Bad economic management leads, predictably, to bad economic results. Which leads political leaders who have been in power too long to blame their predecessors a few commonly used choices:

1. Admit there's a problem and change course.
2. Blame external enemies.
3. Lie.
4. Beg/borrow/print money to give government handouts.
5. Steal stuff that belongs to rich people and/or foreigners.

Well, actually #1 isn't all that common. Hugo Chavez, in the course of gradually grinding down Venezuela's economy, has sampled liberally from the rest of that menu. Now, however, he's taking a more audacious step to avoid fixing the economy: "demanding" that Venezuelans make do with less, and in the process discouraging consumer demand:

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez told his supporters to give away possessions they do not need such as an extra refrigerator because he only wants true socialists to be members of a new single party he is forming.

"Whoever has a fridge they do not need, put it out in the village square. Whoever has a truck, a fan or a cooker they do not need, give something away. Let's not be selfish. I demand you do it," Chavez said at a milk producing cooperative, in remarks released on Monday.

Chavez, who calls capitalism an evil, said he would donate $250,000 of his own money and added, "Let's see who follows the example."

At least he didn't wear a cardigan.