Blogging the democratic revolution
If there was any question in anyone’s mind that Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez might not be a communist, that illusion was put paid to rest by Chavez’s visit today to Belarus, the last remaining dictatorship in Europe. Agencia EFE reported the Venezuelan dictator’s visit to Europe’s most oppressive regime this way: “We must make (Soviet Union founder Vladimir) Lenin’s slogan a reality regarding the unacceptability of the exploitation of man by man,” Chavez told the press. The Venezuelan leader said he had come to Minsk to “seal a unity pact and lay the first stone for future relations between Belarus…
Ah, NAFTA, and the glories of free trade. The economies of the U.S., Canada and Mexico have all increased threefold since that first shot against tyranny was fired with that alliance on New Year’s Day in 1994. There’s is nothing more impressive than free trade. Or here’s another way of looking at it.
Yes, there is such a thing! Daniel at Venezuela News & Views has links and a great essay of his own describing this actual phenomenon. He explains that how the creepier you are, the more likely you are to think that toting a Kalashnikov is cool. He’s got the yucky photo of the foremost practitioner of this Kalashnikov-toting practice (take a guess who!) and links to photos examining this phenomena in this item here. He’s also got harsh words for Code Pink “Peace Mom” Cindy Sheehan who continues to extol the virtues of Venezuela’s dictator in a remarkably ignorant new…
Moderate democratic socialist President Michelle Bachelet of Chile looks to be slightly edging toward the right, given a recent cabinet shuffle. Three cabinet officials, from education, economy and interior have been replaced. This follows recent street protests from students who were demaning that the government raise funding and bus fares for education. It was the harshest challenge to her government, and curiously enough, led by the far-left. Troy University political scientist Steven Taylor at PoliBlogger points out that on the surface, the studiously balanced cabinet, between men and women, remains. But idea-wise, the shift has moved a little to the…
Cuban communist dictator Fidel Castro is probably on his last legs. Rumors of the tyrant’s demise are circling like vultures over dead carrion. According to Val Prieto at Babalu blog, citing some items in The Miami Herald, the communist press on the island prison is giving considerable prominence all of a sudden to Castro’s no-good little brother, Raul, whom he’s designated as his dynastic successor. We are likely to know for sure on July 26, which is Castro’s favorite holiday, that of his putsch. But there’s more than that. Val has suddenly started getting actual hate mail from Castro’s brutal…
Democratic revolution is spreading across the world, in the greatest news and megatrend story of possibly the century. But for those of us who are already in democratic regimes, we sometimes wonder if there is much more we can do except watch and applaud. There is partisan political activism, of course, but that isn’t for everyone. And we can’t get involved in partisan politics, except maybe to cheer at the sidelines. So how does the free world participate in advancing democracy and beating back tyrants? Well, just look. Today, the West struck a couple of significant blows against tyranny —…
Supporters of Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador in another protest. Source: The Scotsman Defeated Mexican presidential candidate, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, is not going down without a fight. He refuses to accept the results of the July 2 election. It was a hard fought presidential race and he lost by a narrow margin, which has got to be tough, and now he is charging wholesale fraud in a desperate effort to turn the result his way. Knowing his peje character, it’s probably not surprising that he would react this way. A peje is a barracuda-like fish that swims around in AMLO’s…
They’re probably not true. Val at Babalu blog has the best — and some very funny – stuff here. Just click and keep scrolling.
Go see what Jim Hoft’s dragged in at GatewayPundit this time here!
Boli-Nica at Boli-Nica blog has a humdinger of an item about how the Mexican Internet and all its youthful users have roared into life, slamming Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador and all his absurd efforts to derail Mexico’s hard-won democracy. Among other things, the Mexican Internet-os are deriding AMLO for failing to learn English! They’re sending e-mails out, setting up Web sites at lightening speed to make fun of the guy and in a less classy move, some are hacking into AMLO’s site, re-directing it to a less flattering one. They are photoshopping AMLO like crazy and making mean little YouTubes…
Supporters of Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador gather to protest in Mexico City Source: El Universal Leftist presidential candidate Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, who lost Mexico’s July 2 presidential election by a narrow margin, has brought his supporters to the streets in a bid to overturn the election, on claims of fraud. The AMLO party, PRD, has yet to substantiate its claim that the election has been conducted in any way other than exemplarily. Observers from the European Union and other places have said it was clean. I was in Tijuana for the election and the AMLO party (PRD) observer also…
Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez, in the style of Stalin before him, continuously makes ridiculous claims about ending poverty, illiteracy, unemployment, and exclusion. Under his great “socialism,” all is sweetness and light, wonder and justice, just like the Happy Commie pictures you find in Iron Curtain propaganda posters. Yeah, sure. Have you ever tried to learn another language? Do you remember how hard it was to learn to read when you were five or six, even if you had the best teachers? Under Chavistadom, you are now asked to believe that it no longer is hard anymore to become literate and…
Mexico’s next president, Felipe Calderon Source: Agencia EFE, via Yahoo! Mexico Free-Market Felipe Calderon wins the race Source: El Universal Continued from this earlier Publius Pundit post here. El Universal has the final count here, along with AMLO’s statement that he won’t accept the result. Here we go again! It’s just like Monday! Mexican markets are going hog wild with happiness! Boli-Nica has an interesting essay on the election here and the need to pay attention to Mexico, here. Miami Herald is reporting that Mexico’s election agency is taking a lot of heat from AMLO people who don’t like the…
