Mario Argollo and Donald Trump: Parallel (Wasted) Lives
There is a critical parallel between Mario Argollo, leader of the Central Obrera Boliviana, and Donald Trump, in that both have undertaken destructive social and geopolitical conflicts driven by questionable motivations and using similar strategies. After failing in their initial objectives and encountering unexpected resistance, both figures are seeking a negotiated exit to preserve their own political survival in the face of the attrition of their respective conflicts.
The Red Lines of Social Conflicts
In the social conflict currently ravaging Bolivia, the government seems to have paradoxically opted for non-violence in the face of the extreme aggression of the mobilized sectors. Given Bolivia’s experience in this matter, it seems sensible to set some “red lines” for protest. If these red lines are crossed, the weight of the law, through trials and compensation for damages, must fall with full rigor upon those responsible for overstepping them.
The Thucydides Trap and Bolivian Politics
The Graham Allison’s “Thucydides Trap”—the historical tendency for established powers to clash with rising ones— is applied to analyze contemporary challenges in Bolivia, specifically regarding political governance and the energy transition.
The Anarchist Prince Who Challenged Darwin, Lenin, and Leo XIII
Piotr Kropotkin, a naturalist and anarchist thinker, refuted the distortion of Social Darwinism by demonstrating that cooperation and mutual aid are essential biological factors for survival, beyond mere competition. In his work, he challenged both savage capitalism and authoritarian statism and hierarchies. His legacy resonates today in cooperative structures such as those in Bolivia and proposes a third way against extreme individualism and state control, centered on reciprocal aid for the common good.
Pope Francis: His Legacy One Year After His Departure
My tribute to Pope Francis on the first anniversary of his death, through this column that synthesizes the lecture I gave at the Saint Jerome Seminary in La Paz. Francis was a pontiff who profoundly renewed the life of the Church and provided fundamental guidance to humanity.
The Royal Physician Who Lost His Head for the Queen and the Enlightenment
n 1770, J.F. Struensee rose from royal physician to “de facto” regent of Denmark and, in just two years, pushed through radical reforms in line with the Enlightenment. When his affair with the Queen became known, he was beheaded in 1772. Although his reforms were reversed, his legacy endures in today’s progressive Denmark.
Black Legends and Virtuous Histories of the Americas
The story of the arrival of the smallpox vaccine in Hispanic America is fascinating, as is the life of the heroic group that carried out the life-saving mission. Furthermore, it stands in stark contrast to the biological warfare of the British army in the Great Lakes region and serves to stop fueling “black legends.”
The Perfect Storm for YPFB: Between Internal Sabotage and Global Chaos
Bolivia stands at a crossroads: caught between YPFB’s inefficiency and a global crisis pushing crude oil to $100, Rodrigo Paz’s government faces the dilemma of choosing between the hunger of inflation or the plague of a deficit. With no strategic reserves or foreign currency, the only real way out is aggressive energy diplomacy and a gradual transition toward renewable sources to break the dependency on hydrocarbons.
Francesco Zaratti
Born in Rome (1947), he has lived in Bolivia since 1973.
He was Sonia’s widower and is now married to Carolita. From his first marriage he has three children and three grandchildren. He also shares three other children and seven grandchildren with Carolita.
He is a physicist by profession and an emeritus university professor. For 17 years he directed the UMSA Atmospheric Physics Laboratory. It also deals with energy issues, privatizations, biblical exegesis and common life.
In public life, he has collaborated, between 2004 and 2005, with President Carlos Mesa, as an advisor on energy and hydrocarbons and Delegate for the Review and Improvement of Capitalization.