Friday 7 September 2007

Socialism still stinks in Venezuela

Readers of the last Free Radical will remember Jeff Perren's cover story depicting the socialism of Hugo Chavez's Venezuela, and its consequential and inexorable slide into dictatorship, penury and a place where people boil up stones for soup -- all this on the back of an unprecedented oil boom.

Two recent articles depict the further slide, first the economic slide and the prospect of "the macroeconomic house of cards" hitting the wall: Chavez Economy Unravels as Venezuela Currency Weakens - Bloomberg.

The second offers another example of the destruction of free speech: a new law requiring permission from the government for your baby's name, and the banning of names "that invite ridicule, are extravagant or hard to pronounce." See: What's in a name? If lawmakers have their way, it won't be anything unusual - AP.

The Tomahawk Kid comments:
Soon no-one in Venezuela will be allowed to say anything president Chavez disapproves of, even if they could find the means, as he has nationalised (taken by force from its rightful owners) energy, telecommunications, radio and TV stations, who are forced to interrupt their programmes to broadcasts speeches by Chavez.
There is nothing new in his actions though - it has all been done before! First they nationalise industry, then they censor all opposition, and then slowly the people starve - and by that time, there is no-one left to speak out against the horrors. For those with eyes, and minds, Venezuela is just the latest tragic example.
Socialism stinks. It stinks everywhere it's tried. If you haven't seen socialism destroy a country before, then watch Venezuela and learn -- and make sure it doesn't happen here.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

I noted that Hugo Chavez's is good mates with Robert Mugabe and Fidel Castro, but the people in Tonga, eat well compared (from their taro, kumara, yams, tapioca, etc...) to Zimbabwe and I wondered why. One thing I assumed that the difference is because anyone can speak out and criticize King Tupou the 5th (not defaming), but Zimbabweans can't do that against Mugabe. Even the people of Tonga are materially poor but they are wealthy in one thing, and that is their freedom which is protected by the constitution, which it has been in place, since the British missionaries drafted it in 1875 to form the first central government.

Anonymous said...

FF

What is the new King like? I heard he was a very private man.

LGM

Anonymous said...

LGM said...
What is the new King like? I heard he was a very private man.

I also heard (hearsay only), that he likes to swim with male companions in hot spa pool. I am not sure whether it's the bodyguards or the te'e (male servants), but again the story came from a member of the pro-democracy movement guy who lives here in Auckland. The story can't be verified.