Last Sunday (a week ago) we had national elections here in Bolivia. I found the following points about this election quite interesting:
Voters could choose among 11 different policital parties, and presidential candidates.
The popularity of one of the candidates rose sharply because of careless words spoken by the ambassador of the United States. Basically, the ambassador said: "Don't vote for this man". As a result, many people voted for him, out of protest, or nationalistic feelings. In the meantime, another party speeks of a conspiracy - IOW, they claim the counterproductive recommendation, by the ambassador, was not careless, but on purpose.
People here have take "mud-slinging" very seriously - many large posters, portraying candidates for president, vice-president, and congress (of different political parties) were defaced with mud, paint, and things of the sort.
Hilmar.
Difference in opinions hath cost many millions of lives: for instance, whether flesh be bread, or bread be flesh; whether whistling be a vice or a virtue; whether it be better to kiss a post, or throw it into the fire... (from Gulliver's Travels)
