clowns

echidne's post reminded me of a post i almost wrote a long time ago. basically, i realized that i was thinking of two world leaders as essentially the same. both are leaders of countries currently on the outs with the u.s. both resist american hegemony, but neither are a serious threat to the united states. both have been touted as a serious threat to the u.s. by the bush administration. both were popularly elected, but both have been called threats to democracy. both are populists. both champion the poor in their respective countries, but both also are looking for the support of the dispossessed in the wider region or world. both like to say outrageous things to get attention from the foreign press. both are a bit of a clown.

i'm talking, of course, about hugo chavez and mahmoud ahmadinejad. are they the same guy or what?