Banana Republic 101 Part V: Act IV. It is indeed a Banana Republic, but this is no fable.

As the year begins, Victor is happy to know his Government will last for six more years. After months of denial that former Fujimori collaborator Montesinos was in the country, he is detained and sent to Peru. Fidel comes back to visit and they even do a joint radio program. Victor feels so powerful that he has a close collaborator run for President of the unions, while he goes on a trip. His collaborator is trounced by a three to one margin, by a real union leader. Thus, while Victor visits, Mexico, Canada, Russia, Iran, Portugal, Switzerland, France, Italy (where he is ignored), the Vatican, Algeria, Saudi Arabia, Belgium and Austria, his demise begins, but he simply does not know it. In November he approves 49 laws, under the supervision of his Vice-President, they are controversial. As the President refuses to recognize the winner in the union elections, he gets together with the private sector and stop the country for one day in protest for the 49 bills and specially the land bill. The New Year begins with more problems. On January 23d. a gigantic demonstration takes place. In February an active military official speaks out against the Government. He is not the last. Meanwhile, the economy is not doing well and the currency is allowed to float. Simultaneously Victor removes his friend as President of the oil company. He replaces him with a leftist who is critical of the company. The workers rebel against the new Board. They march against them. They threaten to strike. They march. Victor fires them. The country goes on strike. And they march asking for his resignation. They march to the palace. He sets  a trap. While he addresses the nation, the peaceful demonstrators are massacred. Sixteen people die. A General asks for Victor’s resignation. The Chiefs of Staff announces Victor has resigned. A new President is named. He dissolves all Constitutional powers. He is forced to resign. The city is tense. Victor comes back contrite. It does not last. Marches begin again, the fable continues….with no end in sight. Is this banana-like or what?

 

The above fable is not a fable, it is reality, it is the story of my country Venezuela since Hugo Chavez, Victor in my fable, attempted a coup and later won the Presidency. Even when I review the events of the last few years, it seems simply crazy, Kafka-like. But it is the truth. Today the confrontation continues and we are not sure whether my country will implode or explode. What is clear is that the last three years have slowly eroded the Venezuelan economy as Chavez and his people attempt to revive and impose, primitive, backwards, 19^th. century ideas on the country. Populism wins again. For how long? Can we be saved? Or is Venezuela, despite its immense wealth destined to become a backwards country. Is this the Africanization of Venezuela? I don’t know. What I know is that it is difficult to explain all this to a non-Venezuelan. This is what I will attempt to do in this blog, when I am not digressing to more mundane (orchids), technical (google), worries (spam) or whatever. If anyone read the whole fable, welcome to The Devil’s Excrement, the fable continues……..Stay tuned….

Ferrari, Tyromaniac and Mars

Thanks to one of my favorite blogs (had to be written by a physicist) David Harris’ Science News, I learn that Ferrari red paint may fly into space aboard the Mars Express. I am sure my brother the Tyromaniac, a Formula I and Ferrari fanatic, would have beaten me to post it in his blog, but he is not only on vacation, but his server appears to be down. So he will see it here first!!

Ferrari, Tyromaniac and Mars

Thanks to one of my favorite blogs (had to be written by a physicist) David Harris’ Science News, I learn that Ferrari red paint may fly into space aboard the Mars Express. I am sure my brother the Tyromaniac, a Formula I and Ferrari fanatic, would have beaten me to post it in his blog, but he is not only on vacation, but his server appears to be down. So he will see it here first!!

Ferrari, Tyromaniac and Mars

Thanks to one of my favorite blogs (had to be written by a physicist) David Harris’ Science News, I learn that Ferrari red paint may fly into space aboard the Mars Express. I am sure my brother the Tyromaniac, a Formula I and Ferrari fanatic, would have beaten me to post it in his blog, but he is not only on vacation, but his server appears to be down. So he will see it here first!!

Ferrari, Tyromaniac and Mars

Thanks to one of my favorite blogs (had to be written by a physicist) David Harris’ Science News, I learn that Ferrari red paint may fly into space aboard the Mars Express. I am sure my brother the Tyromaniac, a Formula I and Ferrari fanatic, would have beaten me to post it in his blog, but he is not only on vacation, but his server appears to be down. So he will see it here first!!

Can you believe this, Gadaffi to Head human rights watchdog?

Are world leaders stupid or what? You want to work with him, appoint him to head a watchdog group on anything, but not on human rights. Here is a guy who has supported terrorism and opressed his country for decades. What the hell is he going to watch? As we say in Spanish, its like appointing the fox to watch over the hens……

Can you believe this, Gadaffi to Head human rights watchdog?

Are world leaders stupid or what? You want to work with him, appoint him to head a watchdog group on anything, but not on human rights. Here is a guy who has supported terrorism and opressed his country for decades. What the hell is he going to watch? As we say in Spanish, its like appointing the fox to watch over the hens……

Can you believe this, Gadaffi to Head human rights watchdog?

Are world leaders stupid or what? You want to work with him, appoint him to head a watchdog group on anything, but not on human rights. Here is a guy who has supported terrorism and opressed his country for decades. What the hell is he going to watch? As we say in Spanish, its like appointing the fox to watch over the hens……

Can you believe this, Gadaffi to Head human rights watchdog?

Are world leaders stupid or what? You want to work with him, appoint him to head a watchdog group on anything, but not on human rights. Here is a guy who has supported terrorism and opressed his country for decades. What the hell is he going to watch? As we say in Spanish, its like appointing the fox to watch over the hens……

Digression 6.1: Google Experiment

My google experiment is not as succesful as I expected, but mostly because I dont quite understand how Google really works. I would have thought that once a page was catalogued, it would clearly not be removed from the cache. Well, as noted below, after 24 hours my blog was no longer referenced and then it magically reappeared again, only to dissapear again. So here is a list of the number of references for Phragmipedium kovachii and how they have evolved in time, as well as whether my blog (D.E.) is present or not. By now I am so intrigued by the results that I will continue the experiment and report periodically. Interestingly enough the Yahoo search engine has also dropped to only 8 references from 13:

08/16                  33 references D.E. present

08/17                  33 references D.E. not present

08/17 PM             28 references D.E. present

08/18                  28 references D.E. not present

08/19                  22 references D.E. not present

Would love any suggestions on possible explanations.