RevolutionaryMarxist
4th April 2007, 11:11
This is my Article That I have submitted to my High School Newspaper in hopes of publishing, yet I'm unsure as to how they will like it as usually they disdain from publishing my radical articles.
They called this one a "Unique point of view and very radical" and said "this is the kind of thing we'd like to see in the journal, a unique view, so it might get published". I clearly couldn't make it even a tad bit more radical without destroying any chance of the bourgeois institution publishing it.
Well Here it is:
__________________________________________________ __________-
Revolution in Latin America
“I accuse the North American empire of being the biggest menace to our planet...we must confront the privileged elite who have destroyed a large part of the world…they make us slaves. Capitalism leads us straight to hell.” said Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. The former Military officer and now charismatic populist has been very prevalent in world affairs lately, largely due to his shockingly open socialist, anti-capitalist and anti-imperialist stance. Why does Chavez seem to despise the United States so much, and gets so much coverage because of it? A better portrait of both Venezuela and Chavez are clearly needed – more than just a stereotypical “Anti-American” label.
Chavez grew up in a terribly dreadful and repressive climate. Back then, Venezuela was a strict class society with a small minority of rich landowners and businesses executives at the top while the majority was starving to death under the iron hand of the free market. In 1989, enormous demonstrations nationwide demanded total reform of the corrupt system in place. The government, under President Carlos Andres Perez, ruthlessly repressed these demonstrations leaving over 3000 dead. Notice that this happened the same time as Tiananmen Square, but Perez’s massacres received almost no coverage in any media source. The government at the time was very close friends with the United States, most likely helping in the media-blackout of the events. Chavez no doubt saw this cruel tyranny and the US as being connected.
Chavez was elected overwhelmingly into presidency in 1998, gaining more votes than any other Venezuelan candidate in history, beating the 2nd candidate by nearly 20%. Immediately he declared a “Bolivarian Socialist Revolution”. His major goal was to change the priority of the state from the welfare of the rich minority to the poor majority. According to the CIA World Fact-book, since 1997 when over 60% of the population was in poverty, under Chavez’s economic reforms poverty has dropped to 37%. ‘Poverty’ in Venezuela isn’t even terribly miserable anymore under Chavez. According to a 2005 report by the US Federal Research Division (FRD), Venezuela’s social problems are truly becoming a thing of the past. Free and fast universal health care is given to everyone, causing Venezuela’s health care system to become “one of the more advanced in Latin America”. The literacy rate in Venezuela is now one of the highest in all South America, reaching over 94%. Millions of those in poverty now have a completely free elementary and college education. Voting, which previously was only limited to a small electorate, has now been expanded by the millions to include the nation’s disenfranchised poor. While in 1998 only 6,988,291 people voted, in 2006 over 11,790,397 people voted. Chavez’s goals are simply to “guarantee social rights, improve the distribution of wealth and income, and strengthen social participation and generate citizen power in decision-making” says the FRD’s Report. To ensure the people of the country have the strongest say in the government, every week Chavez hosts a talk show called “Alo Presidente” in which anyone can phone in to tell Chavez what national and individual problems they’d like to see fixed in the country. Wherever Chavez goes in the world, thousands rush out to greet him, such as when he was greeted by a cheering crowd of thousands when visiting Austria in 2006, or when he met a crowd of 20,000 loving fans when visiting Argentina in March 2007. "Bush seeks to take advantage of Latin America while Chavez supports the region's independence." Says one Argentinean mother and Chavez-supporter Mercedes Merono, who lost her son during the Argentina Dictatorship of the 1970’s. “We are here to show our support of Chavez and our repudiation of Bush and imperialism. We are against Bush because of his oil wars and his other policies, which go against the people of the world” said Chilean Claudio Hernandez. Rarely has a foreign leader inspired so much support in the world everywhere from Europe, Asia, and America.
But not everyone liked that Chavez was helping the poor.
