Echoes in Eternity

Well, Hugo Chavez is at it again. This time he has introduced legislation that would ban all but the 100 Spanish names that are okay with him for use by parents in naming their newborns.

As if Hugo Chávez doesn't have enough ways to repress his countrymen, a new parliamentary edict has been introduced to prohibit Venezuelan parents from naming their newborns anything other than 100 officially sanctioned Spanish names. Fed up with whimsical, hard-to-pronounce, or politically incorrect monikers such as Haynhecht, Yornaichel, Hochiminh, or (¡horrores!) Kennedy, officials want to go back to basics, according to The New York Times. Supporters of the legislation say it will protect children from ridicule. But efforts to purify cultures have not gone well historically. And what's next? Venezuela itself is said to have been named by an Italian, Amerigo Vespucci, who in 1499 christened it "Little Venice." Could "Chavezuela" be far behind?

Any guess as to whether "Hugo" will make the cut?