Do Presidents Play Futbol?

Submitted by fyl on 27 April, 2008 - 16:50.

If there was a humor forum, this would probably belong there. But, well, it is regional news and I think it captures the spirit that "important politicians" are just people in Latin America.

AFP has a short article complete with picture of Bolivian President Evo Morales playing on a futbol team.

Morales, a vocal opponent of FIFA's attempts to prevent the Andean nation playing World Cup qualifiers at high altitude in La Paz, is a lifelong fan of the game and had long dreamed of a slice of league action.

Seems like a good example of a politician actually using his foot to participate rather than just stick it in his mouth.

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While Morales plays soccer ...

Submitted by Daddy-YO on 4 May, 2008 - 09:06.

From an AP report today I read, Bolivia's richest state voted for autonomy, though it sound to me like their seceding. Santa Cruz, in the eastern lowlands, wants its own legislature and police force and, complete control over land distribution and the right to sign international treaties.

But wait, didn't Morales say he planned to redistribute their land to the poor. Looks like they didn't agree. Chavez was able to redistribute land in Venezuela, to his supporters (I'm not sure how many (but I believe most) were poor), but then he's also the leader of a rather big, well-equipped army. From what I'd read he was mainly taking the land away from 'foreigners' (some second generation) and Venezuelans who had no, or the wrong political clout. Do politics never change in Latin America?

To avoid Civil War, Abraham Lincoln got the US Congress to offer to buy back slaves from their owners. They started with the smallest state, cause it was a lot of money. Delaware's slave owners refused to sell.

Chavez did buy out most of the oil companies in Venezuela. He was wise, there were big guns backing those companies. But ex-pat land owners are easy pickings. It looks like those rich landowners in Bolivia would rather fight than give up their property, and they're choosing a legal route.