But the lack of common sense in this absurd proposition isn't likely to stop President Hugo Chávez of Venezuela, whose idea it is, from trying to make it stick. His objective is to block the drive to keep Venezuela's voters from casting an up-or-down vote on his presidency.
Nor is the absence of any provision in Venezuelan law that establishes this time limit likely to deter Mr. Chávez. The president's opponents, who are demanding a referendum on his tumultuous presidency as a peaceful way to resolve an increasingly tense crisis, rightly insist that imposing a time limit would curtail their political rights.
This isn't the first time that Mr. Chávez and his supporters have attempted to stop the recall. Government opponents often have been targets of threats and harassment. The president usually sets the tone. In one recent declaration, he said opponents have a ``great capacity for cheating.''
Earlier, the National Elections Council rejected for technical reasons a recall petition with more than three million voter signatures. Opponents say that the new signature drive will begin on Oct. 5. We hope that the council will show its impartiality by giving the referendum backers what would be in any democracy a reasonable and fair amount of time.
Venezuelans are bitterly divided over the Chávez presidency. Since the president claims to be a populist, he should favor giving voters a free and clear choice by way of a referendum. But in today's Venezuela, such logic seems to be in short supply, at least in official circles. [End]
The Latin American bloc is growing closer and closer together, while expanding allies outwards. The Bloc collectively is allied to Saddam Hussein (or was), Iran, Libya, China, Russia, India and South Africa. And perhaps even worse, the Bloc is tightening into a single community, almost like the Latin American version of the European Union.
With Venezuela and Brazil leading the efforts to oppose and counter the US-proposed Free Trade of the Americas agreement, the Latin American countries are calling for "full Latin American integration" to counter US economic dominance. Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay, Venezuela and Chile all are participating in these talks. Brazil and Argentina are leading the effort to form a joint parliament, common currency and common policy towards international venues and organizations, to be reached by 2006, although a final agreement has not been reached. They hope for the Mercosur customs union to merge with the Andean Community, which would effectively swallow the current pro-American countries of Ecuador, Bolivia, Peru and Colombia into the bloc. Venezuela, a member of the Andean Community, is expected to lead the efforts on the Andean side.***