2008 - Well, it was a slow start...

But...

Chavez and Uribe are spoiling for a fight, Castro gets a last dig in at the US for it's alleged involvement in the incident that sparked it off before he quits and leaves his evil brother to finish off his grand plan. The Panama canal isn't too far away from the potential scrap, oil prices are around $100 a barrel and the Israelis are stomping around Gaza killing people, again.

Mugabe is printing the ballot papers (already completed, naturally) for yet another free and fair election at the end of the month, whatever it costs.

China massively ramps up its military spending, surely unrelated to a recent US anti satellite missile test, sorry kindly humanitarian gesture. Meanwhile its economy threatens to implode.

The Ukrainians have 'threatened' to divert gas en route to Western Europe just as a new Russian President is 'elected' in a contested and widely condemned election.

And it's election year in the US and we're all one foot in the door of a recession. I mean, what could possibly go wrong.

Not a perfect election, but is anyone saying it didn't reflect the will of the people?

Yes several, but mostly the Russian people.

Well, the worst part was suppression of the media and the refusal to allow certain candidates to stand ... but from everything I've read, a 70 percent victory by Medvedev is hardly surprising.
The Russians are pretty hyped on Putin, there's no doubt that he would have been handily re-elected if the constitution had allowed him to run again, and the people voted for his preferred replacement, knowing full well that Medvedev will name Putin prime minister.
So I think it does express the will of the people.
But it is not formally a perfect election, not at all. But the result is not invalid, from what I can see.
I'm not sure the Russian people at large are all that hawt to trot on perfect democracy at the moment.
Some degree of democracy and a very strong economy suit them just fine.
(Unless I'm full of shit.)

I feel is my duty as a venezuelan to educate ppl about chavez........ NOBODY IN VENEZUELA LIKES CHAVEZ! we have been trying for about 7 years to get rid of him, but he cheats in the elections and referendums and he changes the constitution every 3 years to stay more time in power....

The truth is that all goverments in latin american countries are corrupt, specially in venezuela... :S we have never had an honest president :S

We did pacific marches for a whole year, 8 month long strikes and nothing... nothing changes because he sends guerrilla groups to kill anybody who opposes him publicly... 20% of venezuelans had to leave the country for good because of that ASSHOLE!!!!!

is not just my voice, this is truly the reality in venezuela.... we HATE chavez and practically BEG for anyone in the world to go inside and take him down.....

For those who have seen the pictures of pro-chavez demostrations, CNN NEVER SAYS THAT CHAVEZ PAYS ABOUT 800$ to anyone that spends the afternoon at his rallies!!!!! so lets se, 70% of the population in veneuzuela lives below poverty line....... if you eat a shoe for lunch, you dont care about your political ideologies you just want to eat...... the truth about a third world country

Oh, I'm not suggesting Medvedev wouldn't have won a free and fair election, merely that it really wasn't necessary to ensure his victory quite so transparently. Some measure of democracy is a good thing, and the Russian people aren't naive enough to expect perfection but shouldn't it at least appear to be free and fair - if the Russian people are willing to sacrifice democracy for stability that is of course their choice, but shouldn't it be an informed choice?

Rubi, I can't say that the election doesn't reflect the will of the majority, but then I didn't say that (did I?). I said that it was a somewhat questionable and thus contested election which I believe it was. I also worry that it's one that many Russians (and ourselves) may come to lament. But then, what choice did they really have?

This predates the election and is probably a little OTT but it's worth a read.

Has Russia got a new Stalin? - Telegraph

You said it was contested and widely condemned. And I suppose that that has a range of meanings ... but by itself, I think many would suppose that, with those words, you might be suggesting that the result itself was in dispute, i.e., that Medvedev might not have been the victor, given a truly above-board election.
But ... no, dong, you didn't say that ... and so I apologize.

What you say pretty much mirrors what I recall 'picking up' when I was there. Caldera was still president then but your expression of anger and frustration seems similar, in spirit if not in detail.

Sadly I wasn't there that long (a very few weeks) nor did I travel around the country that much. I feel I barely scratched the surface.

No need, I can see how it could have been read that way. Perhaps it's time to sleep.

Paris Hilton has been out of the news. Small mercies I know.

The world looks to be going to pieces - and broke (again) and people are arguing the relative merits of Obama's ass, the significance of qualifying opinion, and the function of pronouns?

Bloody hell, I even threw in a reference to the (still 8 month away) US election, as if another one was necessary.

Though, given who's doing much of it, I suppose I shouldn't be too surprised.

...................................2012.

Maybe not that long...

Venezuela mobilizes forces to Colombian border - Yahoo! News UK

as oil hits $104...

China has growing interests around the world. Why shouldn't she increase military spend to protect them like veryone else. Do they even have one tenth of the firepower of the US yet?

Prince Harry will get his majesterial knob out this year.

Is this Olde Donge's Almanac?

2009 will start even slower. They are throwing away May and June.