Paul A. Ibbetson
Mid-term elections in Venezuela: Did revolution make it on the ballot?
By Paul A. Ibbetson
As reported by the Christian Science Monitor, Venezuela's communist dictator Hugo Chavez faces his biggest challenge to retain his political voting monopoly since ascending to power almost twelve years ago. Citizens of Venezuela are building in dissatisfaction with the country's growing crime rate and poor economy. As Steven Bodzin of the Monitor reports, the token opposition parties that currently exist under the totalitarian reign of Hugo Chavez will attempt to use any mid-term election successes as a springboard to actually defeating the president in 2012. Good luck.
While it seems cold to highlight the futility of using the electoral process to improve the lot of individuals anywhere within a communist dictatorship, truth is still the best medicine. What is the truth in the face of a growing population of Venezuelan people who want more money, less crime and in the end, more freedom to make it happen? The truth is that it will never transpire under a communistic regime run by a dictator like Hugo Chavez.
Since Hugo Chavez has occupied the "throne" in Venezuela, he has done what dictators always do. That is, Chavez has brought to his country pain, punishment and repression, and has laid the groundwork for the country's future peril. How so? Following the communist blueprint, Chavez has worked tirelessly to shut down all opposing dissent. He has done this not only by creating a voting monopoly, but also by simply shutting down almost all non-state-run media. In 2009, Chavez made a major push to shut down radio stations that dared to report news opposing his totalitarian-style government. As reported by Reuters, Chavez justified his actions by saying, "We haven't closed any radio stations, we've applied the law." Putting the communistic stamp of approval on his censorship, Chavez said, "We've recovered a bunch of stations that were outside the law, that now belong to the people and not the bourgeoisie." Through the iron grip of Chavez's hold on media outlets, the people are now privy to impromptu, marathon-style rants from the president at any and all hours of the day. As far back as 2007, the Guardian reported that Chavez was asserted to have set the record for the longest state-run television speech, which ran all of eight hours. During the government-controlled broadcast, Hugo Chavez was reported to have sung songs, delivered jokes, broken into angry rants and discussed breasts implants — all things one can do with absolute power and no accountability.
It is not with great shock that we see that in 2008 Hugo Chavez forced through a referendum to end presidential term limits. There is little doubt that Chavez has no intention of ever stepping down as president. In all honesty, the people of Venezuela need to face the cruel reality that despite polling results, Chavez will never allow any opposing party to supersede his political will. Therein lies the futility of the mid-term. Venezuelan elections are a sham designed simply for public consumption, with the end results pre-destined by the totalitarian ideology of the puppet master at the country's helm: Hugo Chavez.
Last, like giant evil magnets seeking to lock together, the communist dictator of Venezuela is drawn to other dirty birds in anti-capitalist, anti-freedom and anti-American dictators like Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. As America is pulled toward a potential future conflict with Iran, Chavez's own chosen alliances with such radicals place his country in an unneeded tenuous position for the future.
It is always difficult to fully grasp the pulse of the people of nations under communistic control because of the lack of factual information flow. Venezuela may follow Cuba in resigning itself to having a poor economy and for all intents and purposes, a life-long dictator. On the other hand, if a majority decides to rid the country of Chavez and his lackeys, they will only do it by way of revolution; nothing short of that will have any true effect. Whether the people of Venezuela know it or not, their elections will remain nothing more than a futile public exercise until revolution is placed on the ballot and the majority of the people vote for it.
© Paul A. Ibbetson
October 1, 2010
As reported by the Christian Science Monitor, Venezuela's communist dictator Hugo Chavez faces his biggest challenge to retain his political voting monopoly since ascending to power almost twelve years ago. Citizens of Venezuela are building in dissatisfaction with the country's growing crime rate and poor economy. As Steven Bodzin of the Monitor reports, the token opposition parties that currently exist under the totalitarian reign of Hugo Chavez will attempt to use any mid-term election successes as a springboard to actually defeating the president in 2012. Good luck.
While it seems cold to highlight the futility of using the electoral process to improve the lot of individuals anywhere within a communist dictatorship, truth is still the best medicine. What is the truth in the face of a growing population of Venezuelan people who want more money, less crime and in the end, more freedom to make it happen? The truth is that it will never transpire under a communistic regime run by a dictator like Hugo Chavez.
Since Hugo Chavez has occupied the "throne" in Venezuela, he has done what dictators always do. That is, Chavez has brought to his country pain, punishment and repression, and has laid the groundwork for the country's future peril. How so? Following the communist blueprint, Chavez has worked tirelessly to shut down all opposing dissent. He has done this not only by creating a voting monopoly, but also by simply shutting down almost all non-state-run media. In 2009, Chavez made a major push to shut down radio stations that dared to report news opposing his totalitarian-style government. As reported by Reuters, Chavez justified his actions by saying, "We haven't closed any radio stations, we've applied the law." Putting the communistic stamp of approval on his censorship, Chavez said, "We've recovered a bunch of stations that were outside the law, that now belong to the people and not the bourgeoisie." Through the iron grip of Chavez's hold on media outlets, the people are now privy to impromptu, marathon-style rants from the president at any and all hours of the day. As far back as 2007, the Guardian reported that Chavez was asserted to have set the record for the longest state-run television speech, which ran all of eight hours. During the government-controlled broadcast, Hugo Chavez was reported to have sung songs, delivered jokes, broken into angry rants and discussed breasts implants — all things one can do with absolute power and no accountability.
It is not with great shock that we see that in 2008 Hugo Chavez forced through a referendum to end presidential term limits. There is little doubt that Chavez has no intention of ever stepping down as president. In all honesty, the people of Venezuela need to face the cruel reality that despite polling results, Chavez will never allow any opposing party to supersede his political will. Therein lies the futility of the mid-term. Venezuelan elections are a sham designed simply for public consumption, with the end results pre-destined by the totalitarian ideology of the puppet master at the country's helm: Hugo Chavez.
Last, like giant evil magnets seeking to lock together, the communist dictator of Venezuela is drawn to other dirty birds in anti-capitalist, anti-freedom and anti-American dictators like Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. As America is pulled toward a potential future conflict with Iran, Chavez's own chosen alliances with such radicals place his country in an unneeded tenuous position for the future.
It is always difficult to fully grasp the pulse of the people of nations under communistic control because of the lack of factual information flow. Venezuela may follow Cuba in resigning itself to having a poor economy and for all intents and purposes, a life-long dictator. On the other hand, if a majority decides to rid the country of Chavez and his lackeys, they will only do it by way of revolution; nothing short of that will have any true effect. Whether the people of Venezuela know it or not, their elections will remain nothing more than a futile public exercise until revolution is placed on the ballot and the majority of the people vote for it.
© Paul A. Ibbetson
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