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In a way, he's right........This is the reality of a true democracy.........

I have to disagree.

It's true that pure democracy can lead to socialism--- that's why Aristotle referred to "vulgar democracy" as "rule of the poor".

But that's not what's happening in Venezuela, where the necessary conditions for democracy have been stripped away by Chavez, who, is not a democrat, pure or otherwise. That's why for as long as he could, he fought the legality of the referendum on him before winning it through dubious means.

Contrary to those on FR who continually repeat that the United States is a republic and not a democracy, it's in point of fact both and always has been (as most of them actually know), and with the expansion of the franchise to men regardless of the status of their holdings, blacks, women, has only become more democratic--- which is a good thing, considering the harm the expansion of the power of our least democratic branch, the United States Supreme Court, has done in the last one hundred years alone.

What Chavez is doing is FAR from "true democracy".

What Chavez is doing is for his own personal power, as with any common dictator. He's doing it under the guise of democracy, being for "the poor" and underclasses, with their wholehearted support, with the expectation that they will get something for that support. The old stereotype jokes still ring true. Democracy is 3 wolves and a sheep voting on what to have for dinner and if you rob Peter to pay Paul, you can always count on the support of Paul..........

You are of course right, it is both a democracy and a republic. I think what the advocates of "it's a republic, not a democracy" side mean is that the design of our nation was designed to restrain the 'demos'. Everything from the electoral college, to the state legislature electing senators, to the set up of the Supreme Court were designed to prevent the 'people' as a mass from running amok.

The program of the Democrats (Socialism) requires ending many of these checks and balances and empowering the 'demos' to take more control. Including voiding property rigthts. The Democratic hostility to "The Republic" is seen in everything from Hillary's outrage over the electoral college to the Progressives ammendment of the Constitution to directly elect Senators.

It is hard to see how we won't end up where Chavez is eventually.