"The proposal presented by the National Coordinating Committee to the National Constituent Assembly envisions a new model for Ecuador based upon food sovereignty and water, in particular, as basic rights. They see a future in which their communities are dedicated to sustainable forms of agro-ecology and press for the government’s commitment to resolve current conflicts which are compromising local processes of organization, development and day-to-day life."

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These people seem more than a little confused to me. Where are they going to get the iron, copper, zinc, aluminum, cement etc. that they'll need to run a modern economy of 13 million people? Are they going to trade frozen shrimp and cut flowers for that? That's an awful lot of shrimp, isn't it? And will they hold their suppliers to the same high standards they set for themselves? If so, there won't be much iron, copper, zinc, etc. coming into the country will there? Or will they just close their eyes and buy from whoever is offering the best price?

This is NIMBY at it's worst. Instead of seizing the opportunity to develop a model for responsible mining (and all the value-added industry that comes with it) they are retreating into a 19th century agrarian fantasy that can't possibly work. Where will they get their electricity from? Oil for transportation? What about the medicines they'll need? Or will they all just die of "natural" causes, as nature intended?

The more you examine the green agenda, the more unworkable it appears. The truly frightening aspect, however, is not the earnest, ready to toil from dawn to dusk (without electricity what other choice is there?) acolytes it attracts, but the sinister subtext of control over people's lives it implies, and the self-seeking manipulators that know it can't work, yet will ride it for all it's politically worth, just so long as THEY don't have to deal with the inconvenience of living in that sort of world.

What a tragedy. Instead of adopting a model of social democracy and economic progress like Canada, Denmark, Finland, etc. they opt for the absolute worst aspects of Neo-Ludite, American inspired New Age reactionism. For all their posturing at breaking away from US-centric models of free trade and globalism, they turn around and import yet another unworkable ideology from the very same place! It boggles the mind. None of this eco-friendly, sutainable lifestyle nonsense is home grown. It's all imported from the USA and Canada, often at taxpayers (read YOUR) expense.

I feel sorry for Correa having to work with these cretins. He should have courted the middle-ground of practical business people who couldn't get a toe-hold due to the monopolistic grip of the established elite. He didn't need these Sandalistas. Revolution is kicking in a rotten door. You don't need that many feet.

Now he's stuck with them. The center is alienated, and there's no help on the right that I can see. It's all acrimony and name-calling from that corner. They'd sooner see him fail (and Ecuador along with him) than try to help him advance a progressive economic agenda, which I'm now convinced is his intent.

I guess we'll see how far the power of presidential decree goes in the upcoming weeks and months.