here's something else you're probably not gonna see in the u.s. media... granted, maradona may not be the one to offer the last word in government, politics and world affairs but what he has to say is nonetheless interesting... and there are one hell of a lot of people around the world who idolize him and can tell you where he is and what he is up to at any given moment...
this is taken from
Sify, an english-language daily in chennai, india...
Argentine soccer legend Diego Maradona has said he is "in love" with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, whom he admires for his left-wing political policies.
"I like women, but I've fallen in love with Chavez," Argentina's former World Cup winning captain told reporters after having lunch with the Venezuelan leader at the presidential palace. The two embraced afterward.
The 44-year-old soccer celebrity, considered one of the greatest players of all time, is also an ardent admirer of Fidel Castro, the Communist President of Cuba where Maradona has lived since 2000 while fighting cocaine addiction.
[...]
Maradona, who like Chavez is a fierce critic of the U.S. government, praised the populist Venezuelan president as "a giant" because of the way he was spending oil revenue on health and education programs to help the country's poor.
"I think he's an example to follow, if only many other countries had a Chavez (as leader) ... I think we're seeing someone who's following in the footsteps of Fidel Castro," said Maradona, who has a tattoo on his arm of legendary Argentine guerrilla Ernesto "Che" Guevara.
interestingly enough, i have a key chain i received as a gift from a good friend in buenos aires... on one side it has a picture of maradona along with his name and "el mas grande del milenio" (the greatest of the millenium)... on the other is the logo of his home team in argentina, boca juniors... when you spend very much time in any latin american country, you're gonna be expected to pick a soccer team to root for which as soon as you do, in BsAs anyway, automatically means you will lose from one-quarter to one-half of your friends... in an effort to straddle the fence, i also have a wallet that features the logo of one of the other hot teams, river plate... LOL.. (to say that the argentines are passionate about soccer is a serious understatement...)