God I hope he just dies soon.... oh was that unChristian of me???? Lol
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God I hope he just dies soon.... oh was that unChristian of me???? Lol
Naw, it's just you. He knows he's going soon.... thus he's trying to get right with the Man....
He's not looking so good. Apparently the poison in his brain has infected his body.
Apparently the brain where the poison lives has affected others too.
Chavez's socialist rule at risk as Venezuelans vote
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By Daniel Wallis and Todd Benson
CARACAS | Sun Oct 7, 2012 12:49pm EDT
(Reuters) - Hugo Chavez loyalists blew bugles in a wake up call for voters on Sunday as the Venezuelan leader faced the biggest electoral challenge yet to his socialist rule from a young rival tapping into discontent over crime and cronyism.
Henrique Capriles, a centrist state governor, edged toward the still-popular Chavez in final polls thanks to a vigorous campaign that united the opposition and made him its best chance of ending the president's 14-year tenure.
Chavez has used record oil revenue to support ideological allies around the world while preaching a fiercely anti-American line, so the election is being watched eagerly from the United States to Belarus and Iran.
Queues formed at some polling centers long before they opened, and despite a few delays voting was going smoothly.
"The battle has started!" the flamboyant former soldier wrote in an early morning rallying cry on Twitter. "Today we will write another chapter in history."
Chavez loyalists in poor neighborhoods, where he draws his most fervent following, blew bugles and trumpets in the predawn wake-up call. In the center of Caracas, some red-clad fans shouted "Long live Chavez!" from the back of trucks.
Chavez, 58, staged a remarkable comeback from cancer this year. But he could not match the energy of past campaigns - or the pace set by his 40-year-old basketball-loving opponent.
"Today we decide the future of our Venezuela," Capriles said on Twitter. "Today we are millions of Davids! God will be our guide," he added, referring to his depiction of the vote as the biblical underdog's battle against Goliath.
Capriles had prepared for the election by hiking a mountain trail on the edge of Caracas on Saturday, donning sports gear and mirrored sunglasses and posing for pictures with supporters.
Opposition supporters had banged pots and pans in an overnight protest against the president in parts of the capital.
"Today I'm doing my bit to build a new Venezuela," said Francesca Pipoli, 26, walking to vote with two girlfriends in the city's wealthy Sebucan district. "Capriles for president!" all three sang in the street. "Henrique, marry me!" said one.
NO FORMAL MONITORS
Most well-known pollsters put Chavez in front. But two have Capriles just ahead, and his numbers have crept up in others.
There is a risk of violence if the result is contested. There are no formal international observers, but a delegation from the UNASUR group of South American nations, led by an Argentine politician, is in Venezuela to "accompany" the vote.
Local groups will be monitoring and both sides say they trust the electronic, fingerprint vote system. The opposition says it will have witnesses at all of the 13,810 polling centers, from tiny Amazon villages to tough Caracas slums.
In a politically polarized country where firearms are common and the murder rate is one of the highest in the world, tensions have risen alongside weeks of tough campaign rhetoric, and both camps are vowing to "defend" their votes.
Chavez accuses the opposition of plotting violence and planning to "reject the people's triumph" when he wins, but says that effort will be defeated. Some opposition activists fear he could refuse to step down if the result goes against him.
Victory for Capriles would remove the most vocal critic of the United States in Latin America, and could lead to new deals for oil companies in an OPEC nation that pumps about 3 million barrels a day and boasts the world's biggest crude reserves.
OBSTACLES TO ANY TRANSITION
Capriles wants to copy Brazil's model of respect for private enterprise with strong social welfare programs if he is elected - but he would face big challenges from day one. For a start, he would not take office until January 2013, meaning Chavez loyalists could throw obstacles in the way of the transition.
He would also have to develop a plan to tackle entrenched high inflation, price distortions and an over-valued currency, while surely butting heads with the National Assembly, judiciary and state oil company PDVSA - all dominated by "Chavistas."
Another big task would be to figure out the real level of state finances. Last month, a Reuters investigation found that half of public investment went into a secretive off-budget fund that is controlled by Chavez and has no oversight by Congress.
