CARACAS, Venezuela - President Hugo Chavez is on a moral crusade in Venezuela, preaching against vices from alcohol to cholesterol, vowing to curb whisky imports and ordering beer trucks off the street.

His government announced increased taxes on alcohol and tobacco on Monday, and Chavez also plans steep new taxes on luxury items such as fancy cars and artwork.

It's all part of Chavez's efforts to encourage Venezuelans to adopt the psyche of the "New Man," a socialist revolutionary with a monk-like purity of purpose. Chavez often cites the life of Cuba's iconic hero Ernesto "Che" Guevara as an ideal example — and complains that many Venezuelans' values are not up to par.

(more here:  http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071009/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/venezuela_moral_crusade;_ylt=ArG3EeMMMzLD6K3jCC85x7O3IxIF

---------------------------------------------

A bit of deceptive reporting here.  One of my main criticisms of Venezuelans while I lived there was the incessant drinking and endless fiestas . . . any tiny excuse for an escapist party, with the music always too loud to even think of carrying on a conversation. 

And where Chavez suggests using the National Guard to stop street liquor vendors, it seems heavy handed, but the US involves the ATF in similar ways to control the wheres and whens of alcohol sales. 

But holding up Che Guevara as a moral example, him being a somewhat indiscriminate killer and notorious womanizer, is too much.  Good for a laugh, though. 

By the way, did Sean Penn's article about Venezuela get published?  I'd be curious to see what he wrote.