For a celebratory gesture, giving a key to a city sure can come with plenty of drama.

That's what West Miami Mayor Cesar Carasa is realizing after he recently gave a key to his city to the consul general of Ecuador. It was meant as a friendly token, noting the opening of Ecuador's consular office on the outskirts of town.

The move didn't sit well with many locals, however, given that Ecuador's president is promising to create a socialist revolution all the while threatening to undo trade ties with the United States. Many city leaders and residents would like the friendly gesture to be made to parties that are actually, you know, friendly.

So now the City of West Miami wants its key back.

CHANGING ITS WAYS

Chastising the mayor, the city commission last week passed a resolution asking that the key be returned. And to make sure that future keys don't fall into the wrong hands, it asked the city attorney to draft a resolution requiring that any such honors first go before the commission.

OK, so it wasn't the wisest move on Carasa's part. But asking for the key back? I mean, what if Ecuadorean officials made a copy and can still get into the city unnoticed?

Besides, it's hardly the most egregious abuse of the honorary gesture. After all, the City of Miami recently gave its key to rapper Pitbull for ``traveling the country and the world sharing a positive message of Miami.'' A positive message of Miami, perhaps; but not of himself -- he's been arrested twice on DUI charges.

SADDAM HUSSEIN GOT ONE

And then there's rapper Lil' Kim, who received the key to Miami in 2004. Never mind that she was under indictment at the time for lying to a grand jury about a gunfight involving her entourage. She would later be sentenced to about a year in prison, a $50,000 fine and three years of probation after her release.

We can take some comfort, however, in knowing that when it comes to handing over keys indiscriminately, Detroit has us beat. Motown in 1980 gave its key to Saddam Hussein. But that may be forgiven since he was a U.S. ally at the time. It's not clear, though, if Detroit ever asked for its key back.

It's difficult to tell if we're taking the honorary gesture too seriously or not seriously enough.

The whole exercise surely must have been simpler back in the days of its origin. In medieval times, high walls and thick gates kept out anyone who didn't belong or refused to pay required taxes to enter and leave a city. Legend has it that a key to the city was given to certain VIPs, allowing them to come and go freely.

MIAMI BEACH'S KEY ON EBAY

Stripped of its practical application, a key's meaning today is purely symbolic. Yet, by meaning less, it clearly means so much more.

No word yet on whether Ecuador's consulate office plans to return the key.

Yolanda Aguilar, West Miami's city manager, says the proper paperwork requesting the key's return, which required the mayor's signature, was sent on Tuesday. She said the city has not had any communication with the consulate, so she doesn't know how they will respond.

The office of the consul general, Juan Carlos Toledo, did not respond to calls for a comment for this column.

If they choose to return the key, they may be interested in knowing they can easily replace it with a key to the City of Miami Beach that is for sale on eBay. It'll set them back about 285 bucks, but it comes free of diplomatic encumbrances.