In 2002, Chavez was kidnapped by the military and a new military government was instated, led by business tycoon Pedro Carmona. This new government immediately declared in the “Carmona Decree” that the House of Representatives was to be disbanded, along with the Supreme Court and National Electoral Board. All the land and wealth Chavez had given to the poor of Venezuela was to be immediately taken and given back to the big landlords, by force if necessary. Immediately following was mass repression, thousands of arrests, and deaths. Military Police roamed the streets massacring protests with shotguns, machine guns, and tanks. These massacres were filmed by several reporters who happened to be in Venezuela at the time, eventually culminating in the documentary “The Revolution will not be televised” This documentary went on to be the winner of the “Best Documentary” award from dozens of nations and film circles around the world. The rest of Latin America quickly took action in calling this new government “illegitimate” and a “violation of constitutional order”. In Venezuela, millions poured out onto the streets defying military rule, and demanded Chavez’s return. The people of Venezuela loved the freedom that Chavez had granted them – they would rather first die than submit themselves once again to dictatorship and tyranny. Eventually mass-unrest and protest forced the military to return Chavez and the new government to resign. Chavez and many of his supporters later believed that the CIA had instigated or supported this coup. “The US is trying to kill me!” Chavez has said. It didn’t help when American Christian Pat Robertson called for Chavez’s death on national television, saying “We have the power to take him out…and I think it’s time we exercise that ability. If he thinks we're trying to assassinate him, I think that we really ought to go ahead and do it. I don't think any oil shipments will stop.” With this belief, Chavez has been campaigning ever since to rid Venezuela and Latin America of what he believes is American influence. As Chavez himself has said, "Today we gave another lesson in dignity to the imperialist. We will never be a colony of the US again....Long live the socialist revolution!" BBC reported later that night “There will be relief in most of Latin America that President Hugo Chavez is back in power in Venezuela, with many seeing this as important for the development of democratic constitutional rule on the continent.”
While some people in the US call Chavez a dictator, Chavez’s socialist republic is now a haven for democracy. There has been no police repression since he has taken power. If Chavez truly ruled over a dictatorship, anti-Chavez demonstrations would be banned, the press would be censored, and instead we would be seeing Chavez statues everywhere. “The Constitution provides for freedom of speech and of press…the Chavez government has generally respected these rights,” says a US Federal report. “His determination to…to deepen democracy - giving Venezuelans full participation and social equality - is worthy of the highest praise,” says Venezuelan Professor Margarita Maya. Foreigners, such as prominent Canadian Filmmaker Charles Gervais, have described that one is freer in Venezuela than in any other nation in the world. There is no secret police or political arrests. As Chavez has said, “Those of you who oppose me - Fine, Oppose Me! I wish I could change your minds, but you cannot oppose this constitution. This is the people's book. You have to recognize this. There will be no witch hunts, no persecution, no disrespect for free expression or thought.”
Yet not everyone is willing to peacefully protest against Chavez. As former President and opposition leader Carlos Andres Perez says, “We can't just get rid of Chavez and immediately have a democracy. Violence will allow us to remove him. That's the only way we have…” His words clearly show that the opposition realizes that they have no hope of ever defeating Chavez democratically. In December 2006, Chavez was reelected with over 62% of the vote, monitored by thousands of international observers. Organization of American States observer Juan Enrique Fisher declared the election to be “massive and peaceful” and in “complete liberty”. Isn’t this the ideal leader that every country desires? One who works all the time, and only for, the people of his country? Venezuela isn’t an enemy of democracy – it is the realization of true democracy in the world. As Venezuelan Student Leader Abraham Aparicio says; “The president is revolutionary, totally different to the people who have governed the country in the past …the president is working for the people.”
Bibliography (not to be included):
(Note: The Newspaper required this to prove I wasn't just spouting propaganda)
http://thinkexist.com/quotes/hugo_chavez/ - Chavez Quotes
https://cia.gov/cia//publications/factbook/geos/ve.html - CIA Report on Venezuela
http://www.americans-for-chavez.com/missions.html - Chavez’s Humanitarian Projects
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6205128.stm - Chavez Re-Election Victory
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6191348.stm - Thoughts about Chavez by BBC
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/3517106.stm - More Chavez Information
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/talking_point/4350254.stm - Opinion’s on Chavez
http://www.worldlii.org/int/cases/IACHR/1999/12.html - UN Report on Perez Massacres
http://www.chavezthefilm.com/index_ex.htm - “The Revolution will not be televised”
http://www.cepr.net/columns/weisbrot/venez...n_elections.htm (http://www.cepr.net/columns/weisbrot/venezuelan_elections.htm) - Elections and Support
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/...1187165,00.html (http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1187165,00.html) – More info
http://www.venezuelanalysis.com/news.php?newsno=1320 – Chavez opposition
http://www.venezuelanalysis.com/articles.php?artno=1908 = Detailed Electoral Processes of Venezuela and Election Results
http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/profiles/Venezuela.pdf = Federal Research Division report
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/1929498.stm Venezuelan Post Coup Information
http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2005-0...obertson-_x.htm (http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2005-08-22-robertson-_x.htm) - USA Today’s Report on Pat Robertson’s call for Assassination
http://www.handsoffvenezuela.org/chavez_vienna_may12.htm - Example International Rally
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,258035,00.html - Fox News Report on 20,000 person rally in Argentina
They called this one a "Unique point of view and very radical" and said "this is the kind of thing we'd like to see in the journal, a unique view, so it might get published". I clearly couldn't make it even a tad bit more radical without destroying any chance of the bourgeois institution publishing it.
