Venezuela: Not What You Think

[Agnapostate]

Robin Hahnel, "Venezuela: Not What You Think"

An important article regarding illusions and realities of Venezuela by American University economist and libertarian socialist activist Robin Hahnel.

In the case of Hugo Chavez and the Venezuelan Bolivarian Revolution, the mainstream media and politicians in the United States have elevated their game of demonizing all who oppose US foreign policy and business interests to a higher level of absurdity than usual. According to the mainstream media, the only newsworthy stories in Venezuela are one sided diatribes lifted from the discredited, opposition-owned media in Venezuela. For example, we read about Chavez shutting down opposition TV stations. We hear that Chavez is rewriting the Venezuelan Constitution so he can be President for life. Chavez is a dictator, QED.

All the badly outgunned, alternative media in the US can do is try its best to rebut the bias in the storylines defined by the mainstream media. The tiny fraction of Americans who visit the alternative media discover that Chavez has submitted a proposal to change the Venezuelan Constitution in a number of ways, one of which is to eliminate term limits on the office of President. All changes will first have to be approved by the democratically elected Venezuelan National Assembly, and then also approved in a popular referendum before they become law. Only Americans who search out the alternative media discover that Hugo Chavez was elected President by a comfortable margin in 1998, survived an opposition-sponsored recall in 2004, and most recently was re-elected in December 2006 with more than 60% of the vote. International observers certified all three elections as fair and square. George Bush, on the other hand, was selected President by a partisan Supreme Court after losing the popular vote in 2000, and won re-election only because enough black voters in Ohio were disenfranchised by a partisan Republican official to keep the Buckeye State in the Republican column in 2004. Few observers believe Bush could survive a recall election today, but of course this basic element of democratic rule is not permitted by the US Constitution. Nonetheless, the only storyline ninety-nine percent of Americans hear remains: Hugo Chavez is a dictator and George Bush is the democratically elected leader of the free world.

Similarly, only the small fraction of Americans who access the alternative media learn that RCTV was not shut down because it campaigns openly against the government -- which it has for nine years. Instead, when its license came up for renewal, its application was denied because it had violated 200 conditions of its licensing agreement -- many violations having to do with its role in helping to organize a military coup that nearly toppled the duly elected President of the country. Moreover, the station continues to broadcast on a cable network, and the opposition in Venezuela still broadcasts on more major TV channels than there are channels sympathetic to the government. In stark contrast, the alternative media in the US cannot be viewed on any major channel. Consequently the vast majority of Americans receive all their news from a mainstream media which never questions whether the US has any right to dominate other nations, but only debates the wisdom of alternative strategies for doing so, and would never dream of questioning the desirability of an economic system dominated by their corporate owners. Nevertheless the storyline most Americans hear remains: Freedom of the press is dead in totalitarian Venezuela, but alive and well in the democratic United States.

(Continued at source...)

An especially important article to remember and contemplate in these times of U.S. mass media defamation of the democratically elected president of Venezuela and the Bolivarian Revolution.

 

[Amanda]

Ok before anyone jumps on me let say first that I'm not a big fan of Hugo Chavez, although I did think his comment about Bush being the devil was pretty funny.

I think he's been an effective leader for Venezuela and I think it's important to question the news we get about the region because there is a campaign of defamation going on. I have heard anti-Chavez propaganda on CNN and if I can recognize it it must be pretty blatant.

So some of you are probably thinking that it was just news and I'm a nut. Maybe... but I don't think so. See, it was table Chavez nationalizing Venezuela's oil industry and they were explaining how unfair it was that he would do that. Fair or unfair is not the job of reporting news. That was the spin so that viewers would know how to understand the news.

BTW, does anyone know of a good 24 hours news channel that you can turn to and actually see news reports? CNN headline news used to be decent but all I ever see anymore in that Rush wannabe Glen Beck or Nancy Grace having a rage-gasm. They both turn my stomach.

 

[Agnapostate]

There's really no honest television media, so I would recommend an online source like IndyMedia.

 

[Amanda]

There's really no honest television media, so I would recommend an online source like IndyMedia.

I like to see footage of whatever is happening though.

 

[dilloduck]

There's really no honest television media, so I would recommend an online source like IndyMedia.

I'm not so sure I trust any media from Indy either--they're so Manning biased.

