Tomorrow We Eat SanGwiches

Anyone who just watched American Idol saw a commercial with old people thanking an oil company called CITGO for giving them affordable heating oil that got them get through the winter.  CITGO is the national oil company of Venezuela controlled by Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez.

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is President only due to the fact that there are a heaps of Venezuelans who live in squalor and were tired of being basically neglected by past governments.  They rallied behind his cause which was to give these people a voice, but instead of giving these people a voice he gave them something even better...a crutch.  This crutch allows the poor of Venezuela to live basically rent free in government subsidized buildings and he also gave them jobs,  the best kind of jobs, no-shows jobs like those construction union jobs in the Sopranos. 

Problem is, the working middle class of Venezuela mostly mom and pop businesses have to give these people jobs and pay them working man wages or else the government has a right to seize their business and shut it down.  Some of these people actually show up to work and are grateful for the opportunity given to them, but most of them know the deal and understand that they can't be fired unless they do something really blatant like steal or kill somebody, both of which has happened at my uncle's place of business, a restaurant in the business district in Caracas. So they show up and sit at the counter drink coffee and watch other people work for them.

You may say that this is an isolated incident, but I have alot of family and friends in Venezuela and all of them tell me stories like this.  Hugo Chavez is a Dictator, not your old-fashioned IL Duce type dictator who rules through military might but he is your modern day dictator, the type the rules by controlling the economy.

Hugo Chavez decreed today that by May 1, 2007 Venezuela will have control over its oil reserves, saying that it should belong to the people. Every big oil company who has a presence in Venezuela and believe me you name an oil company they are there have to either enter into a "partnership" with him or leave.  Venezuela may have more oil reserves than Saudi Arabia and is the fifth largest producer of oil in the world. Oil companies realizing that something is better than nothing will have to agree and  play ball with Hugo Chavez.

What does Chavez do with all this new money, does he gives it back to the people? Yeah he will give some but it is a mere pittance into what he will take for himself and boost the military might of his country further consolidating his power.  Hugo Chavez has almost $1 billion in planes and weapons purchases coming to him in the next 12 months. Guess how he is paying for it.

Giving affordable oil to people who need it, is all well and good but it isn't Hugo Chavez's job, it should be ours. Hugo Chavez should keep his oil and propaganda out of our most beloved national program, "American Idol".  I would like to watch this program in peace and not be forced to think about the honest working of people of Venezuela, there is another 23 hours of the day to think about that travesty.

Posted by nelson57 at 09:53 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

Early last week Dean Foods Co. a $10 billion a year food company based in Dallas TX and owners of such brands as Land O' Lakes and Horizon Organic has said no to using the milk that comes from cloned animals.  They said that this is a response to their consumer poll on the topic.  Well excuse me, but I would like to know from what part of the country did they poll.  I certainly was not polled and I am a consumer of said products.

Personal morals have always played a part in the food we eat, there were always are two schools of thought on this: you're either in the school of, "I don't care where my food comes from as long as it looks and tastes good" or you're in the, "I need to know that this animal was masturbated before he was slaughtered so that I know it died happy in a bed a roses" school.

Well now we got some new school thinking, Do I care that this animal was cloned from another animal or not? I personally don't care if the animal was cloned...as long as it was masturbated so that I know it died happy.  JK, I am all for cloning of animals for food. We are growing both as a population and in girth,  if you have ever been to a Cracker Barrel for breakfast in Indianapolis on a sunday you know exactly what I mean. 

Food costs are at an all time high and farmers have become more efficient in getting the most out of their animals, but there has to be a breaking point where the animal says no more, and we get tired of eating chicken that tastes like...I know you thought I was gonna say chicken, but no it tastes like NOTHING!  Chicken doesn't even taste like chicken anymore and why is that, because Frank Purdue has to raise these chickens faster and feed them crap so that they can grow up big and strong faster than before.

Cloning I believe would put an end to that,  we could clone a great breed of chicken allow it to be raised normal and proper cause there would be alot of them, kill it, eat it and we would all happy.

Morals smorals, I need me some tasty chicken. 

UPDATE:  Whole Paycheck (I mean Foods) has also said no to selling meat and products from cloned animals. Morals win again.

The FDA is accepting public opinion on this topic until April 2, 2007.  Click here and you will be directed to the FDA's press release on the topic and at the bottom of the page there is another link to click to voice your opinion.

Update #2 Business week has started a debate on this as well. Click here to go to their article.

Posted by nelson57 at 11:36 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

Friends, Americans, American Idol Watchers, lend me your ears; I have not come to bury Antonella Barba, but to praise her...and all of the other jersey girls out there partying hard like only jersey girls can.

For the unitiated, Antonella Barba is an American Idol hopeful who just survived the first round of cuts on the show last week.  She is one of the few cute girls with a halfway decent singing voice.  She also has a few pictures of her posted on the internet. Now these pictures are no different that what any other jersey girl has saved in the bowels of her digital camera, BTW digital cameras are a must have accessory for any jersey girl, along with eyeliner and a spray-on tan applicator, because you never know when you will be able to catch one of your girlfriends in a compromising position; so you have to have the camera ready at all times.  These pictures are then saved for posterity so that they can be shown at their her first batchlorette party right before she marries some guido named Tommy or Tony or insert Italian male name here. Of course these pictures will be shown again when she divorces Tommy, Tony et al and marries some white banker type named Steve or Bob or insert non-descript white boy name here.

What I am trying to say that Ms. Barba is no different from any other Jersey girl I have ever met. You can go in DJ's in Belmar on a Friday or Saturday during the summer throw a rock and hit a half dozen girls just like her.  She just happens to be on the most popular TV show on the planet right now, so things get a little blown out of proportion. 

I used to think that Tara Reid was a crazy girl who partied too much and then I found out that she was born and raised in Wyckoff New Jersey, thank you nuff said.

Now there are some new pictures that shows a girl that kinda sorta looks like her, orally servicing some guy.  There is even one where she is getting the arm of encouragement. So what if it is her, I hope she doesn't get thrown off the show for of it.  Because for the same reasons mentioned above which jersey girl doesn't have pictures of her orally servicing some guy floating around on the internet.

I thank God every day for letting Al Gore invent the internet.

Love You Antonella! Don't let those bastards get you down.

Update: Antonella Barba was sadly eliminated from American Idol last night, just in time too, DJ's summer season starts in seven weeks!!

Posted by nelson57 at 11:24 AM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)