The president has denounced his foes as traitors and told voters they plan to cancel his signature social "missions," which range from subsidized food stores to programs that build houses and pay cash stipends to poor women with children.
Tens of thousands of new homes have been handed over this year, often to tearful Chavez supporters at televised events.
If Chavez wins, he can consolidate his control over Venezuela's economy and continue his support for leftist governments across Latin America, as well as allies farther afield such as Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Syria's Bashar al-Assad, and Alexander Lukashenko of Belarus.
Any recurrence of Chavez's cancer would be a big blow to his plans, however, and could give the opposition another chance.
The election will also be watched closely in more than a dozen countries, including communist-led Cuba, that benefit from discounted Venezuelan oil sales under Chavez.
Investors who have made Venezuela's bonds some of the most widely traded emerging market debt are on tenterhooks.
"There is a perception that a tight electoral outcome may trigger social and political unrest and market volatility," Goldman Sachs said in a research note.
Voting runs from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. (1030-2230 GMT), although polls will stay open later if there are still queues. Results are due any time starting late on Sunday evening.
The electoral authority says it will only announce the results once there is an "irreversible trend" and parties are barred from declaring victory in advance of that announcement. (To follow us on Twitter: @ReutersVzla) (For multimedia coverage, go to reut.rs/QzUtvN)
(Additional reporting by Deisy Buitrago, Mario Naranjo, Liamar Ramos and Girish Gupta; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne and Doina Chiacu)
Maybe they will wake up down there and kick that fucker to the curb finally.
Venezuela election: Chavez and Capriles contest poll
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Incumbent President Chavez is challenged by Henrique Capriles, who represents a coalition of opposition parties.
Continue reading the main story Venezuela election
Voters in Venezuela are going to the polls in what is predicted to be the country's most tightly contested presidential election in a decade.
Left-wing incumbent Hugo Chavez, first elected in 1998, is being challenged by opposition leader Henrique Capriles.
Mr Chavez wants to continue what he calls his socialist revolution while Mr Capriles has promised to restore economic growth.
Almost 19 million Venezuelans are eligible to vote in the election.
Mr Chavez - who is seeking a fourth term in office - was diagnosed with cancer last year but says he has now fully recovered.
A colourful and often controversial figure on the international stage, President Chavez, 58, has nationalised key sectors of the economy.
Continue reading the main story Venezuela's presidential poll
- Polls open 06:00 (10:30 GMT)
- Polls close 18:00 (22:30 GMT)
- Automated touch-screen voting system
- Nearly 19 million registered voters; 100,000 overseas
- First result expected around 01:00 (05:30 GMT) on 8 October
- President elected for six-year term
National Electoral Council (CNE)
Venezuela is a major oil producer and high oil prices over the past decade have allowed his government to fund health-care, education programmes and social housing.
He says he needs another term to complete his "Bolivarian Revolution" towards socialism.
However, Mr Capriles, 40, and the opposition say the president's policies have led to bureaucracy, inefficiency and shortages.
They also accuse Mr Chavez of authoritarianism, and of suppressing the judiciary and silencing critics in the media.
Mr Capriles says a lack of investment in Venezuela's crucial oil industry has led to a decline in production.
Continue reading the main story “Start Quote
I knew there was going to be a long queue”Gerardo Montemarano Voter
BBC Mundo correspondents in the capital Caracas say Chavez loyalists have been using trumpets to sound a "wake-up" call for voters.
Mr Capriles' supporters were also banging pots in the street in what they called their "goodbye song" for Mr Chavez, our correspondents say.
Defence Minister Henry Rangel Silva said the armed forces had identified some groups planning to cause public disturbances but said violence was "unlikely", the state news agency AVN reported.
He also warned those who he said may be thinking of stirring up trouble that troops were on stand-by to quell any disturbances.
Queues formed early outside schools used as polling stations.
Gerardo Montemarano, who was already waiting to vote when the polls opened, brought a chair with him. "I knew there was going to be a long queue," he told the BBC.
About 100,000 Venezuelans, including about 2,000 in the UK and the Republic of Ireland, are registered to vote at diplomatic outposts around the world.