 

[Agnapostate]

There's really no honest television media, so I would recommend an online source like IndyMedia.

I like to see footage of whatever is happening though.

You could try the Guardian.

Hugo Chávez wins referendum allowing indefinite re-election | World news | guardian.co.uk

The title says "indefinite re-election" but the URL says "indefinite rule." You can imagine how the Media Research Center would react if MSNBC had said that about Bush or how Media Matters for America would react if Fox News said that about Obama.

 

[Harry Dresden]

i know 2 people who dont know each other,who have been there in the last 2-3 years,both had the same impression of the place......FEAR permeates the air,NO ONE trusts anyone,you dont talk negative about the govt or things happen to you or your business.....they both claim it was very uncomfortable and dont care to return......one of these guys has also been to Iraq during the Saddam reign and said it was no where near what it is like there
....by the way one of them and his wife are of Cuban decent,and went passing themselves off as Cubans because of the obvious......and they said it was just very depressing......they left after a week,of a two week stay.... ......so since i know these 2 guys have been there,for now i will take their word for it.......

 

[Agnapostate]

That provides us with absolutely no empirical evidence on the matter. I kid you not. Anecdotal evidence from a biased sample is essentially useless.

 

[michiganFats]

That provides us with absolutely no empirical evidence on the matter. I kid you not. Anecdotal evidence from a biased sample is essentially useless.

How is what Harry Dresden did any different from what you did? I found the article in the OP to be full of loaded words and phrases, faulty logic, dubious "facts", and an obvious bias on the part of the author.

That having been said, an important point was raised, many Americans don't hear the whole story behind what's happening in Venezuela. Chavez is doing his best to try and repair years of neglect regarding basic social services, and he is not a Stalinist.

I also thought that two things should have been mentioned in the article but weren't. The first being that Chavez, despite all the talk about economics and oil, is primarily a cultural warrior. If Chavez's reforms were laid out in front of us, I don't believe most rational people would have a problem with them, a characteristic example IMO being the cessation of the beer truck routes. The main area where dissent would pop up is property reform, and that's a matter of opinion. Chavez considers much of the property of the upper class in that country to be ill-gotten gains, and he may have a point.

The second point being that the author did a disservice by not explaining why Venezuela is a story which should be followed. Venezuela is strategically located when it comes to the flow of oil in the western hemisphere. It is not unthinkable that we may end up conducting some sort of military action in that region. If no one here knows the recent history of that nation, how will anyone be able to judge the actions of our government, should that scenario arise?

I give Chavez credit for being elected to office instead of seizing office however given the past performance of military men in Latin America, I do not think the "president for life" concern is unfounded.

A closing point about empirical evidence. Social and political issues are opinion driven, they are by their very nature subjective. If you really want evidence for every statement made, perhaps you should abandon your chosen career in armchair politics and pursue a career in mathematics or physics, or chemistry, maybe biology. Engineering is a great field to get into. Computer Science is definitely a growth field. But, if you continue to discuss politics and social issues, you are just going to have to accept the fact that opinions will figure heavily in every conversation you will have.

 

[Harry Dresden]

That provides us with absolutely no empirical evidence on the matter. I kid you not. Anecdotal evidence from a biased sample is essentially useless.

lets put it like this Agna......i was hearing reports on the news like everyone else about what is going on in Iraq,i deliver the mail and have at least 6 "kids" who have been there any where from 1 time to 3 times who live on the route,or at least their folkes do,talking to them,those who have actually BEEN there as compared to a reporter writing a story,who may or may not have been there,ill take their word for it,ESPECIALLY when their stories seem to be on the same page......could the reporter be putting the old SPIN on the story,because of what they want YOU to believe?.....no thanks Agna,ill take the story from the guys who have been there.....one of them even told me "are they reporting on the same war?"......the 2 guys i know who have been to Venezuela had basically the same thoughts on what the atmosphere was like down there.....ill take their word for it thank you....

