Today is a very important day for Ecuador, and yet I can't help but to feel completely cynical about the whole thing. Yes, by law I have to go cast my vote, otherwise I can't even open a bank account, but as with many political landscapes around the world, the choices available are not good.
The current president is up for reelection, and as much as I disagree with some (not all obviously) of the things he's done for the past year, he seems to be the only option that makes sense.
It's sad to admit, but Ecuador is a country held hostage by mafias and cartels, which apparently are not the same thing, I've come to learn. This is to say that unless there's a Bukele type figure at the helm, things might not change much if at all.
That being said, if Luisa wins, I think the turmoil and the monetary exodus might end up sinking this country into deep recession in a matter of months. Luisa, not to be a jerk, is the textbook definition of a Manchurian candidate, and her master Rafael Correa is out for vengeance. (a long story maybe I'll share one day)
Anyways, drinking coffee getting ready to drive for three hours into the city to put a tick on a piece of paper and not feel so great about it anyways.
MenO
It is horrifically devastating to the peoples of the world that corruption has enabled rent seeking scum to control which candidates are available to vote for in 'democracies'. The USA almost best exemplified this crime against humanity by advancing Kamala Harris and Donald Trump as the only candidates potential of electoral victory. Those two people were probably in the top 5 hated people in the United States, for good reasons. While people are social animals and have evolved to rabidly support their ingroup not only beyond all reason, but provably against reason, shown by research that revealed supporters of political entities received dopamine blasts of reward for denying factual criticism of their chosen and insisting on remaining supporters.
Humanity is so domesticated it craves domestication. This makes me so sad I have to leave the issue unaddressed that I might remain able to address other issues I must attend to. I'd otherwise curl up in a ball, depressed, and seeking solace from a bottle of something stronger than woe.
Centralization profits politicians the more from corruption of larger polities, and the incapacity of populations dominated by domesticated people to resist bamboozling by duplicitous deceivers presents but little prospect of successfully preventing a global technocratic totalitarian tyranny from making circumstances infinitely worse - and even more profitable to rent seeking profiteers making money off our tears.
Thanks!
The goat goes to the sheep and says, "Don't you know that line is the line that leads right to the slaugterhouse?? The shepherd has tricked you!"
And the sheep say, "Yes, and you'll have to go to the BACK of the line! This is MY spot, so you'll have to patiently wait just like everyone else."
The goat blinks and takes a few steps back, before bolting off to hop the fence and return to nature! The sheep are insane! But oh no.
The goat meets a wolf!
"Ahh! Please don't eat me, Mr. Wolf! I'm in no mood to be eaten! The sheep have all gone mad! And in a way that's really fucked and not funny anymore! They used to just be rude and stupid and naive, but now it feels like they're really really seeking out a twisted and bad end for themselves!"
The wolf looks at the goat surprised. "Eat you? Why would I eat you? I'm a vegan."
The goat screams.
But a bright dawn shines - The sheep are upset about their fate and have begun to protest! "We want better slaughterhouse conditions! Double the lines to speed things up, more security and TSA-scanning at the gate, and priority tickets for the richest sheep."
Aaaah! Vegan wolves is a terrifying shibboleth I'd not face.
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I'm not sure of the value of compulsory voting, but there's a lot of apathy here that allows some extremists to get elected. The choices can be uninspiring, but I think actual corruption levels are still relatively low here.
i think there is not a single system without corruption in the world, but sadly, in south america, the level of corruption has lead most countries to halt all progress.
A common practice down here is to government contractors to overcharge for work and pay "commissions" to the officials that allowed them to get the work to begin with. There is no free market of any sort.
It's a sad situation and hard to change.
It's so wrong when the right to vote becomes an obligation to vote. The least they can do is to set up a polling station nearer to you. They just don't care, do they
Imagine if things made sense! Ohhh! what a world!