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Voter Rebecca Anaya cast her ballot at the Venezuelan consulate in London
Hundreds of opposition supporters gathered outside the consulate in central London as expatriates cast their ballots.
"I don't support this government," said voter Rebecca Anaya. "I am here because I cannot live in that country. It's almost impossible. The security situation is the worst thing in the world."
BBC reporter Glen Campbell, who spent two hours outside the consulate on Sunday morning, says not a single voter identified themselves as a Chavez supporter.
However, he cautions that this is not very surprising, because by definition many of those who have left Venezuela are critics of the current regime.
Both candidates have been using social media to urge voters to cast their ballots.
Almost 140,000 soldiers have been deployed to guard more than 10,000 voting centres.
A week before the election, three opposition activists were killed during a campaign rally, while four people were injured in a shooting during a voting rehearsal in September.
From Saturday evening to Monday evening, the sale of alcohol is banned and only the security forces will be allowed to carry arms.
National Electoral Council (NEC) official Socorro Hernandez called on all parties and non-governmental groups to contribute to a peaceful election "and avoid any distortions".
While polls are scheduled to close at 18:00 local time (22:30 GMT), NEC President Tibisay Lucena said that the hours could be extended if voters were still queuing to cast their ballots.
lol
The thing is.... the Left in this country doesnt want us using IDs for voting until and AFTER they get a majority rule in place permanently then you can bet your everlovin' ass you will be required to have an ID to even get a loaf of bread.
Venezuela's Chavez revels in convincing election win
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Venezuelan President Chavez wins re-election
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By Brian Ellsworth and Helen Murphy
CARACAS | Mon Oct 8, 2012 12:07pm EDT
(Reuters) - Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez pledged to deepen his socialist revolution after a comfortable election victory that could extend his divisive leadership of the OPEC nation to two decades.
The new six-year term clears the way for Chavez to consolidate state control over Venezuela's economy, possibly with more nationalizations, and continue his support for left-wing allies in Latin America and around the world.
The victory also cements his status as a dominant figure in modern Latin American history and an icon of the political left. But the slimmer margin of victory - 10 percentage points, down from 25 points in 2006 - reflected growing frustration among Venezuelans at day-to-day problems such as crime and blackouts, which Chavez will be under pressure to tackle.
Tens of thousands of ecstatic supporters celebrated in the streets around the presidential palace in downtown Caracas overnight, pumping fists in the air after the former soldier was re-elected with 1.5 million more votes than younger rival Henrique Capriles.
"This has been the perfect battle, a democratic battle," the 58-year-old Chavez thundered from the palace balcony around midnight, holding up a replica of the sword of independence hero Simon Bolivar.
"Venezuela will continue along the path of democratic and Bolivarian socialism of the 21st century."
It was an extraordinary victory for a leader who just a few months ago feared for his life as he struggled to recover from cancer. Turnout was a record 80 percent of registered voters, boosting Chavez's democratic credentials despite critics' depiction of him as an autocrat who tramples on private enterprise and silences political foes.
Supporters dripping with sweat strained to catch a glimpse of Chavez from the street below the palace while dancing and drinking rum. "Chavez, the people are with you!" they chanted.
"He will keep protecting the poor, the defenseless and the elderly," said teacher Gladys Montijo, 54, weeping with joy.
In a nod to the opposition's strong showing, Chavez struck a conciliatory note and promised to be more focused in his new term beginning on January 10.
"Today we start a new cycle of government, in which we must respond with greater efficacy and efficiency to the needs of our people," he said. "I promise you I'll be a better president."
Despite Chavez's anti-capitalist rhetoric, Venezuelan bonds are among the most-traded emerging market debt on Wall Street because they offer high yields. But Chavez's victory pushed prices lower on Monday as investors unwound bets that Capriles would pull off an upset.
ALL EYES ON CHAVEZ
A retired lieutenant colonel who first won fame with a failed 1992 coup, Chavez has become Latin America's main anti-U.S. agitator, criticizing Washington while getting close to its adversaries, including Syria and Iran.
A decade-long oil boom has given him tens of billions of dollars for social spending that ranges from free health clinics to new apartment complexes, helping him build a strong following among the poor that no other politician in Venezuela can match.
