The Larry Palmer Saga

It's the story that doesn't seem to want to end. Back in August, President Obama nominated Larry Palmer to be the US ambassador to Caracas.

During Palmer's Senate confirmation hearings, he got put in between a rock and a hard place. To secure his nomination he needed to talk a little tough on Hugo Chavez (nothing wins political points like bashing Chavez, after all). So in response to questions from Sen. Richard Lugar (R-IN), Palmer noted that there was dissatisfaction among the Venezuelan military and that Colombian guerrilla movements operated out of Venezuela.

It didn't come as too much of a surprise then that Chavez refused to accept Palmer, saying, "How can you think I'd accept this gentleman coming here?...You'd best withdraw him, Obama. Don't insist, I'm asking you."

Obama (well, State) did insist. And so did Chavez. In return, the US revoked the visa of Venezuela Ambassador Bernardo Alvarez.

And then Palmer's nomination expired and it seemed like the US was ready to move on. But then State decided to stick to its guns (after pressure to not let Chavez dictate anything), and said they still wanted Palmer to head to Caracas.

Chavez has his favorites for the job: Oliver Stone, Sean Penn, Noam Chomsky or Bill Clinton. (Bill Clinton?)

Never one to miss an opportunity for a joke, Chavez mentioned his recent meeting with Hillary Clinton at the inauguration of Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff: "I said to Mrs. Clinton 'How is your husband?' But I was wrong because I speak very bad English and I said ‘How is your wife?’"

And still no ambassadors in Washington or Caracas.

Image Source: New York Magazine

Online Sources: AFP, Google News, Wall St. Journal, El Universal, Washington Post, Americas Quarterly

Sean Penn on Chavez Critics

Gotta give it up to Breitbart for writing a snappy headline.

ACTOR SEAN PENN WANTS REPORTERS JAILED FOR CALLING CHAVEZ ‘DICTATOR’ just screams click me.

Also of note, Bill Maher's pronunciation of Chavez is atrocious. Video below:



The full quote that led to the headline:

"Every day, this elected leader is called a dictator here, and we just accept it, and accept it. And this is mainstream media, who should -- truly, there should be a bar by which one goes to prison for these kinds of lies."

Online Sources: Breitbart.tv
Video Source: Daily Motion via Real Time with Bill Maher

Brazilian actor says “não” to Sean Penn

Actor Sean Penn has come under fire for his visits and chats with Hugo Chavez and Fidel Castro. This recently earned him the wrath of Maria Conchita Alonso who came out of the woodworks to claim that Penn “has no clue at all” about Venezuela.

In December, an article in The Advocate claimed that Penn is a hypocrite for his Oscar-winning portrayal of pioneering gay politician Harvey Milk. The piece by James Kirchick criticized Penn for coming “to the defense of thugs” like Chavez and Castro who have been accused of stifling the rights of the LGBT community in their respective countries.

In the latest Salvo, Penn has been critiqued by the man who usually does his voiceover in Brazil. Unlike Alonso and Kirchick, however, Marco Ribeiro’s reasoning is more religious than political:

Marco Ribeiro, who dubbed Penn in "21 Grams" and "All the King's Men," isn't just a local film voice. As a pastor, he's also the voice of the conservative protestant God's Assembly Church in Rio.

And that posed a conflict.

"I did not feel comfortable with the job," the 38-year-old Ribeiro told local press. "My voice is involved with other causes, and for the same reason I have refused to work on certain types of advertising."

The person in charge claimed that Ribeiro accepted the job yet he rejected it when he “learned more” about the movie “Milk.” (Perhaps Ribeiro mistakenly thought the film was on lactose intolerance?)

What do you think? Is Penn being rightly criticized or is it much ado about nothing?

Image- Guardian UK
Online Sources- Variety, The Independent, The Advocate, The Latin Americanist, Reuters

Today’s Video: Sean Penn on Chavez, Castro

Actor-director Sean Penn recently interviewed Hugo Chavez and Raul Castro for an article to be released in next month’s The Nation. Reuters and the AP have jumped over Castro’s claim that he would be glad to meet President-elect Barack Obama on "neutral ground" such as naval base at Guantanamo Bay. Yet the article (available online) reveals much more including Chavez’ admiration for the Alliance for Progress and Castro’s muddled response on Cuba human rights situation.

In the following video from The Nation’s website, Penn gives his views on Chavez including a strong critique of the mainstream media:

Sources- The Nation, YouTube, Reuters, AP

Daily Headlines: January 17, 2008

*Actor Sean Penn criticized the “increasingly lamebrain” San Francisco Chronicle for publishing an article critical of celebrities close to Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez.

* Stocks throughout Latin America have taken a tumble amidst the global anxiety over the U.S. economy.

* Chile’s legislature approved a proposal to provide pensions for all the country’s workers.

* French firm Alstrom was chosen to build Latin America’s first high-speed rail line in Argentina.

Sources- AFP, Reuters, Associated Press, Bloomberg

Image- Sydney Morning Herald