Quinn: Isn't it Triple Entente? Germany, Austria and Italy as the Triple Alliance? OK,OK, I have lost my sense of humor and, in consequence, have become a spoilsport at the festivities.
But I did like the idea that Palin might play the "pivotal role of Austria/Hungary."

Whatever their plans, they seem pretty adamant not to roll over and let Zelaya import a Chavez/Castro model of despotism into Honduras. They may be embracing another sort of despotism - but Chavez' attempt to shape Honduras appears to be dead.

Really, the end game seems pretty simple: they only have to hold out for 3 months until scheduled elections are held. Then, what basis will the world have to refuse recognition of a fully elected government? And somewhere around mid-August they can start to assert that the USA and Venezuela are trying to tamper with the election campaign.

This wasn't really a military coup. In a real military coup a big part of the struggle is wresting power from the military junta who just took over the country. They generally have to be coerced into agreeing to ever hold elections. This "coup" already has a ending mechanism in place with November elections. Contrast this to Myanmar where they *might* finally hold elections in 2010.

My guess is the rhetoric was geared to stir up nationalist sentiment. It's similar to Chavez calling Obama a "poor ignoramus" on May 22 of this year (and far more brutal comments about Bush in times past) to stir up support for himself in Venezuela. For Honduras, it's a low consequence game because the whole government is temporary and scheduled to be replaced in less than a year anyhow.

Politics in Latin America is more intelligible by looking at the racial conflict as well as the cultural and economic conflicts. The fact that there has been a lot of racial mixture over the centuries does not prevent racial conflicts between whites and native americans, with blacks and various asians playing a role in some countries.