Is no news good news?

Zimbabwe´s new government has been in office now for slightly over a week. We hear relatively little of what is going on in the country. Is that good news?

I don´t think so. I still believe that the MDC and Morgan Tsvangirai have been tricked and pressured into a lose-lose situation. Mugabe and his cronies, have kept all the key ministries, where real power resides.

Morgan and his followers, winners outright in the last elections, one might add, have the " social" ministries. That is, Mugabe has destroyed the country, and now Morgan is called upon to rebuild it, under the watchful eye of Mugabe himself!

The only real recourse Morgan has is to turn to the West and ask for help. Will we come to his rescue? Humanitarian aid is needed and will be, no doubt provided, but I think that none of us will accept that a man-made disaster goes without accountability, even retribution in some cases.

I have done it again! Write about Zimbabwe. It is on my mind far too much. Poor people....

And Hugo Chavez got his way!

Hugo Chavez finally managed to impose his will on the people of Venezuela. He tried once in December 2007 and was beaten. It actually took a firm stand by the Military to get him to acknowledge he had lost the referendum. 

So what he did was start to prepare the next one. This time round he got his way. He will be able to stand for re-election for as long as he wishes. And he will win. I was in Venezuela when he won the first election in 1998. Ever since he has followed the same route as most demo-dictators. He has called for a ballot every odd year he has been in power. For one reason or another. He is permanently in campaign.

He makes believe he is a democrat. My foot! He uses and abuses all the powers and monies of Venezuela in his personal favour. He has “invested” in the people of Venezuela more than the total debt of Latin America and Africa added together. Has the situation of his people changed? Not really. It is true than some people now have access to health treatment and education, if the system he has implemented can be called education and health care.

But the majority of Venezuelans are nevertheless happy. He provides beer ( Polarcita), entertainment in the form of baseball, and doesn’t expect them to work for a living. What more could the people hope for? It is usually an accepted fact that countries have the leaders they deserve. 

I will go one step further. I think countries, if given the choice, usually elect leaders who are exactly like themselves! Hugo Chavez is not a democrat, he is not a serious leader, he is not even funny or amusing: exactly like the majority of Venezuelans!

Expectations

So, yes, Obama has made the first of what I guess will be many efforts to tackle the situation, and he has failed to live up to my expectations. I thought so! and I said so! His Treasury Secretary, Timothy Geithner came out and said... nothing. And the markets lost nearly 5%.

This poses further questions. Do we know the quantity of toxic assets? Have we been told the truth up to now?

I must say I am extremely disappointed. I have written before that we need Obama and strong leaders as much as the US does, over here in Europe. And this is his first go at the problems that still await us ahead this year and the next.

The press coverage has been tremendous. Most believe that the plan was not well thought out. It is probably better if this is true. The other side of course, is the possibility that nobody wants the influx of money the Administration is wanting to pump in the system.

This has happened in some European countries also. In Spain, banks have been very reluctant to accept the money injected via auctions by the Government.

Governments are complaining that banks are failing to meet demand for credit. Banks, on the other hand, have started saying out loud that they would be irresponsible if they lend to those demanding credit now, and that solvent businesses and individuals are not among those demanding credit in these times.