Hugo Chavez Dead

[cocodrilo]

Originally Posted by austingtr

He knew a guy that walked one block to a bar from his hotel and came back to the hotel literally naked. They took everything. They robbed him four times on his short trek.

Too bad it wasn't Sean Penn.

[wargunfan]

Originally Posted by geauxgator1

You say a "free press"? Well I guess they will be more free than Venezuela's, but even this country's press leaves a lot to be desired. They are mostly left wingers, who will go out of their way not to embarrass the Chavistas. I doubt we get a true reading from any of them.

We can only hope that a free press will emerge when the Chavistas are no longer in power. Then and only then will we learn the true depths to which Venezuela has sunk.

[geauxgator1]

Originally Posted by wargunfan

We can only hope that a free press will emerge when the Chavistas are no longer in power. Then and only then will we learn the true depths to which Venezuela has sunk.

I would hope so, but we can only speculate as to who will grab the power. Hopefully it will be peaceful and a fair process or election. We will just get more of the same if Maduro gets control. My feeling is that he will, and Venezuela will remain a communist dictatorship for a long time.

[Burke]

Dick Morris has a very good article on the effect of Chavez's death. He's thinking that now all of South America can open up their economies like the people of Asia have done.

http://www.dickmorris.com/after-chav...aign=dmreports

[MichaelJoeWilliamson]

Originally Posted by wgbgator

I've read a number of pieces, including that one. The Guardian has done some pretty good repoting on Chavez too. Chavez was a serial mismanager, as I stated earlier. But I'm curious to see whether his project was held together by his shear force of personality despite his limitations as a manager and leader and the country plunges into politcal violence or whether competent leadership will be able to step in and correct Chavez's bungling with what seems like a solid political base and valuable natural resources, and put Venezuela on sounder footing.

Indeed. History is not encouraging about that though. I can't think of a single country that has nationalized both oil resources and oil companies that is doing well economically and where the citizens have a lot of civil liberties.

[PSGator66]

Dennis Miller said that this ruined his bracked since he had Castro going first.