Chavez expected Obama to be taken over by the Washington establishment once he became president? Well, so did I. I hoped it might be different than that, but my hopes were very slender ones indeed. I've seen all this before. Electing a Democrat does not end a Republican war. Electing a Republican does not end a Democratic war. The only thing that ends a war the USA is in is when that war is either decisively won (which this one simply can't be...as it has no definable boundaries and no controlling enemy government to force to surrender) or when it finally becomes completely untenable and unsustainable in the face of negative public opinion IN America itself. What the rest of the world thinks has little effect on American policy, because Americans have a fortress mentality and they don't really give a damn what the rest of the world thinks. They're sure they are "right" and represent "good" (vs evil) after all, so why would they give a damn what anyone else thinks? Matter of fact, the more the rest of the world disapproves, the more bellicose Americans (on average) seem to get.

Then there's the economic stuff... ;-) Every past American administration I can recall has played ball with the big banks and the Fed Reserve, increased the public debt and the national debt and enlarged government spending (while simultaneously, in recent decades, cutting public services and repairs to domestic infrastructure). What a deadly combination of irresponsibility! Did I expect Obama to do differently? Ha! I laugh at the notion. I might have had some tiny hopes he would do differently, but did I expect it? No sir.

Kucinich would do differently. But Kucinich would never be elected president...not if the moon turned green and took up orbit around Pluto...not if Tiger Woods got a sex change...No frikkin' possibility! Genuine progressives CANNOT be elected president in the USA. And if one was, someone would shoot him. End of story.