It has also allowed him to dispense aid to ideological allies from Bolivia to Cuba, where Chavez's victory was met with relief. Cuban leader Raul Castro was among the first foreign leaders to congratulate Chavez, calling the vote a resounding endorsement of the Venezuelan leader's "Bolivarian Revolution."
Chavez sends discounted oil to more than a dozen Central and South American countries. Communist-led Cuba, for example, receives more than 100,000 barrels a day of Venezuelan crude.
Venezuela is often repaid for the oil in services - Cuba sends doctors to Venezuelan slums, others sometimes pay in food and livestock - which puts strain on the finances of state oil company PDVSA.
With the election out of the way, all eyes are on what Chavez will do next. After his landslide win in 2006, he ordered takeovers in the telecommunications, electricity and oil sectors. Some worry he could now extend nationalizations to other corners of the economy, including the banking, food and health industries.
Any recurrence of the pelvic cancer that has already forced him to undergo three operations in Havana since June 2011 could derail his plans.
The constitution states that if an incumbent steps down in the first four years of a six-year term, a new vote would be called - meaning that under such a scenario Capriles or another opposition candidate would have another crack at power.
Chavez, who has looked rejuvenated in recent weeks after a sluggish start to the election campaign, was expected to hold a news conference later on Monday.
Opposition leaders were crushed by the loss. It followed nearly a month of euphoria among Capriles supporters as the 40-year-old polished his stump speeches, held increasingly fervent rallies and appeared to be gaining ground in the polls.
The youthful state governor put on a brave face in his concession speech, hailing his "house-by-house" campaign as the start of a long road to changing the direction of the country.
On Monday, Capriles bared his soul in a flurry of emotional Twitter messages, and urged his followers not to give up.
"I know a lot of people are sad, but we need to bounce back and keep believing that we can and will build a better country," he said.
STATE ELECTIONS LOOM
Capriles and other leaders of the Democratic Unity coalition must now prepare for state governor elections in December, when they will hope at least to increase the opposition's influence. They were hugely disappointed at winning a majority vote in only three of Venezuela's 24 states on Sunday.
The U.S. State Department congratulated the Venezuelan people for the high turnout and generally peaceful voting.
"We believe that the views of the more than 6 million people who voted for the opposition should be taken into account going forward," said State Department spokesman William Ostick.
Though Capriles was indisputably the strongest candidate to face Chavez since the leftist leader was first elected in 1998, few in the opposition thought the fight was fair.
Chavez made ample use of state television and spent 47 hours in "chain" broadcasts that forced other local television stations to carry speeches peppered with political commentary.
He also handed out houses and pensions financed with state funds, often in ceremonies that glorified his administration, while warning that the opposition would cancel such programs.
The spending spree has weakened Venezuela's finances and may force a currency devaluation in early 2013, which would likely spur inflation that has been a top complaint among voters.
Relations with Washington are also likely to remain on edge, though Venezuelan oil has continued to flow to the United States over the years despite diplomatic tensions.
(Additional reporting by Caracas bureau, Daniel Bases in New York and Andrew Quinn in Washington; Writing by Daniel Wallis and Todd Benson; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne, Kieran Murray and Claudia Parsons)
Not too good....
South America is being taken over by them again.... Socialists.
October 9, 2012, 8:54 amComment BUENOS AIRES — After Hugo Chávez’s easy re-election as Venezuela’s president on Sunday, President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner of Argentina took to Twitter for the first time in almost a week. She sent five messages in quick succession, congratulating Chávez and Venezuela. “Your victory is also ours,” she wrote:
Chávez Wins, Kirchner Wins
By DANIEL POLITI
Tu victoria también es la nuestra. La de América del Sur y el Caribe.Fuerza Hugo! Fuerza Venezuela! Fuerza Mercosur y Unasur!Chávez quickly echoed the sentiment. “Cristina, this victory is also for Argentina,” he told a roaring crowd of supporters from the balcony of the presidential palace after his win was confirmed. “Latin America won today.”
