Sunday
06 April 2003
The
comments and opinions contained in this column are those of Michael
Jean Nystrom-Schut and do not necessarily represent the opinion
of insidecostarica.com
Speculation, blah, blah, blah…
More biased journalism
by Michael Jean Nystrom-Schut
The past few weeks have brought few new relevant
revelations to the now-famous “Villalobos investment case.”
And I suspect that through these times many of us are starting
to draw firm conclusions about the realities behind our
collective ordeal.
The Kosmic question flickers as something like: just what
IS truth and illusion when it comes to Enrique and our money?
If you have been peeping AMCOSTARICA this past week, you
will find a couple of letters (one from TUESDAY, the other from
THURSDAY) that cast more dim light on Enrique. The authors have
a distinctly negative attitude about my famous friend, but that
is hardly news; the fact is that all of us are either “for”
the man, or “against” him…still.
It’s a
free country, and to my way of thinking, these writers are
sourpusses who want to do nothing but “rub it in,” pin all
the blame on Enrique, and set themselves up as expert witnesses
to what is really going on. In their view, my friend is the true
sworn enemy, which effectively lets off the hook anyone or
anything that REALLY had something to do with it.
I
myself continue to blame other (outside) forces (in and out of
the present government) for my lost play-doe. To my (quite
biased) reasoning, Enrique was doing well in adapting to our
“Canadian crisis” when in October he saw some kind of
“handwriting on the wall” that sealed the deal on his need
to exit…for the time at least.
These
other two fellows do not share this view at all.
In the
Tuesday article, the individual (Mr. Hobbs, New York) has
suggested a personal bet with me that goes something like this:
I pay a charity $10,000 if after six months I do not get my
initial investment back from Enrique. If I should “win”
(though he knows I won’t) then he pays his charity of choice
(in his case, he picks the Boys and Girls Clubs of New York and
suggests I donate to Enrique’s church).
Gee.
No
thanks to Hobbs; being neither a Baptist, nor a Christian, I
won’t be doing that. To his “offer, I would ask the obvious
question of why would I want to pay out another ten grand on top
of the $250,000 I am already out?
So, no,
I will not take that bet. And that’s because I strongly doubt
that Enrique will be allowed to get into the position of being
able to pay the money back to me.
To this
chap Hobbs, I would ask him to try and keep up with how
authorities and officials of the “state” are cleverly and
systematically painting my friend into a corner, working legal
avenues, and sealing him off from being able to continue his
business. Thus, the letter and proposition from him came across
as almost illiterate to me. I did not write back to him, but did
appreciate the laugh at his twisted, carbuncled note.
In the Thursday article, the letter writer (Mr. McWade,
New Jersey) suggests that Enrique should enjoy his journey to
hell, showing just how bitter and cynical some of us have
stooped to become.
That’s hate talk McWade!
This
fair-weather friend is frazzled, and doesn’t know whom really
to blame, and so he’s decided that the “powers that be”
are somehow pure and right, and that Enrique must be the
conniving conman the Costa Rican courthouse clan has proclaimed
him to be.
McWade
sets forth a very tired “ponzi scheme” speculation theory,
which I am bored to death of hearing about. He also damns
Enrique, and harshly judges him, failing to bother to lay a
glove on the people who are really responsible for our fiasco.
In
addition to his hate thoughts about Enrique, he suggested that
the creditors “grow up.”
Why
don’t YOU grow up McWade? Get into therapy, and take Hobbs
with you, please. What makes you guys so grown? Let a trained
eye read between the lines of both letters and it would reveal
mental weirdness at work.
My long-standing position on all of this is neither a
negative nor a positive one. We just try and give it out, as it
appears to really be. With my running buddies (home-boys such as
Hank, Rainer, Duke, Skip, B Gold …and countless others) I
continue to remain affixed to the ebb and flow of Enrique’s
“big event.”
Call us
IDIOTS, but we fellows figure our best odds are to keep
SUPPORTING Enrique, and place our ONLY real hope in him – NOT
this government.
We know
that the ruling administration of Costa Rica, the legal
“system” here, and the “players” who are involved in
this have no interest or inclination in helping us, the battered
and bruised creditors, or to do anything that will benefit
Enrique’s chances of getting back into business.
So it is ONLY SENSIBLE TO CONTINUE TO SIDE WITH ENRIQUE,
and no one else!
To the bitter end, then, we speculate on the pro-Enrique
side. And to heck (never hell) with the rest of you!
Whew! Yes, Hobbs, the glory days might be over, as you
suggest. In fact, I am left feeling fully fed up with the Costa
Rican government, and the supporting system that operates within
it. They are opportunists who seem to be working hard to get a
piece of an illusive pie (Enrique’s creditor dollars!) and
leaving me with less money to support my two Tica girlfriends.
Lilliana and Alejandra (among so very many others!)
don’t deserve the plight their government is putting them
through.
I hope
that the UCCR’s Jose Miguel can make a difference, and I stand
amply ready, and poised, to praise him or to blast him,
DEPENDING on what he does (or does not do) in the next several
weeks. The verdict at this time remains out: we can only hope
that he is a man of integrity, and that the creditors have made
a wise choice in retaining Jose Miguel.
After
all, he’s sitting on some serious dollars – we’re well
within our right to ask that he slam a few balls out of the park
in return, to win us some “games.”
So (and speaking personally to Jose Miguel) I would
suggest that I really want you to do well! For reasons obvious!
But know that we’re smart people, and informed, and you HAD to
know that we would be anxiously waiting, and watching, and
weighing in on every move and non-move you would be making…
…I used to feel so good about living in Costa Rica. I
am currently thinking about Nicaragua; maybe I would do well to
move there? Because I don’t trust the “system” here, and
because I think intelligent guys like my friend Bob Kelly are
probably on to something. Maybe that’s the place to be?
I can overlook plenty of things here, and have! But I
don’t think I will EVER understand why “they” would NOT
want Enrique to get the chance to even things up with his
“friends.” That, to me, is stupid. Everyone loses in that
scenario. It seems so obvious.
Enrique
chose from the beginning to go the “legal route” of
resolution, and as is so often the case, is finding out that you
as so many have before that you “can’t fight city hall.”
This thing has so many angles and so many blind alleys. Just ask
Duke about that; he easily leads the league in following up on
more false leads than anyone.
And I am
sorry, but I am starting to have to laugh about the re-mixed
UCCR group (just as mixed up as ever). They remain confused and
discombobulated! We who were a part of it at the beginning are
gone, and all but John Manners remains now.
Poor
John Manners.
Well, they likely won’t do any good. And neither,
probably, will anyone else. Unless these people who are blocking
Enrique’s path choose to move aside, we are most likely going
to lose any bets we lodge with this hi-stakes gambler Hobbs.
So what to do? Move along. Just move along. By all means
let’s keep Duke in there to snoop down trails and hope that we
get a break somewhere. We’re not going to quit digging, and at
this point, it will be seen to the end, whatever the end might
be.
Here in flim-flam land, where it seems there are so many
schemes and games, it’s hard to really trust anyone. Just look
at how my conmen have made their bold moves during this
carnival.
The Wild
West had NOTHING on this place.
Call me
a dumb ass, but I continue to be shameless in my support of
Enrique, because 1/he’s really our only hope and 2/in my heart
of hearts I know I will always believe in his integrity and
character. So no matter what happens, I remain fast in my
flagrant speculation that Enrique Villalobos is on one side, and
a huge (and growing!) band of suspicious and shady characters on
the other.
I might
get paid someday, but Enrique will determine that; no one else
but Enrique can make it happen.
Thus, he remains my friend.
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