Parliamentary coups and ideolpgical confusion. NOTHING will ever be the same!

In Portugal, we have not entered a period of political polarization, 

but much rather  into a period of a parliamentary coup 

and ideological confusion. 

The danger is not  a civil war, but the decay of the regime.

For the first time, in the Portuguese democracy, 

we may be eventually governed by those who lost the elections.

To be able to come to power, the losers of 4th  October elections, 

have come up with the most extraordinary gymnastics: 

António Costa forgot his precious Centeno plan, 

the BE ignores the uncompromising opposition to the Budget Treaty 

and the communists has put into the attic,  their relentless campaign against the euro

 - together, they have denied all the proposals and all election banners

 appealing for votes and convincing the voters. 

Who voted for the socialists (PS) was because it was a "moderate centrist party", 

have now seen the socialists affiliated their balls 

together with the radical BE and the communists (PCP); 

for those who voted for the BE and the PCP 

because they were "against everything" 

see them now throwing all their principles aboard, 

accepting almost everything. 

Power corrupts, 

and the power of a parliamentary majority 

forged in despair and in the cynicism of defeat, 

corrupts much more.

António Costa transformed one of the biggest failures 

of Portuguese politics into a victory: 

it is as if Dom Sebastian, after losing in Alcazarquivir, 

reappeared as the Sultan of Morocco.

A coup is never the last coup. 

What's next? 

Will the communists and the BE "sacrifice" the PS? 

Or is it Costa who will "put the PCP and the BE in a pinch? 

Pensions and wages may even rise, 

or is this just another scam to decrease them again in January, 

on the pretext of "the markets" and "Europe"? 

Will Costa keep faithful to his casual partners, 

or attempt to change the scenario and force the PSD and CDS, 

with the help of Brussels, and the next president of the republic, 

to assume the "responsibility" of enabling his government? 

The left will serve Costa to come to power;

 but will the right-wing parties serve to remain the status quo? 

Nobody knows. 

Nothing, from now on, 

is impossible.

We have entered the era of parliamentary coup and ideological confusion. 

The danger is not a civil war, but the decay of the regime 

by breaking all the rules and degradation of all projects. 

The policy is turned off from society. 

The old rule of the winner of the elections, governs, had a reason for being. 

It not only allowed minority governments into a system 

that hinders absolute majorities. 

It was more than that: it was to keep a relationship, even a forced relationship  

between the vote and the government solutions. 

When, in the middle of election night, results were defined, 

the voter could go to bed, because he knew who would be the Prime Minister. 

The citizen thus had the feeling of having had a role in deciding 

about the new government. 

This sensation has ended. 

As of now, the voter votes, 

but without any idea of what can result from their vote:

everything will depend on the intrigues and combinations of the political leaders.

Between the voter and the government, 
the oligarchy entered the parliament 
as an intermediate layer of plots and manipulation, 
where the losers become the winners 
and the anti-euro parties reappear as the euro parties. 
For the metamorphosis of our policy to be complete, 
what is still missing, is the atomization of small parties 
into unpredictable "groupies". 
So, the combination  of possibilities 
are even more endless and dizzying.

In Portugal, the oligarchy freed itself of the voters. 
They dared to do this, because they imagine that no they longer
 have any resposibility before the citizens, but are only dependent on the State, 
which they can downgrade at ease. 
In the midst of all this, there are the great interests
(businesses, corporate and trade unions),
 whose scope will increase, 
and the voters are greatly naive, 
they are convinced that this is "democracy," 
when in actual fact, 
it is just stinking rot.

Adapted from an article by Rui Ramos in the "Observador" newspaper