— Cristina Fernandez (@CFKArgentina) October 8, 2012
It was more than just an exchange of pleasantries. Since his rise to power in 1999, Chávez has been at the forefront of a leftist and anti-American populist wave that has swept much of the region. The alliance that Kirchner, and before her, her late husband and predecessor Néstor, formed with Chávez helped their governments during hard times, when Argentina was still recovering from its economic collapse of a decade ago.
That relationship has brought Argentina economic benefits: oil, credit and maybe even campaign cash for Kirchner. It has brought political benefits: Kirchner has been able to portray her government as part of an epic battle that unites Latin America against Western corporate interests. Judging by the excitement that Chávez’s victory on Sunday generated among her base, that narrative remains powerful.
Comparisons between Argentina and Venezuela are frequent. Both leaders often force their speeches on all radio and TV networks, they’re fond of criticizing the media, they have instituted stringent foreign-exchange controls, and they run high-inflation economies that rely on commodities exports to finance massive public spending. So Argentines followed the campaign in Venezuela with keen interest, watching for signs of what may be in store for them here. Now Chávez’s victory looks to some like strong evidence that the benefits of this model of governance continue to outweigh the costs.
Yet there may be something in this for Argentine opposition politicians, too. Their hopes that a victory by Henrique Capriles Radonski, Chávez’s opponent, would mark the beginning of the end for self-styled revolutionary leaders in Latin America were disappointed, of course. And not before causing them some embarrassment: after a group of lawmakers traveled to Venezuela last week to act as election monitors for Capriles, a couple of them prematurely declared that he would win. (See here and here.)
Still, the Argentine opposition, which is deeply fragmented, can learn plenty from Capriles’s campaign, especially about how to challenge a strong president. Capriles was able to form a credible challenge by becoming the uniting voice of the Venezuelan opposition. And realizing that playing off hatred of Chávez would only get him so far, he offered a plan for improving the lives of Venezuelans, especially regarding rising prices and insecurity — some of Argentines’ main concerns, too, according to opinion surveys.
Related in Global Opinion
Op-Ed: Why Chávez Was Re-elected
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Though vilified in the media, Chávez has done much for Venezuelans.
Of course, unity isn’t enough, as Capriles’s loss shows. And the immediate upshot of Chávez´s re-election is a boost to Kirchner and her backers just at a time when her popularity had been waning.
What’s more, Chávez’s win undermines the Argentine opposition even on the one issue around which it had managed to rally: opposing government allies who want to reform the Constitution so that Kirchner can run for a third term in 2015. The day after his victory, one of Kirchner’s most vocal supporters, the politician Luis Ángel D’El*a, wondered why a president couldn’t be re-elected more than twice if that were the will of the people.
When asked about amending the Constitution recently, Kirchner said it was neither “my desire nor my responsibility.” Whether she was coy then, she’s likely more confident now: Chávez’s victory is a case her supporters can turn to when they argue for extending her own tenure.
So What Do We Know About Hugo Chavez’s Appointed Successor? Here’s an Overview…
- Posted on December 9, 2012 at 9:30pm by Erica Ritz
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In this photo released by Miraflores Press Office, Venezuela’s President Hugo Chavez , left, speaks beside his Vice-President Nicolas during a televised speech form his office at Miraflores Presidential palace in Caracas, Venezuela, Saturday, Dec. 8, 2012. (Photo: AP)
(TheBlaze/AP) — The man President Hugo Chavez wants to succeed him is an intensely loyal 50-year-old former bus driver who has long served as the international face of Venezuela whenever the socialist president wasn’t soaking up the limelight himself.
NICOLAS MADURO had been foreign minister since 2006. Chavez then tapped him as his vice president three days after winning re-election on Oct. 7
If the cancer-stricken Chavez survives until his Jan. 10 inauguration but dies during the first four years of his term, the constitution says that Maduro would take over temporarily and that new elections should be held within 30 days.
Chavez told Venezuelans on Saturday night if he isn’t able to stay on he wants them to elect Maduro as his successor.
