Is populism creeping back into Latin America?

UNTIL recently, it seemed that Latin America had eluded the "great white shark" of populism, just as North America and Europe swam towards it with eyes wide shut. Yes, Nicolas Maduro's chavista regime continues to imprison citizens and wreck Venezuela's economy. Evo Morales in Bolivia and Daniel Ortega in Nicaragua keep changing the rules of the game so that they can be re-elected indefinitely. But the electoral defeat of the kirchnerista variety of Peronism seemed to mark a turning point in Argentina. So did the impeachment of Dilma Rousseff in Brazil, and the replacement of her failed economic policies.

The tone of politics in the region seemed to be changing for the better, too. The shrill accusations that turn all political adversaries into enemies seemed to be giving way to conciliation and negotiation, reflected, for example, in the important though short-lived agreements that permitted economic reforms at the start of Enrique Pena Nieto's presidency in Mexico.

Well, just when you thought it was safe to go back into the water...