Just in: As Venezuela becomes a dictatorship, a citizen composes her protest
mainVenezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro has seized powers to rule by decree for the next 12 months. The Venezuelan pianist Gabriela Montero today published the first open protest at the destruction of her country’s flimsy democracy. It’s the country’s National Anthem,in C minor.
“As Venezuela becomes a dictatorship” – so Chavez was Mr Democratic, was he?
Chavez was a popular leader, and won elections fair and square:
http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2012/oct/03/why-us-dcemonises-venezuelas-democracy
Among his friends were Mugabe, Lukashenko, Castro and Ahmadinejad.
’nuff said
If “being friendly with dictators” is your criterion for deciding whether someone is a dictator himself, then you must consider a lot of US Presidents, UK Prime Ministers, and other democratically elected leaders to also be dictators.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Jews_in_Venezuela
http://www.policymic.com/articles/29236/hugo-chavez-s-real-legacy-is-one-of-vicious-anti-semitism-against-the-jews-of-venezuela
http://www.tabletmag.com/jewish-news-and-politics/88901/the-dispossessed
… just some of the articles a Google search on Chavez & Jews brings up.
You’re right. He really was a great guy.
(BTW: the last two sentences were meant ironically)
Beaumont: “He really was a great guy” – I never said that. The issue is not whether you like Chavez or not, but whether he could realistically be described as a democrat (or “Mr Democratic” as you put it). As a popular leader who won elections that have generally been described as fair, he fits the criteria of a democrat.
Or do you have some other criterion for a democrat (something like, “a politician who does things I approve of”)?
How about: somebody who does not employ sick antisemitic cliches (http://www.commentarymagazine.com/article/hugo-chavezs-jewish-problem/) and welcomes a guy who openly espoused Holocaust 2.0 (http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/01/09/us-venezuela-iran-idUSTRE8070Q120120109)
That would be a rather good start.
Don’t you agree?
You can’t just redefine basic political terminology (whether it be “democrat” or “socialist” or “fascist” or whatever) to make it fit your own personal preferences.
No Beaumont. In answer to your question, the good start is if he has won elections on a fair basis. He did. Not all elected politicians blow into the same horn, as we say in German. And by that I’m not saying at all, that I found Chavez’ playing very in tune – but so I don’t think Obama’s, Schröder’s (and Milliband’s and so on and so on) is/was.
I remember a time when Thatcher was routinely called a dictator and George W. referred to as a fascist – but Chavez is defended.
Martin compares Chavez to Obama, Schröder and Miliband.
Time for a Xanax.
Oh, please! Leftists always try to minimize the crimes from their partisans in order to save ideological dogmas…
Having lived in Latin America for a long time, I can attest to the fact that Chavez and all the continent’s left parties are united in one massive project of political domination and subversion of democratical order. It’s an organization called “São Paulo Forum” and is chiefed by Lula da Silva and Fidel Castro. Nothing else must be added. They want to destroy democracy at its core and implant a continental regime of opression as already experienced in Cuba and now starting to be known in Venezuela. Brazilian governenment of Worker’s Party is financing, without Brazilians being aware, all this circus, with secret remittance of billions of dollars to Cuba.
On the last elections, it was notorious the fraud of electronic voting machines in Venezuela. Maduro ordered them to be burn fastly to avoid scrutiny and second count. The Supreme Court in Venezuela is completely dominated by chavistas, and many judges, politicians, militars and civils were persecuted and had to leave the country. Others went to jail and are imprisoned to this date. Defending this regime is insulting to those who suffer from the opression. Unfortunately, most of those who defend, praise and follow criminals as Castro and Chavez do not want to face reality and know what they are talking about.
Hitler won elections.
“As an online discussion grows longer, the probability of a comparison involving Nazis or Hitler approaches 1.” Godwin’s law, right again!
In this case, the comment by J was appropriate.
This has not suddenly “become” a dictatorship. This has already been a dictatorship for more than 10 years. There are political prisoners. Arbitrary actions and basic rights’ violations are the order of the day; the special powers’ rule only grants formality to them. Not the first time in Man’s history that such a thing happens. There is always an excuse. Hitler and his puppet Von Hindenburg had the Reichstag fire as an excuse.
Dudamel thinks Venezuela under Chavez was very democratic. He supports this awful dictatorship (as well Cuba’s) shamelessly and so much that he wept for the deceased chimp in a hat. This shows well his connections. He was promoted by this people. If I were a professional musician and soloist, I would refuse to colaborate with such despicable individual.
Please remove this misleading article and its lies. Maduro was granted limited decree powers by the national assembly (3/5s of it), he did not “sieze them”. The decrees he can pass are related to specific urgent and serious issues, he is NOT ruling by decree. Remove this article, it is illegal and defamatory
Illegal, dictator’s apprentice? Where? In Maduro’s Venezuela, for sure. There the truth is illegal. Yes, Venezuela is a dictatorship, no matter what the man who talks with birds may say to defend his superpowers.
For Manichean communists, democracy and dictatorships are subject to interpretations, the “power” of elections doesn’t imply a democracy:
http://bigstory.ap.org/article/democracy-cuban-style-gets-under-way-0
“Voting is free, not obligatory and secret,” he said. “Our system is totally transparent and we defend it like this. We think that it is very democratic.
“To be truly democratic, besides being free (the elections) should be competitive and the people able to choose among alternative programs and in the case here there is only one program, that of the government,” said Elizardo Sanchez, a dissident who runs the non-governmental Cuban Commission for Human Rights and National Reconciliation.
Mr.Jose Bergher seems to be informed about what is going on in Venezuela. I invite Mr. PR Deltoid, Mr. Beaumont and Mr. Martin to buy a ticket to Venezuela, discover whats happening on your own and understand what kind of regime actually describes better the era Chavez-Maduro. It is difficult to describe and its uniqueness makes it even more difficult to compare to any other from the past. As a Venezuelan I would say if you really want to go there and figure it out, be carefull and good luck.