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Venezuela’s long time Foreign Minster Nicolas Maduro attends a ceremony declaring President Hugo Chavez official winner of Sunday’s presidential elections at the Electoral Council in Caracas, Venezuela, Wednesday, Oct. 10, 2012. (Photo: AP)
TOP DIPLOMAT: Maduro has been a key player in consolidating the ALBA bloc of leftist Latin American nations including Cuba, Nicaragua, Bolivia, and others, and in building closer ties with Iran, Russia and China in an effort to counteract U.S. influence. He is thought to have close ties to Cuba’s former and current leaders Fidel and Raul Castro.
Chavez has always shown great affection for Maduro, kidding him publicly about the submarine sandwiches the burly foreign minister consumes. The two have been friends since the 1980s, when Chavez formed a clandestine movement that eventually launched a failed 1992 coup.
EARLY YEARS, UNION ORGANIZING: For a diplomat, Maduro is a man of surprisingly few words. Yet he is also one of the few members of Chavez’s government who makes public statements on policy.
He got into politics as a teenager, joining the Socialist League, which sent him to Cuba for training in union organizing. He then became a union organizer in the Caracas Metro system.
During Chavez’s visits to Cuba for cancer treatment, the mustachioed Maduro was among the few aides at his side.
When Chavez announced Saturday night that he would be returning to Cuba for cancer surgery, Maduro was sitting beside him. The vice president looked solemn and turned to Chavez with slight wrinkles on his brow when the president mentioned his name.
In other words, a potential Chavez departure likely won’t change the direction of Venezuela.
he's another commie, he wants to see the world without a USA, he's a former bus driver, he smiles a little too much, and I think he has something to do with Chavez' illness.
Rumors floating around Hugo has kicked the bucket...
Yeah, those were going on yesterday too. Early in the day. But then the news reported he was "having difficulties". If it turns out he's dead and they didn't report it I think that I will believe NOTHING any more from the media without taking it with a grain of salt.
Luke! Alert! Get those bets in on this guy! LOL
Venezuelan leaders gather at bedside of Hugo Chávez
Recently re-elected president has undergone his fourth cancer-related surgery and his health is said to be 'delicate'
- Virginia Lopez in Caracas
- The Guardian,
http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/...presid-008.jpg Hugo Chávez at the presidential palace in Caracas after his third round of chemotherapy. Photograph: AFP/AFP/Getty Images
Senior Venezuelan leaders have gathered in Cuba where Hugo Chávez is recovering from his fourth cancer-related surgery, amid growing speculation that the recently re-elected president will be unable to attend the 10 January inauguration of his fourth term in power.
Diosdado Cabello, the president of the National Assembly, and Chávez's brother Adan, a regional governor, joined the vice-president, Nicolas Maduro, in Havana where Chávez underwent surgery three weeks ago.
Maduro described Chávez's health as "delicate" after reporting on New Year's Eve that the oil-rich nation's leader had suffered a new complication from a respiratory infection.
On Wednesday night, Jorge Arreaza, the minister of science and technology and Chávez's son-in-law, wrote on Twitter that the president was stable despite his serious condition. "Commander Chávez continues to fight hard, and sends all his love for our fatherland," he wrote.
But there have been no official announcements on the president's health, and in the absence of any facts Venezuelans are facing growing uncertainty over the health of their leader, and the future of their country.
The constitution stipulates that if Chávez were unable to take power, presidential elections must be called within 30 days.
But Cabello, the current head of the legislative body, has said the constitution leaves room to interpret that the oath into power could be taken at a later time and in an undetermined place. Cabello has repeatedly said that President Chávez is Venezuela's only legitimate leader and that the date of the inauguration can be extended until Chávez is fit to govern.
On Thursday, the minister for information, Ernesto Villegas, asked Globovision to issue a correction after the TV news channel referred to Maduro as the president in charge.
"I would like to remind you that the only president in power of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela is Hugo Chávez, who won the 7 October election with 8,191,132 votes", Villegas said in a letter to Globovision.
In a televised nationwide address before undergoing surgery, Chávez instructed that, according to the constitution, Maduro should take over power if he were unable to govern. He also asked Venezuelans to vote for Maduro when elections were held.
Awww, poor Hugo. All that money he looted won't gain him one extra day.