 

[cbi0090]

My wife's family is split between Colombia and Venezuela. This is not uncommon, as those countries are considered to be one in the same in the minds of the people. Many have fled to Colombia since Chavez caputured control through the military and then through mob rule by pouring oil money onto the poor.
The upper class of Venezuela had this coming for a long time. They were particularly bad regarding distribution of wealth within the country and something had to turn it around. Colombia was not too far behind but they have and are managing to make things better for everyone, thanks to many of the labor reforms Uribe has put into place and his efforts to root out the corruption that had a strangle hold on it for so long. It's a slow process and not perfect but it's moving in the right direction as the younger generation (the internet generation) starts taking over.
Venezuela on the other hand, changed things alright, but went completely off the deep end by doing the same ole, same ole. Machismo. Backing a strong man ruler. It's so rooted in their culture and they keep doing it over and over, although it has never served them well ultimately. Chavez is knows he's running out of steam. He has siphoned off so much money to buy votes and has paid back favors so heavily from the oil revenues that very little went back into maintenance his operations is quickly deteriorating. This is coupled with the drop in oil prices and creating a tight spot for him.
But no problem. Dictators have the luxury of creating enemies of the state in a single statement or justification. If things start getting tight, it's not his fault. It's the bad guys out there. It's rice producers not making rice cheap enough? It's Colombia crossing their borders to capture murders hiding in their forests. Soveren rights!!!! Right now he's got his people looking under rocks for spies and traitors, while keeping a watchful eye on the sea and the jungle for the coming of invaders. This justifies his building up his armed forces to keep everyone safe, right?
That is until all hell breaks loose and then guess who and what will keep him power and who is going to pay? The very people who put him there.

 

[waltky]

Who can ya trust?

Poll: Venezuelans' trust in police, military at record lows
June 14, 2017 -- After months of heated protests that have seen several deaths and casualties, the vast majority of Venezuelans have lost faith in their police and military, a new Gallup poll shows.

According to the survey, just 14 percent of respondents said they have confidence in the local police, while 84 percent said they do not. That's by far the lowest level of confidence since the poll began in 2005, when 43 percent said police were trustworthy. The Venezuelan military, though, isn't faring much better -- as the poll found only 16 percent said they have faith in the country's armed forces. The Venezuelan judicial system received the same support.

Members of the Venezuelan National Guard clash with demonstrators during opposition protests in Caracas​

In somewhat of a symbol of that lack of confidence in the country's judicial system, anti-government protesters set fire to the Venezuelan Supreme Court building in Caracas on Tuesday. The violence was a reaction to the court's decision to allow Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro to rewrite the country's constitution.

Demonstrators clash with police during protests in Caracas. Police, using tear gas, dispersed protesters. Venezuela is the scene of massive protests for both government supporters and opposition groups heightening tension throughout the country.​

Days before the Supreme Court's decision, Venezuela's chief prosecutor, Luis Ortega Diaz, urged the judges to reject the president's request. "What's at play here is the country," she said. "The integrity of Venezuelans." Although protests have been a common occurrence in Venezuela for several years, the past three months have seen an escalation that's resulted in 67 deaths. Media reports blame the majority of the deaths on pro-government forces, while some have been caused by anti-government groups.

Poll: Venezuelans' trust in police, military at record lows

See also:

Venezuelan Interior Ministry takes control of Miranda state police
-- Venezuela's Interior Ministry said it has seized control of the Miranda state's police force over accusations of violating human rights and of criminal activity.

Venezuelan Interior and Justice Minister Gen. Nestor Reverol said his administration made the move after an investigation. "The intervention of the police force of the Miranda state is made official after evaluating research that resulted in enough evidence to implicate officials in human rights violations and criminal networks," Reverol said in a statement on Monday.

Gen. Nestor Reverol, the head of Venezuela's Ministry of Interior and Justice, on Monday said his agency has taken control of the police force in the Miranda state.​

Reverol said the move is authorized under Article 75 of the Venezuelan Constitution's Organic Law of the Police Service. He said an agency will set up an "intervention board" that will handle the Miranda police responsibilities for 180 days. Henrique Capriles Radonski, governor of Venezuela's Miranda state and a key opposition leader, said in a statement on Monday that the move was an "military intervention."

Capriles Radonski said President Nicolas Maduro's "corrupt [government] and its sickly obsession with our Miranda and its government orders another attack, now against the police!" The governor urged the police not to take actions that violate the Constitution. Venezuela has gone through more than two months of protests in which more than 60 people have died.

Venezuelan Interior Ministry takes control of Miranda state police