http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/L/LT_VENEZUELA_OBIT_CHAVEZ?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2013-03-05-16-58-10 preliminary AP report. Good Riddance to the man.
not sure if this was reported earlier, but some people out of the US embassy were kicked out for " 'attacking' the ailing president " --- ridiculous... hopefully, his successor will come to his senses.
Humiliated Team of Cuban Doctors Forced to Continue Treating Long-Dead Fidel Castro http://www.theonion.com/articles/humiliated-team-of-cuban-doctors-forced-to-continu,31448/
Chavez started out as a populist, but faced with a ruthless and entrenched oligarchy, I assume, he felt that developing a cult of personality and suppressing a "free" press was required and justified to wrest control for the people. He was probably correct in the assumption though it made him look like a dictator. He also may have assumed that the dictatorship would not survive his passing because the same people that tried to overthrow him will make a postmortem move (book it). Hopefully, he established a viable political movement that can provide a democratic balance of power going forward. So, I don't think he was quite as evil as the corporate press made him out to be. But I don't think he needed to abandon democratic populism to quite the degree he did either, though the oil interests that ran the country and greatly influence this country were never going to support him. He was going to use the oil resources for the people, not for private profit, so what side should he have aligned with?
Yep, you know they've already picked their guy and will spend a zillion dollars to make sure they win.