[Rictor]

The story, for those of you who don't already know, is this:

Last year, the country's elites, working with the military and corporate media, staged a coup attempt to overthrow the democratically elected president, Hugo Chavez, because of his attempts of put the country's oil to work for the people and not the wealthy elite and foreign multinationals.

The coup failed, and Chavez was returned to power shortly. What followed was a 2-month general strike, imposed by the opposition and media, crippling the country's economy. It is also worthy to note that the Constitution was re-written at Chavez's request, to make the government more accountable and democratic. It is because of these reforms that Venezuela is now the only country in the world to allow for a recall election if 20% of the electorate sign a petition to demand it.

The opposition has exploited this and has gather (barely) enough signiatures to demand a recall. The election will be held on August 15th. According to the Consitution, if the recall election was held just 4 days later, on August 19th, Chavez's vice-president would serve out the rest of the term, until 2007, regardless of who won. But the Chavez government has made ever attempt to give the opposition the benefit of the doubt, though it might very well kill them. So, as it stands, if the recall succeseds, general elections will be held within 30 days.

This is all despite the fact that the opposition has staged an illegal coup, despite the fact that 90% of the domestic media, and pretty much all the foreign media is totally anti-Chavez, due to the fact that they're owned by rich media moguls. And yet, here is this man who will step down if "the people wish it so*", even though it will put people in to power who care nothing for the poor, who will rape the country's resources, who are thouroughly anti-democratic.

*The poor are overwhelmingly pro-Chavez, but since the wealthy elites control all the media, and because they have no integrity to speak of, whcih has in the past lead to vvote tampering and so forth, "the will of the people" is in fact "the will of the rich, speaking instead of the people"....

[Tiara]

20%? Ok, talk about your moronic Democracy. I can see their government change every 6 weeks now.

[Rictor]

Can you imagine getting 20% of Americans to endorse a recall? Remember, this was put into the Constitutional revisions as a huge nod to self-determination.

[Knight Templar]

Steven Segall should run.

[vyper]

Tbh, we've seen this sort of thing happen so many times over the last 30/40 years that it's just not that surprising or shocking any more. It's terrible, but nothing will change it.

[Gank]

If Chavez has the support of the majority of the people wtf has he got to worry about in an election?

[vyper]

Election rigging? Voter Intimidation? Military impendence of ballot box movement?

[Rictor]

Does he? The middle-class is rather split on the issue, and poor are pro-Chavez and the rich are anti-Chavez. You speak as if though money means nothing in situations like this. I don't pretend that the people of Venezuela are all enlightened individuals, who are utterly unsucepitble to being manipulated. The media plays a huge, huge part in this. 90% of the TV and radio is vehemently anti-Chavez. The only source of opposing views in a single state owned TV channel and a single radio channel. Not to mention that the buisness elite also influence the results. During the general strike, employees were coerced by their employers not to work. Threats (and not just empty threats either) of job-loss, should one vote pro-Chavez are very real. And then there is the issue of foreign money being funneled to the opposition, from oil giants who fear for the saftey of their precious resource.

Here, as most everywhere, he with the money has the power. Not total power mind you, or else the coup would have successeded in the first place, but enough to ensure that the outcome is not in the least an accurate representation of who is the better man (or party for that matter).

[Rictor]

I would recommend the film "The Revolution Will not be Televised", dealing with the coup, but I have unfortunatly not seen it myself. My bro has, and I have read up on it, but I missed it at the Toronto Film Festival, and have been unable to find it "elsewhere".

[Gank]

Its a third world country Rictor, Chavez has the support of the poor people, which is most of the population. Chavez has been wheathering **** like this since he came to power and he'll get through this as well. The recall isnt even going to happen unless the opposition can get 800,000 signatures which were found to be invalid again.

[Rictor]

huh? when did this happen?? The last I heard, the opposition just squesed through, and the recall was scheduled. If this is true, about the 800,000 signitaures, its very good news indeed. I know that police siezed some pretty suspicious materials when they raided an opposition offices, but nothing ever came of it.

I do hope that the Chavez government will survive this, both for the welfare of the people of Venezuela, and for my own sense of justice.

[Rictor]

here is the newest...errr, news, that I can find. Hardly an unbiased source, but I doubt they would outright lie, especially for something that can be so easily verfied.

http://www.cnn.com/2004/WORLD/americas/06/08/venezuela.referendum.reut/index.html

[Bobboau]

ok so all the media in the world doesn't like him exept for the stations he operates and this is evedence of him being legit and the world media being controled by a cabal of evil rich people?

I'v only heard about it passingly during the "coup" so I'm simply too ignorent on the subject to realy argue anything, but your assertions seem... weak...

[Styxx]

We should invade, just for the kicks of it.

[Bobboau]

yeah! GO BRAZIL!!! wooo!

[Styxx]

Hmmm, oil.




I mean, terrorism. They're terrorists, yeah. All of them. We're just doing our part for the War on Terror.

[Bobboau]

yes and the US isn't quietly smuggeling tones upon tones of chemical and biological weapons to you for use against the arch vile and ruthless enemys of the world, wich we won't later use as justification for invadeing you, after makeing sure you didn't actualy have any of it any more.

[Styxx]

Surely not.

[Gank]

Originally posted by Rictor
here is the newest...errr, news, that I can find. Hardly an unbiased source, but I doubt they would outright lie, especially for something that can be so easily verfied.

Cant find anything about it in the latest news. Amazing how people can claim Chavez is turning into an autocrat when hes letting them try to oust him by democratic means.

[J3Vr6]

Rictor, did you forget that years earler Chavez, then high in the military, HIMSELF attempted a coup and failed?  How he has a very close relationship with Cuba's Fidel Castro, who has himself said that he sees Chavez as a younger self?

The THOUSANDS of exiled venezuelans in Miami would fume to hear how you portray Chavez as a victim...