Tomorrow's election in Argentina

a triumph of vacuousness... sigh...

In the waning minutes of “Showmatch,” the most popular entertainment show on Argentine television, the host managed on Thursday night to finally connect with Néstor Kirchner, the former president and now a candidate for Congress.

The suspense had been building for more than 90 minutes — “Will Néstor come?” was the title of the show — and the host, Marcelo Tinelli, periodically went to the street to check for signs of Mr. Kirchner’s motorcade. With the show nearing its end, Mr. Tinelli telephoned Mr. Kirchner at the presidential residence that he shares with his wife, President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner.

“What’s up with you calling at this hour, Marcelo?” Mr. Kirchner asked jokingly.

Mr. Kirchner’s appearance had been rumored for days as a potential last-ditch effort to charm voters and perhaps save the Kirchners’ political future in congressional elections scheduled for Sunday. With a dearth of political television in Argentina and Mr. Kirchner’s refusal to debate his rivals, the political sketches of “Showmatch” have filled a void.

In what analysts say are further signs of desperation, the Kirchners have encouraged dozens of city council members and even Daniel Scioli, the governor of Buenos Aires Province, to run on their ticket as “testimonial candidates,” who do not expect to actually assume their positions if they win, a practice that has not been challenged in Argentina.

“This is one of the most vacuous legislative campaigns I have ever seen in this country,” said Graciela Romer, a veteran political analyst in Buenos Aires. “This is a campaign that has been almost entirely waged through Tinelli’s show.”

what a shame... argentina is such a wonderful country in so many ways and yet this is the kind of charade that passes for democracy... where's the real leadership...? that said, i could say virtually the same thing about my own country...

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Detainee abuse at Bagram

like we didn't know what was happening at "guantánamo east"...

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There's a lot of boo-hooing going on out there...

they're dropping like flies... too bad, so sad...

Governor Sanford made a stunning admission at his news conference this afternoon that he has been having an extramarital affair with a "dear dear friend" in Argentina. The affair, he said, began "very innocently" but blossomed into "something much more than that."

"I've been unfaithful to my wife," Sanford said. "As a consequence, I hurt her, you all, my wife, my boys, my friends like Tom Davis. I hurt a lot of different folks. All I can say is that I apologize."

Sanford said he will resign as chairman of the Republican Governors' Association.

what a bunch of losers... they can dictate morality and piously tell everyone else how to live their lives... but, guess what, they're only human just like the rest of us, only they want us to feel sorry for them when that turns out to be the case... sorry for them...? AFTER being preached at... she-e-e-e-e-it... in your dreams...

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Juan Cole: more demonstrators were arrested in New York protesting Bush than in Tehran

kinda puts things in perspective, doesn't it...?

juan cole...

The number of demonstrators arrested in Tehran on Saturday is estimated at 550 or so, which is less than those arrested by the NYPD for protesting Bush policies in 2004.

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Proof positive the Iran election was stolen

if you're going to steal an election, best do it in such a way as to make it at least somewhat believable...

juan cole cites the chatham house study (pdf) and sums it up this way...

The numbers do not add up. You can't have more voters than there are people. You can't have a complete liberal and pragmatic-conservative swing behind hard liners who make their lives miserable.

The election was stolen. It is there in black and white. Those of us who know Iran, could see it plain as the nose on our faces, even if we could not quantify our reasons as elegantly as Chatham House.

would that when our presidential election was stolen in 2000 and 2004, we would have had the stones to kick up a fuss the way the iranians are doing...

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