Fact is relations between Columbia and Venezuela are strained. It doesn't help that Venezuela has shown some tacit support for the guerillas that are operating over their border into Columbia.
And how, exactly is he dragging his country down? I don't agree with him politically, but the people of Venezuela, overall, are better off now than they have been in over two decades. The wealthy and middle class aren't any worse off beyond the fact their investments aren't making the colossal profit they used to be making when Venezuela's oil wealth went almost exclusively to a small minority of the population. Instead, more Venezuela's have access to health care and education than ever before, and prices of necessities have gone down.
So the national strikes are indicative of significant support for him? Nice social programs require money to fund them. If you have a big healthy economy, you can bleed it a bit more for such things. If you have a straggly economy, then it doesn't survive very long. We'll see how long he stays in power and how long his cronies start to arrange things more to their benefit over a longer period of time. If the democratic process really breaks down, it'll get to be a problem. His past involvement in a military coup against a democratically elected government seems to indicate a decided lack of respect for democratic process. Time will tell.
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momijizukamori
no subject
Date: 2006-02-03 10:16 pm (UTC)And how, exactly is he dragging his country down? I don't agree with him politically, but the people of Venezuela, overall, are better off now than they have been in over two decades. The wealthy and middle class aren't any worse off beyond the fact their investments aren't making the colossal profit they used to be making when Venezuela's oil wealth went almost exclusively to a small minority of the population. Instead, more Venezuela's have access to health care and education than ever before, and prices of necessities have gone down.
So the national strikes are indicative of significant support for him? Nice social programs require money to fund them. If you have a big healthy economy, you can bleed it a bit more for such things. If you have a straggly economy, then it doesn't survive very long. We'll see how long he stays in power and how long his cronies start to arrange things more to their benefit over a longer period of time. If the democratic process really breaks down, it'll get to be a problem. His past involvement in a military coup against a democratically elected government seems to indicate a decided lack of respect for democratic process. Time will tell.