools, prisons, etc. Thus, I might not hesitate to say that Texans are idiots, though, of course not all of them are. Just the majority.

Anyhow, next Tuesday there’s this plan to have big “paros” at least in Quito. Paros are strikes. I’ve heard that the city is gonna shut down. But you never know. The rumors are seldom accurate. However, my more level-headed students — those less prone to exaggeration — are even saying things could get chaotic soon. Anything could happen. They could oust the current president. Or the various political contigents could stumble over each other in an effort to not have their own power sapped and, as a result, it could be that nothing will happen.