RAVEN REFUSES TO CELEBRATE TURKEY DAY

Raven is happily reading the final results of the elections last Sunday in Venezuela.

"Chavez' party took 17 of the governorships being voted (a net gain as 5 of the ones won in 2004 ended up siding with the opposition) and 81% of the country's mayoralties. Good going! Of course the opposition media--including the New York Times--claim that the opposition made huge gains--when they actually lost 300,000 votes since last December's referendum on the constitutional changes and the chavistas gained just over a million."

Rave, it's typical spin--the whitewashed term for LYING--just like I see on all the sites that I blog on where the fascists just make stuff up. They have figured out that most readers--at least in English--are ridiculously ignorant and believe anything that they see repeated more than 3 times--especially if it is on t.v.

"Well, I suppose it could be worse. If we were celebrating the demise of turkeys, for example."

You have never eaten turkey, Rave?

Rave scratches his head for a moment.

"I probably ate it once or twice during my scavenging days, yeah. But I wasn't deliberately gunning for turkeys as the basis for a meal."

But tomorrow we are going to have roasted stuffed provençal-style chickens for my birthday. What do you think about that?

"I will at least eat the stuffing. Let me think about the chicken part."

Life is waaaaay too complicated, Rave.

Rave isn't listening. He's clawing through a back issue of Bon Appetit magazine.

CRACKER ALERT!

Today a cracker violated this site by misquoting it on the site of the Miami Herald. It appears, Rave, that escapees of Carl Hiaasen novels have nothing but time on their hands to search for info on bloggers.

Raven turns a blind eye to the yellow cat, Squirt, whose paw has grabbed a piece of Raven's picada.

"Really? I guess breaking and entering to rip off t.v.s is no longer as profitable in south Florida as it once was and down-on-their-luck burglars are now snooping in blog sites."

Do you think we ought to let Carl know that his crackers are on the loose?

"Naw. When they get hungry enough, they'll go home. Meanwhile, let them eat cake."

Rave, you are no proponent of the Rights of Man, apparently?

"Nope, I keep telling you that humans have confused being at the top of the food chain with being the superior species."

LASAGNA LOVER FOLLOWS VENEZUELAN ELECTIONS

Raven has been glued to the computer screen most of the day. He barely paused to ravage a plate of lasagna.

"It appears that there has been a massive turn-out. They are keeping the polls open until everyone waiting in line has voted."

Is that good news, Rave?

"Probably. The problem last year--when the Constitution changes didn't pass--was high abstention. If that doesn't happen the Chavista majority will probably keep the same number of governors, mayors and state legislators that it has had since 2004. And that means a chance to accelerate the revolution."

Even with petroleum prices so low?

"Yep. Mark Weisbrot had an analysis of the prices and budgetary issues for programs on Venezuelanalysis.com yesterday or the day before. It appears that the petroleum prices really don't matter that much."

Always good to hear good news, Rave. I wish I could say the same for what's happening with Obama appointments in the States--Hillary Clinton for president of Israel--er, secretary of State. Not much of a cut above Condolences Rice. And it looks like the same old same old retreads, so the policies will be the same.

"Couldn't be otherwise. After all, one of the definitions of insanity is doing the same stuff over and over and over and expecting different results."

We live in an insane world--or haven't you noticed, Rave?

"You betcha. Any lasagna left?"