ecuador's president lucio guiterrez has been stripped of his authority by the national congress and fled from the presidential palace via helicopter (reminiscent of argentina's de la rua in late december 2001)..this follows the ecuadorean armed forces' withdrawal of backing for the president and comes after days of unrest on the streets of Quito as segments of the population protested and demanded his resignation (picture- i daresay- conveys the elevated tenor of the political discussion)...ecuador, in this way, will eventually count with another president who if local "custom" means anything will surely meet the same ignominous end... we presciently reported on gutierrez' recent controversial decision- largely seen to have precipitated the denouement- to pack the supreme court (of course with majority approval by the same congress that now conveniently strips him of authority and washes its hands) and remarked on ecuador, like much of the region, being a banana republic..