Yesterday the people of Venezuela voted to abolish term limits in their country, paving the way for Hugo Chavez to become president for life. Although we will never know the true extent of voter intimidation and/or outright fraud by Chavez … Continue reading →
Hugo Chavez says “just give me ten more years, and everything will be great.” Today’s referendum on abolishing presidential term limits will allow him to seek those ten years and more, in the grand old tradition of predecessor and mentor … Continue reading →
Bookworm has a piece at American Thinker in which she makes the point that it might be more instructive to divide ourselves on a continuum of Statists vs. Individualists rather than Liberals vs. Conservatives. Obama, of course, would be a … Continue reading →
My first thought late last night on hearing the news of Chavez’s defeat in yesterday’s referendum was, “Great (and surprising)!” My second thought was a more cynical one: “How bad must the defeat really have been for Chavez to announce … Continue reading →
That man of the people, Hugo Chavez, is up to his old/new tricks in Venezuela: using the democratic process to subvert the safeguards built into it (see this for my discussion of the perils involved). An upcoming referendum will let … Continue reading →
Venezuelan not-quite-President-for-life-but-getting-there Hugo Chavez announced that he’s asking for a few changes: an extension of the length of the Presidential term of office, and an end to limits on reelection. To those critics who suggest this is another step in … Continue reading →
In the many posts I’ve written attempting to explain the basic neocon attitude towards the spread of democracy-(see this and this) I’ve tried to be careful to use the term “liberal democracy” to describe what is advocated. Why? Because democracy … Continue reading →
I was thinking of Hugo Chavez recently because I was at a party Saturday night and his name came up in a rather odd context. I noticed a youngish women carrying a fluffy white dog in her arms. I went … Continue reading →
Chavez, that populist champion of the common man, has followed the path of hubris to close the most popular TV station in Venezuela, the 53-year-old RCTV. Why? He accused the station of supporting the 2002 coup against him, of some … Continue reading →
Chavez may have rigged the referendum of 2004, according to a statistical study by two Venezuelan scientists. An isolated study or two wouldn’t mean much. But there’s a lot more evidence that this particular election was rigged. And is there … Continue reading →
Castro’s not really dead, although most likely dying, despite his TV cameo appearance. Chavez’s star, however, is in the ascendance, and expanding fast. He’s the new Castro, with a bigger field to play on than Castro ever had: Venezuela. Chavez … Continue reading →
I haven’t said anything much so far about Hugo Chavez, who recently won the Venezuelan election handily. Take a look at what Fausta’s written about it for some perspective. It’s a sorry tale but not an unfamiliar one: demagoguery, Leftism, … Continue reading →