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Eye on Venezuela.  I'm not a left-leaner, but I do have to admire Hugo Chavez for two things: one, his efforts to improve life for the poorest of Venezuela's citizens and, two, his staunch refusal to bend under pressure from the US oil industry (and, well, from the Bush administration, too). So the recall referendum in that country is going to be an interesting sight. Since he first came to power in 1998, Chavez has been a divisive public figure in Venezuela. People either love him or hate him. Whether he remains as president is going to be decided today.

Greg Palast offers an interesting perspective on the whole Bush vs. Chavez situation in an article posted in Thursday's AlterNet. It's worth reading—and it's eye opening.