I have several thoughts on my mind about several different subjects, but I do not really want to overwhelm my readers or myself with too many posts. So here is a quick roundup of entertainment, news, and sports.
MUSIC
I know I write about baseball a lot (see below for more), but I wanted to use a little space to highlight another great part about life in Venezuela- the music. Here they listen to all sorts of styles, from salsa to merengue to reggaetón to rock. I thought I might be able to help out those of you who trying to impress your friends by playing some music that’s hot in Caracas right now (which I guess is what I am trying to do too). So without further ado, here are eight songs that should get people moving, wherever you are:
MUSIC
I know I write about baseball a lot (see below for more), but I wanted to use a little space to highlight another great part about life in Venezuela- the music. Here they listen to all sorts of styles, from salsa to merengue to reggaetón to rock. I thought I might be able to help out those of you who trying to impress your friends by playing some music that’s hot in Caracas right now (which I guess is what I am trying to do too). So without further ado, here are eight songs that should get people moving, wherever you are:
“Ai se eu te pego” by Michel Teló (in Portuguese by a Brazilian, but still popular here)
“Tú eres perfecta” by Oscarcito
“Me enamoré” by Angel y Khriz
“Danza kuduro” by Don Omar featuring Lucenzo (not new, but still heard everywhere)
“Mala Conducta” by Alexis y Fido featuring Franco El Gorila
“Hoy Lo Siento” by Zion y Lennox featuring Tony Dize
Play it now and thank me later.
NEWS
President Chávez finally wrapped up his Annual Message to the Nation address at 11:44 pm on Friday evening, meaning he spoke for close to ten hours. Truly a performance you had to see to believe. One of its most striking aspects for me was the amount of time Chávez spent comparing the situation today to that which existed in 1998, before he came to power. Of course that is to his advantage. First, he loves comparing budgets from today to then. However he neglects to mention the inflation rate since then or the fact that oil prices have been at an all-time high in recent years. So he’ll say that the budget for a ministry rose from two billion bolívares to twenty-three billion bolívares in those fourteen years, but in fact that is not particularly impressive when you account for the previously mentioned factors. Inflation in 2011 ran at close to 28% officially, while the true figure is quite a bit higher. The $100/barrel oil of today stuffs government coffers in a way that $12 oil ($16 when adjusted for international inflation) did not in 1998. Second, comparing today to the 90’s also lets Chávez repeat ad nauseam his criticisms of the old regime. But fourteen years is more than enough time for him to be expected to show some progress. You don’t hear President Obama or the Republican candidates for president criticizing the Clinton administration. Things sure as heck better have improved since then, but what has changed since 2007, for example? Not a lot that the president has to be proud of.
Amidst countless repetitions of declarations of independence from imperialism, praise for socialism, bragging about oil wealth, and lots more besides, there was one particularly enjoyable moment for the neutral audience. Deputies in the National Assembly are allowed to stand and ask questions of the president during his address. One who chose to do so was opposition presidential candidate María Corina Machado. In the midst of criticizing Chávez for expropriating so much private property without cause and giving it to his political allies, she called him a “ladrón” – a thief. Even in the polarized political climate of Venezuela this was a shocking statement from a presidential candidate. Think of the uproar that Justice Alito’s mouthing of the words “not true” caused during the 2010 State of the Union Address and multiply accordingly. Although I happen to agree with the statement, I will admit that it was probably inappropriate. The best part, for me anyway, came next. President Chávez responded with a brilliant expression with which I was not previously familiar: “águila no caza mosca” – an eagles does not hunt a fly, meaning the comment was not even worthy of a comeback. It was beautifully appropriate and condescending at the same time, and I am putting the phrase in my back pocket for the next time I receive a particularly good heckle from a UNC fan.
Back to the speech. In addition to demonstrating his sizeable ego (who wants to listen to anybody speak for ten hours?), Chávez may have had a more concrete plan in mind for speaking that long, which exceeded even his usual loquaciousness. I wrote in a post last week about the ascension of Diosdado Cabello to the posts of Vice President of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) and President of the National Assembly. To explain a bit further, although Cabello and Chávez go back quite a ways, they are not seen as the closest of allies. Cabello is seen as the figure with true power over and respect from the military, even though he has been out of uniform ever since he was governor of Miranda state from 2004-08. People surmise that Chávez may not have particularly wanted to elevate him to such prominence, but needed to secure the backing of the military in advance of elections which could end up disputed later this year. Viewed through such a prism the promotion of General Henry Rangel Silva as Defense Minister can be seen as a balancing act against Cabello. However, once Cabello attains this degree of visibility and power he naturally starts to be seen as a potential threat/successor to the president. Thus Chávez chose to show off his own vitality and good health by speaking for longer than any mortal dare would to prove that there is no danger of him succumbing to illness any time soon. It’s just too bad that he had to subject the nation to ten hours of tedium to do so.
BASEBALL
With two-thirds of the round robin phase finished, the race at the top of the standings has tightened and three teams still have a great chance to qualify for the championship series. The Anzoátegui Carribbeans are currently hanging on to first place with a record of 8-3. However they have dropped their last two games and currently trail in the fourth inning to the second placed team, my own Aragua Tigers, who sit a half game back at 7-3. In third place a further half game back is the team I saw play for the third time today, the La Guaira Sharks. They did not disappoint, coming from behind to beat the winless Zulia Eagles 16-5. The highlight came in the fifth inning. Trailing 5-4, Sharks slugger Luís Jiménez hit a monster three-run home run that literally left the stadium, for the first time in Venezuelan league history. The area of the stadium where the ball left is measured at 173 meters from home plate. On the next pitch Alex Cabrera hit his second homer of the game, knocking out Zulia starter Dwayne Pollock. Earlier in the day La Guaira leadoff hitter Gregor Blanco was named the league’s MVP and today he showed why, getting three hits including two home runs, stealing two bases, and scoring four runs.
On an equally important note, the game brutally exposed some of my linguistic deficiencies. I am not ashamed to say that I have been fairly well pleased with how my Spanish has held up and improved since I have been here, but today I went to the game with somebody who had never been to a baseball game before. It is difficult enough to try and explain the rules of baseball in English, but let’s just say that the sacrifice fly rule had its way with me today. Oh well, I have always been told that baseball is a humbling game.
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