Well Here it is:
__________________________________________________ __________-
Revolution in Latin America
“I accuse the North American empire of being the biggest menace to our planet...we must confront the privileged elite who have destroyed a large part of the world…they make us slaves. Capitalism leads us straight to hell.” said Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. The former Military officer and now charismatic populist has been very prevalent in world affairs lately, largely due to his shockingly open socialist, anti-capitalist and anti-imperialist stance. Why does Chavez seem to despise the United States so much, and gets so much coverage because of it? A better portrait of both Venezuela and Chavez are clearly needed – more than just a stereotypical “Anti-American” label.
Chavez grew up in a terribly dreadful and repressive climate. Back then, Venezuela was a strict class society with a small minority of rich landowners and businesses executives at the top while the majority was starving to death under the iron hand of the free market. In 1989, enormous demonstrations nationwide demanded total reform of the corrupt system in place. The government, under President Carlos Andres Perez, ruthlessly repressed these demonstrations leaving over 3000 dead. Notice that this happened the same time as Tiananmen Square, but Perez’s massacres received almost no coverage in any media source. The government at the time was very close friends with the United States, most likely helping in the media-blackout of the events. Chavez no doubt saw this cruel tyranny and the US as being connected.
Chavez was elected overwhelmingly into presidency in 1998, gaining more votes than any other Venezuelan candidate in history, beating the 2nd candidate by nearly 20%. Immediately he declared a “Bolivarian Socialist Revolution”. His major goal was to change the priority of the state from the welfare of the rich minority to the poor majority. According to the CIA World Fact-book, since 1997 when over 60% of the population was in poverty, under Chavez’s economic reforms poverty has dropped to 37%. ‘Poverty’ in Venezuela isn’t even terribly miserable anymore under Chavez. According to a 2005 report by the US Federal Research Division (FRD), Venezuela’s social problems are truly becoming a thing of the past. Free and fast universal health care is given to everyone, causing Venezuela’s health care system to become “one of the more advanced in Latin America”. The literacy rate in Venezuela is now one of the highest in all South America, reaching over 94%. Millions of those in poverty now have a completely free elementary and college education. Voting, which previously was only limited to a small electorate, has now been expanded by the millions to include the nation’s disenfranchised poor. While in 1998 only 6,988,291 people voted, in 2006 over 11,790,397 people voted. Chavez’s goals are simply to “guarantee social rights, improve the distribution of wealth and income, and strengthen social participation and generate citizen power in decision-making” says the FRD’s Report. To ensure the people of the country have the strongest say in the government, every week Chavez hosts a talk show called “Alo Presidente” in which anyone can phone in to tell Chavez what national and individual problems they’d like to see fixed in the country. Wherever Chavez goes in the world, thousands rush out to greet him, such as when he was greeted by a cheering crowd of thousands when visiting Austria in 2006, or when he met a crowd of 20,000 loving fans when visiting Argentina in March 2007. "Bush seeks to take advantage of Latin America while Chavez supports the region's independence." Says one Argentinean mother and Chavez-supporter Mercedes Merono, who lost her son during the Argentina Dictatorship of the 1970’s. “We are here to show our support of Chavez and our repudiation of Bush and imperialism. We are against Bush because of his oil wars and his other policies, which go against the people of the world” said Chilean Claudio Hernandez. Rarely has a foreign leader inspired so much support in the world everywhere from Europe, Asia, and America.
But not everyone liked that Chavez was helping the poor.
