The beginning or end of petro-czardom? (or are we stuck in the middle?)

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, seen here in 2003, just won a referendum in his country that ends presidential term limits. Ultimately, he could end up in power longer than Fidel Castro of Cuba has been in power to date.

Click on the above photo to read an article from the Christian Science-Monitor about Chavez’s recent success in shaping the advance the Bolivarian Revolution. Also check out this article from Newsweek about the rise and fall of three “Petro-Czars”— Hugo Chavez of Venezuela, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran, and Vladimir Putin of Russia. It references Daniel Yergin, a highly respected energy expert and author of one of my favorite books, “The Prize: The Epic Quest for Oil, Money, and Power” available at Amazon.com. It won the Pulitzer Prize and is widely considered THE definitive book on oil and world power!

Card counting iPhone app has casinos on alert

From the Associated Press…

LAS VEGAS — Nevada gambling regulators have warned casinos about a card-counting program for Apple’s iPhone and iPod Touch that can illegally help players beat the house in blackjack.

Card counting by players is not illegal in Nevada but using a device to count cards is considered a felony.

The Nevada Gaming Control Board warned casinos of the program last week.

Nevada learned of the program from California gambling regulators who said officials at an Indian casino found customers using it…

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