chesswarsnow
12-02-2007, 11:11 PM
Sorry bout that,
1. Looks like Chavez stole a Nation.
2. What has happened to the people of Venezuela?
3. Its sad that its come to this.
4. The crimes that are and will take place, are hideous!
5. God help the people there.
6. Story goes thusly:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/03/world/americas/03venezuela.html?_r=2&hp=&oref=slogin&pagewanted=print&oref=slogin
"
December 3, 2007
CARACAS, Venezuela, Dec. 2 — From the unusually quiet streets of this capital to the hushed tones of state television announcers, Venezuela was on edge Sunday night as voters awaited the outcome of a contentious referendum that would give President Hugo Chávez sweeping new constitutional powers.
Hours after the polls closed, the government still had not released official results, causing political leaders to speculate that the vote was too close to call.
That would be a stunning development in a country where Mr. Chávez and his supporters control nearly all of the levers of power.
“The result will be quarrelsome,” Vice President Jorge Rodríguez said in comments broadcast on national television.
Both supporters and critics of the president pointed to exit polls in their favor, suggesting a disputed outcome to the vote. Electoral officials said official results could be released late Sunday evening or early Monday, after reports from polling stations around the country trickled in here.
In recent weeks, members of previously splintered opposition movements joined disillusioned Chávez supporters in an attempt to defeat the constitutional changes, which would abolish term limits, allow Mr. Chávez to declare states of emergency for unlimited periods and increase the state’s role in the economy, among other measures.
A defeat of the proposed constitutional overhaul would slow Mr. Chávez’s socialist-inspired transformation of Venezuela. Under his leadership the government, once a staunch ally of the United States, has become a leading opponent of the Bush administration’s policies in the developing world. It has also taken the most profound leftward turn of any large Latin American nation in decades.
The streets here were unusually free of traffic on Sunday evening, adding to the tension. Supporters of Mr. Chávez gathered around the presidential palace downtown to await the results, as they have done in past elections. The occasional blast of fireworks from hillside slums broke the rare silence of this city.
Unlike in past votes here, this time the government did not invite observers from the Organization of American States or the European Union, opening itself to potential claims of fraud.
The voting seemed to unfold largely without irregularities, though there were isolated reports of fraud and violence in parts of the country.
The referendum followed several weeks of street protests and frenetic campaigning over the 69 amendments to the Constitution proposed by Mr. Chávez and his supporters. It caps a year of bold moves by the president, who forged a single Socialist party among his followers, forced a television network critical of the government off the public airwaves, and nationalized oil, telephone and electricity companies.
In recent weeks, Mr. Chávez has adopted an increasingly confrontational tone with critics abroad, who have been multiplying even in friendly countries with moderate leftist governments like Brazil and Chile.
In the days before the referendum, Mr. Chávez recalled his ambassador from Colombia and threatened to nationalize the Venezuelan operations of Spanish banks after Spain’s king told him to shut up during a meeting. Mr. Chávez said he would cut off oil exports to the United States in the event of American interference in the vote.
.The United States remains the largest buyer of Venezuela’s oil, despite deteriorating political ties, but that long commercial relationship is starting to change as Mr. Chávez increases exports of oil to China and other countries while gradually selling off the oil refineries owned by Venezuela’s government in the United States.
Venezuela’s political opposition, normally divided among several small political parties, found common cause in calling on its members to vote against the amendments. An increasingly defiant student movement also protested here and in other large interior cities against the proposed charter.
In a move that alarmed the opposition, electoral officials over the weekend revoked the observer credentials of Jorge Quiroga, a former president of Bolivia and an outspoken critic of Mr. Chávez. Mr. Quiroga accused security forces here of following him after his arrival in Caracas. “They’ve taken my credential but not my tongue,” Mr. Quiroga said.
But Mr. Chávez, whose followers already control many powerful institutions — the National Assembly, the federal bureaucracy, the national oil company, the Supreme Court and all but a handful of state governments — relied on an unrivaled political machine to gather support for the measures.
“The whole proposal is marvelous,” said Francis Veracierta, 52, a treasurer at a communal council here, one of thousands of local governing entities loyal to Mr. Chávez that he created this year. After awakening to predawn fireworks, she said she joined a line at 6 a.m. to vote at a school in Petare, an area of sprawling hillside slums here.
“The power is for us in the community,” said Ms. Veracierta, wearing a red shirt, red cap and belt with Che Guevara’s face on it. She said she credited Mr. Chávez’s government for giving her a $3,800 loan to start a small clothing business.
But turnout in some areas was unexpectedly low, particularly in poor districts that are traditional bastions of loyalty for Mr. Chávez. Some of his supporters expressed concern that if they voted against the measures they might be retaliated against.
There was no line in front of the voting center at the Cecilio Acosta school in Petare on Sunday morning, as a few dozen people who had already voted milled about the street. Some volunteers working the voting machines sat idle, waiting for more voters to arrive. Other voting centers in Petare had lines outside, but they were less than half a block long.
