Weird mini-analysis of the Bolivian coup by a New York Times reporter

Anatoly Kurmanaev is a "New York Times reporter in Caracas. Previously with Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, Interfax in Russia & LatAm," accordig to his Twitter bio.

This doesn't make any sense.

Does he mean that the smart play is to have a bad economy because that will make the army loyal? But promoting economic prosperity makes you a LOSER who deserves to be overthrown in a military coup?

This lends credibility to Ryam Grim's caution:

What's happening in Bolivia is layered and complicated but a good rule of thumb is don't confuse yourself by reading the New York Times on South American politics. There are exceptions to that rule but it's generally a safe bet.

— Ryan Grim (@ryangrim) November 11, 2019