AMLO’s supporters out demonstrating in Mexico City Source: El Universal (Mexico) There’s no news link, just a wire report that’s not out on the Internet yet. AMLO is leading in the Mexican presidential election official count with 35% of the polling stations officially counted already. The first “quick count” results said that Felipe Calderon had won. Now, the PREP, or summary, results, which are being tallied now, say that AMLO is in the lead – and that lead is pretty big, three percentage points with 50% of the ballots officially counted. (Update: It’s diminishing to 2.42% with 64% of the…
French fans celebrate their World Cup victory in Paris Source: Reuters, via Yahoo! The French team accomplished a beautiful victory against the Portuguese team today, putting it in the World Cup final match versus Italy on July 9. The French took it very well and were out celebrating the penalty-kick victory match in the streets of Paris. It sure beats burning Citroens and kicking in shop windows, no? Maybe the game did not entirely have a satisfactory endimg but it was a fine thing for France, because their team had been so underestimated, so dismissed as ‘all washed up’ and…
Felipe Calderon and Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador Source: Reuters, via Yahoo! I drove to Tijuana today, the city in the greater metropolis of 4 million on the farthest northwest corner of Mexico, to witness one tiny piece of the most momentous presidential election of the year – Mexico’s. Seventy-one million Mexicans were qualified to vote, and based on the scene here in Tijuana, they took it seriously. Everyone voted. Many of those who forgot to register to vote from the consulates in the U.S. drove to Tijuana to vote – and there were polling stations right over on the other…
The pro-democracy crowds were huge. Thousands of Hong Kongers carried signs reading ‘I want to vote.’ The democracy goddess was there, too. Former chief secretary, Anson Chan. (The kindly grandmother, not the kid.) Source, all photos: AFP, via Yahoo! Thousands of Hong Kongers marched in the streets to explicitly demand full democracy from Red China on the ninth anniversay of the British handover to the communist giant. Two leaders, Roman Catholic Cardinal Zen and Anson Chan participated for the first time – both are historically cautious, and deeply respected, their views are seen as a bellwether. The turnout – somewhere…
In the past few years, presidential cavorting around has been taken to new heights by Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez, his master below in Havana, and his little mini-me, Evo Morales of Bolivia. Big photo ops, goofy costumes, wild radio shows and lots of spectacle seem to be the norm of the day. That said, for good or evil, these events attract attention because the participants all look like they are having fun. President Bush has no doubt noticed this … and has decided to top them. He invited Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi over to the White House and onto…
Boz at Bloggings by Boz did something a little different this week and focused on the biggest election in the hemisphere, Mexico’s, which will be held this Sunday. He’s got the final polls and lots of bullet-point analysis on the how that race is going. Want to know who is most likely to win in Mexico this weekend – a commie caudillo, or a free marketer? Go see what Boz has here. Meanwhile, Jonathan at the excellent Business & Politics in Bolivia has the final polls and analysis of the autonomy referendum which will be a turning point for Bolivia,…
Joining its close ally, El Salvador, as well as Nicaragua and Honduras, Guatemala has today fully entered the Central American Free Trade Agreement. Two more countries are yet to ratify their entry, but Guatemala has gotten it together and today is a happy day. Trade, in and of itself, is why the U.S.’ economy has grown so strongly, despite high oil prices and big layoffs and other economic plagues. Trade is simply a much stronger factor. It’s also something that scares the hell out of Hugo Chavez of Venezuela. There is nothing he fights the U.S. harder on or bullies…
Bolivia’s industrious, anti-communist Santa Cruz citizens rally for autonomy Source: Reuters, via Yahoo! News Not every Bolivian likes to be under the thumb of Hugo Chavez’s Marxist mini-me, Evo Morales. Residents of the eastern province, Santa Cruz, which is full of industrious immigrants and enterprising native-indigenous Bolivians who’ve moved there, want instead to have autonomy. They hate communism and want freedom. This weekend’s coming vote is seen by some as a first step toward secession, but that is probably going too far at this stage. The vote, for now, is just on autonomy, to decentralize an all too powerful and…
Terrific news! Peru’s Congress passed the Free Trade pact with the U.S., after months of contentious debate. They took one look (well, probably several) at the $11 trillion economy they have the opportunity to freely trade with and decided it was worth it. They passed the measure, despite fears that they wouldn’t. They ignored the protests. They considered their nation’s interests. They’re right! Now we can buy Made In Peru products as easily as Made In China ones. Better yet, they probably will not cost as much. Better still, we can sell our own fancy capital equipment or whatever to…
Have you seen the Venezuelan movie, Secuestro Express? It’s my favorite current movie. It’s also the most popular Venezuelan movie in history. The only other Venezuelan movie I have seen is Manuela Saenz, and that was weakly done. Secuestro Express is in a league with the best Mexican and Colombian movies, a real chair-gripping suspense and drama. I was screaming by the end of it. It documents a quick and dirty kidnapping of two rich young people – one callow, one not – by a gang of at least four thugs from the slums, one of whom has a glint…
Malaysia’s Former Deputy Prime Minister, Anwar Ibrahim Source: The Sydney Morning Herald Democratic revolutionary Anwar Ibrahim of Malaysia is being approached by … well, someone … to apply for the top United Nations post, to succeed UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan. I think it’s a great idea! Anwar is a terrific leader whose appeal extends borders and who can talk to all kinds of people. Young men in Indonesia, who might otherwise move over to follow the Islamofascists, drop those stupid ideas when asked about Anwar, whom they really admire. He’s an authentic globalist and a very reasonable Muslim. I remember…