tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10659894.post3867157656739667783..comments2023-08-04T07:57:09.855+00:00Comments on Alek Boyd: Uh! Ah! Chavez no se va!Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10659894.post-88066827986938861872012-10-09T20:15:20.888+00:002012-10-09T20:15:20.888+00:00Absolutely a great post. Thanks for the contributi...Absolutely a great post. Thanks for the contributionolliehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03956294058787654557noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10659894.post-67485292685160593282012-10-09T12:07:25.593+00:002012-10-09T12:07:25.593+00:00Would you say that the participation was high beca...<i>Would you say that the participation was high because since it was chavez himself who was on the line, elpueblo went to support him?</i><br /><br />No doubt. Think about it: when Chavez neck is on the line, all and sundry know that their own skin's in the game. When lesser men, jalabolas, appointees, etc., are on the line, there's always another chance, a reshuffle, new roles, etc.<br /><br /><i>If so, what outcome do you expect from the regional elections?</i><br /><br />A better one for the opposition. <br />ABhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10014152460206926913noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10659894.post-74533612563318479712012-10-08T16:53:03.212+00:002012-10-08T16:53:03.212+00:00Would you say that the participation was high beca...Would you say that the participation was high because since it was chavez himself who was on the line, elpueblo went to support him?<br /><br />If so, what outcome do you expect from the regional elections?<br /><br />If the opposition manages to win the states in which chavez won with less that the nationwide advantage, that would be half the country, and I dare to think: the most important part of the country.<br /><br />And even if the above didnt happen, from the same graph you published, one can see that from that group, except for zulia, caracas, carabobo and amazonas, the difference was around 5% or less, and zulia and carabobo have always voted oppo on regional elections.<br /><br />I think it's very tough, but plausible, because it is not for chavez anymore and las bases are very mad about their regional leaders, and with half the states against chavez (again, much of the more importants for the economy) it's a way to keep live the game and help to slow him down or force him to a declared dictatorship, it's one thing to pull a ledezma in a town hall in caracas, another to pull a ledezma in half of the country.kernel_panichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05750026155932671261noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10659894.post-19196072501869479532012-10-08T12:53:04.695+00:002012-10-08T12:53:04.695+00:00Yes, a 1.3 million vote difference is something th...Yes, a 1.3 million vote difference is something that can't be fabricated. Certainly there is always a level of fraud and voter intimidation, but I don't think it was enough to change the result of the election. If it had been, then why didn't the opposition and it's witnesses object the election? So yes, we can agree that Chavez won --more or less-- fair and square. <br /><br />It would seem that most people who oppose Chávez --politicians and voters-- are incapable of understanding those 7.44 million that do support Chávez "How can they vote for him? How can they support what is happening in this country?", ask many people I know. But I am convinced that until we understand who this people are and how they think, there is no hope of engaging with them and convincing them that they would benefit from another country. Capriles has been closer than any other opposition candidate to achieving that, but obviously it was not enough.<br /><br />A have a lot of chavista friends --and I'm not talking about bolibourgeois who support Chávez because they are making a killing thanks to the "revolution". I mean people who live in Cotiza and 23 de Enero, and whom I became very close with because we played tambores together every single weekend for more than 10 years. We shared birthdays and outings, even though I was a "sifrino" from Prados del Este.<br /><br />For what I have seen, they don't share the same conceptions and values about democracy that the other half of Venezuela does. Concepts like alternability, balance of power and freedom of the press sound alien to them. Incredibly, they don't subscribe either to Chavez's socialism --which they understand even less than democracy. They also don't seem to realize that there is a connection between whoever is elected president and the path the country takes. They speak like if whatever happens in Venezuela is not the responsibility of Chávez. <br /><br />My perception is that they have the political consciousness of a 13-year-old. They want to know that eventually Chávez will give them "something" --a red t-shirt, a house, a sense of recognition and belonging. And certainly they like Chávez because he looks like them, speaks like them and thinks like them. Most importantly, he shares their belief that he is not responsible for whatever happens in Venezuela. And while he is not to be blamed, neither are them. Those of us who do have a sense of civic duty, have no idea how comfortable that realization must be!<br /><br />The only thing that makes a teenager mature is time and experience. So I guess this will be necessary for these people. Let them keep being the main victims of Chavez's failed policies, and eventually they will open their eyes. A shame for the rest of us, but that is how democracy works. What we can do, if we are impatient, is build bridges towards this people, instead of saying things like "I can't believe they voted for Chávez".Reynaldo Trombettahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09929724873712791848noreply@blogger.com