tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4080946.post8897790009557495120..comments2024-03-26T00:37:34.943+01:00Comments on Venezuela News And Views: Two elections the same day give two visions of the worldDanielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12128609182544333477noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4080946.post-43145737044836766932011-06-06T19:50:15.819+02:002011-06-06T19:50:15.819+02:00Anonymous,
"It isn't so much that we don...Anonymous,<br /><br />"It isn't so much that we don't value democracy as that we don't value politics."<br /><br />Democracy requires a set of values that are rare in Venezuela in general.There has to be a fundamental value for each person being equal under the law and as a daily premise, and each person's opinions should hold as much weight as the next.In Venezuela there is too much class consciousness for that.People are too impressed by OUTER credentials and not enough by the inner more essential ones.Then to top it off strongmen are very much admired as a part of the machismo culture.Strongmen have more importance than your average Joe which pretty much eliminates equality on all levels.<br /><br />example:A teacher's meeting in Venezuela basically consists of a bunch of sycophants yelling over each other for special attention from the boss.This is the most common occurrence and the epitome of a political , yet undemocratic situation.Boss is ALL.Second come the sycophants, and the ones left out are the ones trying to be considerate of the other.<br /><br />I would say that these characteristics have to change( in large part) before democracy can truly stabilize.<br /><br />But any improvement in the level of democracy would be welcomed after Chavez.<br /><br />When the inner Venezuela changes, the outer can change.<br /><br />I am hoping that some people may have changed some values after this horrendous experiment with Chavez.firepigettehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17348890269608169297noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4080946.post-55160164661222660262011-06-06T19:00:38.464+02:002011-06-06T19:00:38.464+02:00Roberto
Revoking the exile status of these people...Roberto<br /><br />Revoking the exile status of these people would mark IMMEDIATELY the subordination of Humala to Chavez, something that he might not want to risk so fast, the more so that Peru's stock market crashed today and had to be closed a few minuted after opening.<br /><br />I think they are safe for at least for the rest of this year.Danielhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12128609182544333477noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4080946.post-71397876902583840972011-06-06T18:56:05.297+02:002011-06-06T18:56:05.297+02:00Daniel:
One angle I haven't seen brought up i...Daniel:<br /><br />One angle I haven't seen brought up is what will happen to the exiled Venezuelans like Carlos Ortega and Manuel Rosales once Humala sits on the throne.<br /><br />I wonder if, all of a sudden, their asylum status will change.<br /><br />Any thoughts on that?Roberto Nhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12693120055439617799noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4080946.post-29465776691454071942011-06-06T07:34:31.604+02:002011-06-06T07:34:31.604+02:00anonymous
Alan Garcia is actually rather educated...anonymous<br /><br />Alan Garcia is actually rather educated and speaks, I think, three languages fluently. That he is, or was, crazy is another matter. Also Keiko is well educated and it showed in her interviews. <br /><br />Even Correa has a US PhD and a Belgian decent degree. Colombian and Chilean presidents are of course well educated and until Evo so were the Bolivian ones, just to mention the Andean states. <br /><br />Venezuela has been the exception as its presidents never had foreign degrees and few could boast of at least a decent local degree (Caldera was a lawyer, writer, Lusinchi a Pediatrician but CAP had no college degree)<br /><br />The thing is that education in a politician tends to be rather a negative in Latin American politics: "el es como tu" did not originate from spontaneous generation... Peru and Venezuela seeming to suffer quite a lot of that syndrome...Danielhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12128609182544333477noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4080946.post-13706996275564485482011-06-06T04:57:45.341+02:002011-06-06T04:57:45.341+02:00"No, my bitterness is the realization once ag...<b>"No, my bitterness is the realization once again that in Latin America democracy is far, far from being entrenched and the main reason is that as a continent we do not value democracy"</b><br /><br />It isn't so much that we don't value democracy as that we don't value <b>politics</b>. This means two things: (1) honest, hard-working people don't want to become politicians; and (2) the voters think that being a good politician in general and good president in particular is merely a matter of "saber mandar". They believe that knowledge and education have little to do with it, and even the kind of people who demand to read a dentist's college degree before letting him touch their teeth, will happily vote for someone who never finished high-school.<br /><br />The first point means that even when people want to elect a good, solid president, they simply won't find anyone running for president that fits the bill and, like in Peru in the last 2 elections, they have to settle for "the one who is slightly less likely to screw things up." (Though Alan Garcia didn't turn out as bad as everyone feared.)<br /><br />And the second point means that the few times when someone with some actual intellectual skills decides to run for office, he'll immediately be discarded as dull or boring or lacking leadership, and will never be elected for anything.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4080946.post-65835029791539554292011-06-06T03:51:59.991+02:002011-06-06T03:51:59.991+02:00América Latina siempre a la contramano de Europa. ...América Latina siempre a la contramano de Europa. (Perdón que escriba en español, no consigo pensar a estas alturas). Y por acá no existe el voto castigo, o mejor dicho, el voto castigo es al revés. Cuanto peor te portas, mejor te va. La gente aplaude a lo corruptos... Las caricaturas de Weil en tu otro post lo dicen todo... ¡Lamentable!Milonganoreply@blogger.com