As Promised!!!....
Posted on 02/08/2009 9:26:53 PM PST by Milagros
The remedy for fear: resistance
Hugo Chávez's dictatorial appetite became even more voracious this Monday, February 2, the tenth anniversary of his arrival in the Presidency of the Republic.
In an act without precedent since democracy was established in Venezuela, the President boasted and bragged that he had decreed the day a national holiday.
Inconceivable as it may seem, Chávez announced this nationwide “stoppage” surreptitiously in paragraph 26 of an unintelligible column written by the President that is published weekly by several pro-government rags, among them Últimas Noticias . Equally incredible was that he announced it to the rest of the media when going onto the field to take part in a softball game at Fuerte Tiuna, where he was beaten. What is worse, the decree came out in Gaceta Oficial one day after the national stoppage had been implemented.
Chávez brought the entire country to a halt in a manner that was arbitrary and domineering and with no regard for the economic implications that this would have for a country that is experiencing a profound cash flow crisis, with its main state-owned company on the brink of bankruptcy and its productive system practically dismantled.
With this measure, Chávez once again violated private property and the right to work and caused immeasurable losses in resources and perishable goods simply to satisfy his ego. Not only that, many patients and sick people had to postpone medical appointments or operations because of this presidential whim. But what is truly alarming about this irrational imposition of a national stoppage for an entire day was the redolence of fear on the streets of Venezuela.
What raises the alarm is the impotence of the population in the face of Chavez's absurd threat to apply sanctions and fines on anyone who failed to abide by the decree and the presence of the National Guard on the streets threatening anyone who dared to defy the presidential decision.
Workers were afraid to leave home for work. Businessmen, bakers, storekeepers, and even street vendors were afraid to open their doors or set up their stalls.
Doctors and veterinarians were afraid to attend their patients and school teachers to give classes. Fear is a trait of all dictatorships. It is the weapon they use to submit, enslave, and repress. Tyrants have used it against their people since the dawning of slavery to the present day; only witness Hitler, Castro, and Mugabe.
Fortunately, not all voices were silenced by fear. Representatives of the business chambers, analysts, and the few independent media that still survive protested against the irrational measure.
Yet, make no mistake. Fear can also set off a chain reaction and spur people on to resist the one who is making the threats. Fear can also spawn a commitment and a state of rational awareness in those who are being harassed.
On February 15, that redolence of fear must be transformed into a resounding, massive NO in order to reverse this totalitarianism by dint of votes.
VenEconomy is a Venezuela's leading specialized publisher in the economic and financial area. VenEconomy's Points of View on the issues of the day, as seen by VenEconomy during the last week. Petroleumworld does not necessarily share these views.
Editor's Note: This commentary was originally published by VenEconomy, on 02/03/2009. Petroleumworld reprint this article in the interest of our readers.
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Thanks.
Oh, good old Michael Savage...
All creatures shall make merry ... on pain of death.
So sad...their ‘notices’ at the end do not read like an organization worried about ‘lawsuits’..but one worried about ‘death squads’.
I wonder when Hugo and Hussein are scheduled to meet.
Who do we know that might fit the bill for actions like this...given enough time?
Wow. It will be interesting to see what happens in the elections on Feb. 15th.
I have been wondering what day our Hugo Chavez Mini-Me is going to select for his Great Leader Day. Possibly he'll focus on the date of his inauguration or possibly he'll pick an existing holiday, such as the misbegotten Martin Luther King holiday, and morph that into his personal celebration. Barry really likes things that celebrate him, personally, and he also needs to keep up the PR stunts and the circuses part of "bread and circuses" in order to keep his dumb followers behind him.
I think the situation in Venezuela is virtually a glimpse into our future.
As I posted a few days ago, former President Jimmah Cahtah will be too busy to 'monitor' the referendum, but has released, in advance, a statement that the referendum vote in Venezuela "was free of any fraud or vote manipulation". He went on the praise Hugo Chavez for "his outstanding leadership in promoting and preserving Democracy in South America." s/>
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