Friday

Twenty-six days after the Mexican elections things just get a little stranger by the day. The ostensible loser, PRD candidate Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO for short) has spent the last few weeks whipping supporters into a frenzy in México City's national Zócalo, his base since he was a favored mayor there. These marches have only barely walked the line between demonstration and riot. During this time, his messages to the people have consistently berated election committee officials for alleged fraud, even though these same officials had blessed the transference of many other government seats to the PRD, now the majority party. He has also called for a complete recount of the 41.8 million ballots cast on July 2nd, certain that this will reveal that ostensible winner Felipe Calderón's 244,000 vote lead is incorrect. AMLO is bolstering his fraud allegations with quote, evidence, unquote that ballots were stuffed and votes were bought, provided, of course, to television news vectors. Yesterday I read an article that indicated that the contenders were about to enter into a dialogue, but I also learned that AMLO had declared himself the quote, real, unquote president of México, and that he was petitioning to file criminal charges against the country's top election officials. AMLO says he will not support any outcome that does not include a recount, although the seven-member judiciary of the Federal Election Tribunal (TRIFE) will end up deciding the election--probably without recount--by September 6th. And about me? I did not feel so hot today. I was going to make dinner, but I just stood there and looked at all of the ingredients and could not get myself to do it. So I went back to bed and we got Subway, and read, and watched Scrubs until after midnight. [Cavin]