The greater the crisis, the more motivated the self-appointed saviors. In Brazil, two old men have promised to lead their country out of the dead end it finds itself in. The men: President Jair Bolsonaro, and former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who was recently released from prison.

The whole thing is a Brazilian tragedy that has haunted the country since Lula's successor, Dilma Rousseff, was forced out of office in August 2016. The outlook is bleak: High unemployment, minimal economic growth and a toxic political atmosphere have paralyzed the country.

The question is: How long can the world's eighth-largest economy continue like this? And can Lula — who many Brazilians greatly admire for implementing welfare programs that lifted more than 30 million people out of poverty between 2003 and 2011 — lead the country out of its current crisis?

Rise and fall

The answer: no, unfortunately not — despite Lula's great services to the country, despite his charisma, his political skills,........

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