TenderLovingCare

October 7th marks a very big day for Costa Rica. Citizens not senators will decide whether or not Costa Rica should sign CAFTA. It’s so exciting! “Yes” is both yummier and naughtier than “no” in any circumstance. But “no”, from such a miniscule place could deliver an itching sting to globalization, so that other, more significant countries would take notice. This tiny country of a mere 5 million people, with it’s more than half-million cars, could say “hey, the American dream has become the world’s nightmare”.

CAFTA is about removing trade barriers and making it easier to sustain and develop business between countries. It’s the obvious choice to those who believe the only way people will be happy is by having access to more things and that the only people who can regulate the flow of things are governments. Tricky those “things”, not what they used to be, not to ticos who have a history of having and giving without fighting wars for them.

Ticos are actually better informed than their government would believe. They are mad proud of the democratic process, they’re still sore from such a narrow margin by which Oscar Arias took back the presidency, they’ve lost a lot of highway this year with the rains and import taxes have traditionally fixed infrastructure, they liked Taiwan and, as an environment based economy, are rightfully afraid of China. And even without all the opportunity promised by CAFTA, they’re already experiencing the symptoms of stress, of too much work, of long commutes over short distances, of not enough time or money and the climbing prices of just about everything. Not to mention all the guns and crime that have begun since the early 90’s tourism boom, doubling in size as offshore casinos moved in, ballooning the whore population in the El Rey hotel vicinity and driving ticos further away from their capital.

The bulk of voters that will turn out for the referendum all remember a time before there were even chapulines in San José. They all know that the material standard to which they think they’ve become accustomed is merely a consequence of globalization, sure they love it but why should they say “yes” to more of it? Costa Ricans are starting to understand the difference between being mere consumers and being true citizens.

“Yes” could and should win. Winning is for positive players, for strategists, for mercenaries, for defeatists and opportunists, but not always for visionaries. Too much of anything for too long, will kill incentive, if according to reports in both La Republica and La Nación, Costa Rica is already under staffed to fit the needs of tourist, second-home and technology sectors.

And they’ll win because like my neighbor, a truck driver from Guápiles says, “if I was gonna vote, I’d vote ‘yes’ cause change is always good”. “Yes” is THE side to be on. It’s more democratic, really. “Yes” to removing trade barriers and levies, to affording lawyers a vacation home that they can rent and where they can unclench, to adding smog to Chinese skies, to integrating economic interests with warring empires, dictatorships, and rogue monarchy’s, to making fun of Chaves, and to inspiring incentives like www.pandemoniotv.com.