Hugo Chavez expels US Ambassador...

For those who have some hope that Hugo Chavez is more than an antagonistic authoritarian cloaked in leftist revolution, this isn't the best news.

But he said the presence of two Russian warplanes on Venezuelan soil for a training exercise "is a warning" to the rest of the world that Venezuela's allies include Russia and other countries.

Chavez added that, should any country in Latin America be overthrown, he would interpret that to be "the green light to undertake military operations of any sort in those countries, and restore power back to the people."

Expelling diplomats is only good for raising tensions in Latin America, as is the invitation of Russian warplanes into the arena. It would be nice to see a leader who is actually leading a socialist movement with coherence, but alas given Hugo's close relationship to authoritarian Russia and his near complete reliance on oil cash to stay afloat, I'm not sure he is the answer.