In 2002, Chavez was kidnapped by the military and a new military government was instated, led by business tycoon Pedro Carmona. This new government immediately declared in the “Carmona Decree” that the House of Representatives was to be disbanded, along with the Supreme Court and National Electoral Board. All the land and wealth Chavez had given to the poor of Venezuela was to be immediately taken and given back to the big landlords, by force if necessary. Immediately following was mass repression, thousands of arrests, and deaths. Military Police roamed the streets massacring protests with shotguns, machine guns, and tanks. These massacres were filmed by several reporters who happened to be in Venezuela at the time, eventually culminating in the documentary “The Revolution will not be televised” This documentary went on to be the winner of the “Best Documentary” award from dozens of nations and film circles around the world. The rest of Latin America quickly took action in calling this new government “illegitimate” and a “violation of constitutional order”. In Venezuela, millions poured out onto the streets defying military rule, and demanded Chavez’s return. The people of Venezuela loved the freedom that Chavez had granted them – they would rather first die than submit themselves once again to dictatorship and tyranny. Eventually mass-unrest and protest forced the military to return Chavez and the new government to resign. Chavez and many of his supporters later believed that the CIA had instigated or supported this coup. “The US is trying to kill me!” Chavez has said. It didn’t help when American Christian Pat Robertson called for Chavez’s death on national television, saying “We have the power to take him out…and I think it’s time we exercise that ability. If he thinks we're trying to assassinate him, I think that we really ought to go ahead and do it. I don't think any oil shipments will stop.” With this belief, Chavez has been campaigning ever since to rid Venezuela and Latin America of what he believes is American influence. As Chavez himself has said, "Today we gave another lesson in dignity to the imperialist. We will never be a colony of the US again....Long live the socialist revolution!" BBC reported later that night “There will be relief in most of Latin America that President Hugo Chavez is back in power in Venezuela, with many seeing this as important for the development of democratic constitutional rule on the continent.”
While some people in the US call Chavez a dictator, Chavez’s socialist republic is now a haven for democracy. There has been no police repression since he has taken power. If Chavez truly ruled over a dictatorship, anti-Chavez demonstrations would be banned, the press would be censored, and instead we would be seeing Chavez statues everywhere. “The Constitution provides for freedom of speech and of press…the Chavez government has generally respected these rights,” says a US Federal report. “His determination to…to deepen democracy - giving Venezuelans full participation and social equality - is worthy of the highest praise,” says Venezuelan Professor Margarita Maya. Foreigners, such as prominent Canadian Filmmaker Charles Gervais, have described that one is freer in Venezuela than in any other nation in the world. There is no secret police or political arrests. As Chavez has said, “Those of you who oppose me - Fine, Oppose Me! I wish I could change your minds, but you cannot oppose this constitution. This is the people's book. You have to recognize this. There will be no witch hunts, no persecution, no disrespect for free expression or thought.”
Yet not everyone is willing to peacefully protest against Chavez. As former President and opposition leader Carlos Andres Perez says, “We can't just get rid of Chavez and immediately have a democracy. Violence will allow us to remove him. That's the only way we have…” His words clearly show that the opposition realizes that they have no hope of ever defeating Chavez democratically. In December 2006, Chavez was reelected with over 62% of the vote, monitored by thousands of international observers. Organization of American States observer Juan Enrique Fisher declared the election to be “massive and peaceful” and in “complete liberty”. Isn’t this the ideal leader that every country desires? One who works all the time, and only for, the people of his country? Venezuela isn’t an enemy of democracy – it is the realization of true democracy in the world. As Venezuelan Student Leader Abraham Aparicio says; “The president is revolutionary, totally different to the people who have governed the country in the past …the president is working for the people.”
Bibliography (not to be included):
(Note: The Newspaper required this to prove I wasn't just spouting propaganda)
http://thinkexist.com/quotes/hugo_chavez/ - Chavez Quotes
https://cia.gov/cia//publications/factbook/geos/ve.html - CIA Report on Venezuela
http://www.americans-for-chavez.com/missions.html - Chavez’s Humanitarian Projects
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6205128.stm - Chavez Re-Election Victory
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6191348.stm - Thoughts about Chavez by BBC
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/3517106.stm - More Chavez Information
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/talking_point/4350254.stm - Opinion’s on Chavez
http://www.worldlii.org/int/cases/IACHR/1999/12.html - UN Report on Perez Massacres
http://www.chavezthefilm.com/index_ex.htm - “The Revolution will not be televised”
http://www.cepr.net/columns/weisbrot/venez...n_elections.htm (http://www.cepr.net/columns/weisbrot/venezuelan_elections.htm) - Elections and Support
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/...1187165,00.html (http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1187165,00.html) – More info
http://www.venezuelanalysis.com/news.php?newsno=1320 – Chavez opposition
http://www.venezuelanalysis.com/articles.php?artno=1908 = Detailed Electoral Processes of Venezuela and Election Results
http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/profiles/Venezuela.pdf = Federal Research Division report
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/1929498.stm Venezuelan Post Coup Information
http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2005-0...obertson-_x.htm (http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2005-08-22-robertson-_x.htm) - USA Today’s Report on Pat Robertson’s call for Assassination
http://www.handsoffvenezuela.org/chavez_vienna_may12.htm - Example International Rally
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,258035,00.html - Fox News Report on 20,000 person rally in Argentina