The Undisputed Truth

Much to my surprise, I was able to venture to east Trinidad today without much of a hassle. Other major highlights of the Summit of the Americas today :

• Hugo Chavez walked over and gave Obama a Spanish book : Las Venas Abiertas de America Latina (The Open Veins of Latin America) by Eduardo Galeano and shook his hand.
• After a meeting with Chavez and a dozen other Latin American leaders, Chavez said the meeting was  ‘extraordinary’ and that ‘I feel great optimism and the best of good will to advance. We have started off on the right foot”
• Barack Obama spoke for 20 minutes with Patrick Manning
• Most of the Latin American leaders looked like a bunch of teenage girls at a Jonas Brothers’ concert as they surrounded Obama for photo-ops
• Riot squads clashed with local political and public figures Hazel Brown, David Abdullah, Congress of the People member Wendy Lee Yuen and  entertainers 3Canal among others after police denied the group from protesting in Port-of-Spain.
• President of Bolivia Evo Morales came out guns blazing this morning and called his own press conference where he criticized Cuba’s exclusion from the Summit, talked about human rights, criticized Barack Obama and U.S policies.
• Dennis Mc Comie, national Secretariat spokesman made a total ass out of himself by asking at the Bolivian president’s press conference (in the middle of his fire and brimstone speech about real issues and questions from international reporters about those issues) his opinion about………………..the cultural show at the opening ceremony for the Summit.
• Caribbean leaders talked about helping Haiti, the poorest country of the Western hemisphere.
• Chavez apparently told Obama “I want to be your friend”

Wow, some action. I’m actually very happy to see something other than absolute apathy and Obama worship coming from Trinidad’s citizens.

I am however embarassed that the only question Dennis Mc Comie could have asked was basically how did Mr. Morales like the mas costumes and music in the middle of a major, serious press conference. Its like David Gregory asking Obama what is his favorite colour in the middle of a speech about the economy. Just goes to show how Trinis think and what they value. Foreign policy? Excluding a major country of the Caribbean at a Summit held in the Caribbean? F that, how’d you like the Soca music sir?? Idiot.

Patrick Manning is reportedly now in talks with Santa Clause to replace Rudolph in Clause’s herd of reindeer. It is said that he is now extremely bloated and his entire body is glowing a luminous red after his talks with Barack Obama. There probably isn’t a happier man in the world right now. Nothing like feeding your insatiable ego with the biggest ego-feeder ever for those who value it that way : a meeting with Barack Obama.

And well, that’s about all that matters for today. Lets see how it goes.