Monthly Archives: April 2010

Before you take me for some gun-toting nut, let’s get one thing straight: "Peace", in Colombian political parlance, doesn’t mean what it says in the dictionary. In the context of Colombia’s 45-year old civil war, "Peace" is code for political … Continue reading →

After a few days with the new layout and the software updates, we figured we could use the comments board to this post to get some feedback on how the site is working. So far, we know there are problems … Continue reading →

This article by Argentine newspaper Clarín puts a name to the recent bribery scandal in Argentina: Roberto Wellisch, CEO of Palmat International, the supposed Miami intermediary in the middle of the bribery embroglio. Gustavo Coronel’s blog has some background on … Continue reading →

 … is reading what people are saying to him. Case in point: @VVperiodistas says "Twitter es libre expresión: Hoy a las 8pm twitteros protestan enviando #tasponchao a @Chavezcandanga"

Apparently, there is more meat to the mystery of Simón Bolívar’s death than meets the eye. Dr. Paul Auwaerter, a researcher at Johns Hopkins University, claims that poisoning by arsenic cannot be ruled out. Apparently, the Liberator’s symptoms, which included … Continue reading →

 …Hugo Chávez has started tweeting. Guess the guy just didn’t feel a press agency, three newspapers, six TV channels, a global network of embassies, lobbyists and friendly activists and a Sunday talk show were quite enough enough to get his … Continue reading →

Venezuela’s state news agency ABN recently announced that Venezuela plans to install 10,000 MW of wind power capacity in the next 15 years.  Seriously, they said that. To get a sense of how preposterous this is, some context is appropriate. … Continue reading →

I want to listen to what Enrique Mendoza has to say. I want to take him seriously. I really do, but I can’t. The sight of an overweight, middle-aged, gray-haired man with his cap on backwards … is just wrong. … Continue reading →

Don’t look now, but the water level at Guri has stopped going up which, as even a chavista understands, means it’s going down. The combination of less rain, fragile transmission lines, unreliable thermoelectric generation, and unstable people at the helm is the … Continue reading →

Rarely does an op-ed piece move me as Yon Goicoechea’s piece in El Universal did today. First, a bit of back-story: Goicoechea was the leader of the student movement in 2007. I wasn’t much of a fan, but a lot of … Continue reading →

El Nacional interviews Venezuela’s top genetic scientist about Prosecutor General Luisa Ortega’s decision to investigate the death of Simón Bolívar. His bottom line: she has no idea what she’s talking about. With our country having some of the highest murder … Continue reading →

Tal Cual has an interesting article on some of the shenanigans between the Venezuelan government, the Argentine government and Argentine companies. It claims contracts to service some of Venezuela’s largest hydroelectric plants were awarded to Argentine companies that did not … Continue reading →

Don’t miss Setty’s chronicle of a field trip to the Arepera Socialista. Depressing, but reassuring at the same time.

El Tiempo is reporting the results of a new poll, showing Antanas Mockus leading Juan Manuel Santos in a second-round runoff… by double digits. Two questions pop up: 1. What did Mockus mean when he said he admired certain aspects … Continue reading →

Following Venezuela’s opposition requires a non-trivial dose of patience. The comings and goings of the opposition unity table (MUD) have produced a somewhat final list of candidates for the Parliamentary elections. While only a few were selected in a primary that … Continue reading →