“I’m impressed by the lack of voters,” said Ninoska González, 37, who sells cigarettes on the street. “This was full last year.” She described herself as a “Chavista” who voted for the president in last year’s presidential elections, but said she voted against his proposed changes on Sunday.
“I don’t agree with some articles,” Ms. González said. Asked about a measure to pay social security benefits to workers in the informal economy like her, she said, “That’s a lie.”
Confusion persisted Sunday over the amendments, with a major complaint among the president’s supporters and critics being that they had too little time to study the proposals. Some measures were warmly received even by the president’s critics, however, like those prohibiting discrimination based on political beliefs and sexual orientation.
Venezuela is struggling with the highest inflation rate in Latin America, at more than 16 percent. Farmers and ranchers complain that price controls prevent them from producing many basic products profitably, creating a flourishing black market for scarce items like milk, sugar and chicken.
The uncertainty over Mr. Chávez’s reforms, meanwhile, has led to accelerating capital flight as rich Venezuelans and private companies rush to buy assets abroad denominated in dollars or euros. One of the reforms would shorten the work day to six hours, popular among workers but potentially hurting productivity. The currency, the bolívar, currently trades at about 6,100 to the dollar in street trading, compared with an official rate of 2,150.
Venezuela’s state-controlled oil industry is also showing signs of strain, grappling with a purge of opposition management by Mr. Chávez and a retooling of the state oil company to focus on social welfare projects while aging oil fields need maintenance.
Petróleos de Venezuela, the state oil company, says it produces 3.3 million barrels a day, but OPEC places its output at just 2.4 million barrels. And private economists estimate that a third of oil production goes to meet domestic consumption, which is surging because of a subsidy that keeps gasoline prices at about seven cents a gallon.
Still, Mr. Chávez already has unprecedented discretionary control over Venezuela’s oil revenues, valued at more than $60 billion a year. “Because of its oil, Venezuela has global reach in OPEC and the rest of Latin America,” said Kenneth R. Maxwell, a professor of Latin American history at Harvard University.
"
7. I think its time we got this man out of power, what's this one man, compared to a whole Nation.
8. I guess in a way, we should allow him to go ahead and kill at least 50,000 people, before we step in.
9. That way we won't be seen as invading a sovereign nation.
10. I never thought I would see the day, but this is the time when many false prophets will arise.
Regards,
SirJamesofTexas
1. Looks like Chavez stole a Nation.
2. What has happened to the people of Venezuela?
3. Its sad that its come to this.
4. The crimes that are and will take place, are hideous!
5. God help the people there.
6. Story goes thusly:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/03/world/americas/03venezuela.html?_r=2&hp=&oref=slogin&pagewanted=print&oref=slogin
"
December 3, 2007
CARACAS, Venezuela, Dec. 2 — From the unusually quiet streets of this capital to the hushed tones of state television announcers, Venezuela was on edge Sunday night as voters awaited the outcome of a contentious referendum that would give President Hugo Chávez sweeping new constitutional powers.
Hours after the polls closed, the government still had not released official results, causing political leaders to speculate that the vote was too close to call.
That would be a stunning development in a country where Mr. Chávez and his supporters control nearly all of the levers of power.
“The result will be quarrelsome,” Vice President Jorge Rodríguez said in comments broadcast on national television.
Both supporters and critics of the president pointed to exit polls in their favor, suggesting a disputed outcome to the vote. Electoral officials said official results could be released late Sunday evening or early Monday, after reports from polling stations around the country trickled in here.
In recent weeks, members of previously splintered opposition movements joined disillusioned Chávez supporters in an attempt to defeat the constitutional changes, which would abolish term limits, allow Mr. Chávez to declare states of emergency for unlimited periods and increase the state’s role in the economy, among other measures.
A defeat of the proposed constitutional overhaul would slow Mr. Chávez’s socialist-inspired transformation of Venezuela. Under his leadership the government, once a staunch ally of the United States, has become a leading opponent of the Bush administration’s policies in the developing world. It has also taken the most profound leftward turn of any large Latin American nation in decades.
The streets here were unusually free of traffic on Sunday evening, adding to the tension. Supporters of Mr. Chávez gathered around the presidential palace downtown to await the results, as they have done in past elections. The occasional blast of fireworks from hillside slums broke the rare silence of this city.
Unlike in past votes here, this time the government did not invite observers from the Organization of American States or the European Union, opening itself to potential claims of fraud.
The voting seemed to unfold largely without irregularities, though there were isolated reports of fraud and violence in parts of the country.
The referendum followed several weeks of street protests and frenetic campaigning over the 69 amendments to the Constitution proposed by Mr. Chávez and his supporters. It caps a year of bold moves by the president, who forged a single Socialist party among his followers, forced a television network critical of the government off the public airwaves, and nationalized oil, telephone and electricity companies.
