White smoke signals the election of a new pope, after two days of black smoke belched from the chimneys of Vatican City. Bells were ringing from the Vatican Tuesday confirming that cardinals had reached a decision for a successor to Pope John Paul II.
“We thought it was white. Then it went black. I had a feeling of exhilaration followed by disappointment,” said Harold Reeves, a 35-year-old theology student from Washington, D.C. Reeves was also thrown off by a large plume of red smoke in the form of lucifer which belched forth in an unholy manner early Tuesday morning. Vatican spokesmen claimed the smoke was the result of a cardinal accidentally dropping his skull cap in the voting ballot oven.
“This is history, Dr. Jones” said Hernan Aracena, 19, wrapped in a Venezuelan flag. “As time goes by, this will be one of those moments where you say, ‘I was there.”’
Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger has been tapped by many pope pundits as the next Holiness. The "Rat-man" as fellow cardinals call him, was once a German anti-aircraft battery operator taking pot shots at U.S. aircrews. Now he is on deck and ready to take his swings following John Paul's grand slam. He knows chin music is coming too.
