Hugo Chavez's successor, Nicolas Maduro, is getting desperate.

Today, he is supposed to announce new measures to reform the Venezuelan economy — an economy that, for the last 12 months, has had an average inflation rate of almost 50% and faced shortages of staples like toilet paper.

What's worse, is that the 2014 budget the Venezuelan legislature proposed last month basically ignores all those facts, and bases its allocations on an inflation outlook of 26-28%.

Meanwhile, there are signs everywhere that Maduro is grasping at any possible shred of political legitimacy he can get his hands on. Last month, he asked the legislature to grant him special powers to combat corruption and economic sabotage.

It can't be stressed enough — he is no Chavez. So his administration has to compensate.

And here are some bizarre ways he's doing it.

So yeah, things are getting weird.