In recent weeks, Mr. Chávez has adopted an increasingly confrontational tone with critics abroad, who have been multiplying even in friendly countries with moderate leftist governments like Brazil and Chile.
In the days before the referendum, Mr. Chávez recalled his ambassador from Colombia and threatened to nationalize the Venezuelan operations of Spanish banks after Spain’s king told him to shut up during a meeting. Mr. Chávez said he would cut off oil exports to the United States in the event of American interference in the vote.
.The United States remains the largest buyer of Venezuela’s oil, despite deteriorating political ties, but that long commercial relationship is starting to change as Mr. Chávez increases exports of oil to China and other countries while gradually selling off the oil refineries owned by Venezuela’s government in the United States.
Venezuela’s political opposition, normally divided among several small political parties, found common cause in calling on its members to vote against the amendments. An increasingly defiant student movement also protested here and in other large interior cities against the proposed charter.
In a move that alarmed the opposition, electoral officials over the weekend revoked the observer credentials of Jorge Quiroga, a former president of Bolivia and an outspoken critic of Mr. Chávez. Mr. Quiroga accused security forces here of following him after his arrival in Caracas. “They’ve taken my credential but not my tongue,” Mr. Quiroga said.
But Mr. Chávez, whose followers already control many powerful institutions — the National Assembly, the federal bureaucracy, the national oil company, the Supreme Court and all but a handful of state governments — relied on an unrivaled political machine to gather support for the measures.
“The whole proposal is marvelous,” said Francis Veracierta, 52, a treasurer at a communal council here, one of thousands of local governing entities loyal to Mr. Chávez that he created this year. After awakening to predawn fireworks, she said she joined a line at 6 a.m. to vote at a school in Petare, an area of sprawling hillside slums here.
“The power is for us in the community,” said Ms. Veracierta, wearing a red shirt, red cap and belt with Che Guevara’s face on it. She said she credited Mr. Chávez’s government for giving her a $3,800 loan to start a small clothing business.
But turnout in some areas was unexpectedly low, particularly in poor districts that are traditional bastions of loyalty for Mr. Chávez. Some of his supporters expressed concern that if they voted against the measures they might be retaliated against.
There was no line in front of the voting center at the Cecilio Acosta school in Petare on Sunday morning, as a few dozen people who had already voted milled about the street. Some volunteers working the voting machines sat idle, waiting for more voters to arrive. Other voting centers in Petare had lines outside, but they were less than half a block long.
“I’m impressed by the lack of voters,” said Ninoska González, 37, who sells cigarettes on the street. “This was full last year.” She described herself as a “Chavista” who voted for the president in last year’s presidential elections, but said she voted against his proposed changes on Sunday.
“I don’t agree with some articles,” Ms. González said. Asked about a measure to pay social security benefits to workers in the informal economy like her, she said, “That’s a lie.”
Confusion persisted Sunday over the amendments, with a major complaint among the president’s supporters and critics being that they had too little time to study the proposals. Some measures were warmly received even by the president’s critics, however, like those prohibiting discrimination based on political beliefs and sexual orientation.
Venezuela is struggling with the highest inflation rate in Latin America, at more than 16 percent. Farmers and ranchers complain that price controls prevent them from producing many basic products profitably, creating a flourishing black market for scarce items like milk, sugar and chicken.
The uncertainty over Mr. Chávez’s reforms, meanwhile, has led to accelerating capital flight as rich Venezuelans and private companies rush to buy assets abroad denominated in dollars or euros. One of the reforms would shorten the work day to six hours, popular among workers but potentially hurting productivity. The currency, the bolívar, currently trades at about 6,100 to the dollar in street trading, compared with an official rate of 2,150.
Venezuela’s state-controlled oil industry is also showing signs of strain, grappling with a purge of opposition management by Mr. Chávez and a retooling of the state oil company to focus on social welfare projects while aging oil fields need maintenance.
Petróleos de Venezuela, the state oil company, says it produces 3.3 million barrels a day, but OPEC places its output at just 2.4 million barrels. And private economists estimate that a third of oil production goes to meet domestic consumption, which is surging because of a subsidy that keeps gasoline prices at about seven cents a gallon.
Still, Mr. Chávez already has unprecedented discretionary control over Venezuela’s oil revenues, valued at more than $60 billion a year. “Because of its oil, Venezuela has global reach in OPEC and the rest of Latin America,” said Kenneth R. Maxwell, a professor of Latin American history at Harvard University.
"
7. I think its time we got this man out of power, what's this one man, compared to a whole Nation.
8. I guess in a way, we should allow him to go ahead and kill at least 50,000 people, before we step in.
9. That way we won't be seen as invading a sovereign nation.
10. I never thought I would see the day, but this is the time when many false prophets will arise.
Regards,
SirJamesofTexas