Quote :

"he'll never get a chance to see what good he might do for venezuela, b/c his foreign policy will get him embargoed"

Did it ever occur to you that he wants an embargo? Chavez's economic policy is the same as so many others, it helps the poor in the short term but in the long terms leads to economic collapse. His only hope at that point is to have someone else to blame for the collapse, such as the Americans. And the only way to make it credible is if the Americans are doing some visible and hard to dispute, such as an embargo.

For example, I seriously doubt Castro would still be in power in Cuba if not for the embargo. You see, I've spoken to Communists and they swear life would be perfect in Cuba if not for the embargo, which is utter nonsense. The U.S. (and a small number of others) are the only participants in the embargo. Cuba is free to trade with Canada, Mexico, Europe, all of Asia, all of South America. This is not an embargo with any bite what-so-ever, yet it gives Communists a good excuse when they see Cubans with a per-capita income 1/3rd that of Mexico, an unstable and corrupt basket case. And it goes miles for Cuban's themselves, whenever they realize their lot in life sucks, don't riot, just blame the American embargo.

9/21/2006 9:18:18 AM

id put 1,000,000 on chomsky

laying out dead from some natural cause during a debate

that guy is OLD

9/21/2006 9:19:03 AM

I can't believe that no one has speculated that his speach was just a little tounge-in-cheek.

Quote :

"Right here. Right here. And it smells of sulfur still today, this table that I am now standing in front of.”"

9/21/2006 10:27:36 AM

^ Pretty much. But oh noes, that's bringing filthy stinking linguistics into it...

9/21/2006 11:19:23 AM

chavez is god

9/21/2006 11:20:55 AM

How bout a 1$ million dollar debate between Chomsky and Nick Berg on the peaceful religion of islam?

Ooops...game called because of be-heading!

9/21/2006 11:21:25 AM

What debate? Chomsky would call out the beheaders as unpeaceful.

9/21/2006 11:31:59 AM

Quote :

"Bolton."

I was thinking Bush myself, but Bolton works too.

9/21/2006 11:51:46 AM

Quote :

"refreshing and scary, at the same time. chomsky cant hold rush's jock."

Holding Rush's jock is Randy's fantasy.

Then again, he may be speaking from experience.

[Edited on September 21, 2006 at 12:36 PM. Reason : hmmm...]

9/21/2006 12:33:07 PM

You know you've probably crossed a line somewhere if you can get Nancy Pelosi to speak in defense of the President.

Quote :

"One of President George W. Bush's fiercest political opponents at home took his side on Thursday, calling Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez a "thug" for his remark that Bush is like the devil. "Hugo Chavez fancies himself a modern day Simon Bolivar but all he is an everyday thug," House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi said at a news conference, referring to Chavez' comments in a U.N. General Assembly speech on Wednesday. "Hugo Chavez abused the privilege that he had, speaking at the United Nations," said Pelosi, a frequent Bush critic. "He demeaned himself and he demeaned Venezuela.""

http://reuters.myway.com/article/20060921/2006-09-21T164325Z_01_N21334844_RTRIDST_0_NEWS-VENEZUELA-USA-SPAT-DC.html

9/21/2006 1:37:41 PM

Rangel too, good stuff on YouTube

9/21/2006 3:02:33 PM

Nancy Pelosi: "I'd like for Hugo Chavez to single-handedly shatter the Democrats' chances in November..."

Seems like this'd pretty much wrap it up for the GOP.

9/21/2006 3:33:00 PM

^
naw, $2/gal gas took care of that

9/21/2006 4:29:07 PM

the fact that chavez's actions would be linked to the dems shows hom much of a joke they have become.

youre seeing now just how out of the mainstream they are.

9/21/2006 4:31:57 PM

Chavez made a fool out of himself, and those who take him seriously from now on will look like fools, also.

9/21/2006 7:19:11 PM

The guy is a great man and this is no "extreme" view. He's just expressing how MOST of the rest of the world feels about the United States (especially under Bush).

he went to Harlem today and could barely start his speech because people were chanting his name so graciously.
CHAVEZ!!!!...CHAVEZ!!!!!...CHAVEZ!!!!!!
if anything he maybe could overthrow our government



thinking we own the world.

Iran can't even have nuclear energy?

9/21/2006 7:29:30 PM

yeah, that's right

we own the world

and NO, iran can't have independent weapon's grade uranium or plutonium

i'm sorry

[Edited on September 21, 2006 at 7:31 PM. Reason : .]

9/21/2006 7:30:35 PM

well nobody is stopping them

9/21/2006 7:35:13 PM

Quote :

"The guy is a great man and this is no "extreme" view."

you have got to be the most ignorant piece of trash i have ever seen


whoooo hoo1!!!! adhiminiemeima!!!!

9/21/2006 7:42:12 PM

I think she meant "extreme" in the context of the rest of the world. They likely wouldn't see it as extreme.

9/21/2006 7:47:02 PM

Quote :

"well nobody is stopping them"

really?

you ever heard of israel... watch what happens

those guys don't dick around

[Edited on September 21, 2006 at 7:48 PM. Reason : .]

9/21/2006 7:47:55 PM

These "underground bunkers" are too secure for a simple flash bombing run.

The marginal loss of Israel invading the several "hidden underground bunkers" against the largest army in the world is much greater than Iran making one. Then they (weapons factories or w/e might not even be there after you invade) you know, kind of reminds me of another situation...hmm

9/21/2006 8:00:19 PM

^what????

9/21/2006 8:02:18 PM

Why do we even pay attention to Chavez?

9/21/2006 9:37:30 PM

Dat awl!

9/21/2006 9:58:42 PM

holy shit, Israel is going to invade China now?

9/21/2006 10:02:02 PM

Wha?

9/21/2006 10:05:11 PM

Quote :

"Chavez's economic policy is the same as so many others, it helps the poor in the short term but in the long terms leads to economic collapse."

That remains to be seen. Certainly Venezuela is doing a lot better now than it used to be doing. Not so long ago, per capita income was actually dropping in that country.

http://www.cepr.net/publications/venezuela_2005_06.pdf

9/21/2006 11:34:53 PM

Quote :

"Why do we even pay attention to Chavez?"

Name the last time a world leader was even remotely entertaining.

9/21/2006 11:43:06 PM

Bush use to be pretty entertaining with his misquotes and such.

Now he's just annoying.

9/21/2006 11:47:28 PM

Quote :

"That remains to be seen. Certainly Venezuela is doing a lot better now than it used to be doing. Not so long ago, per capita income was actually dropping in that country."

Not according to the study I read. If you deduct the oil sector from the economy then economic activity has fallen under Chavez. Not much, more stagnation than anything else.

According to yet another rag, I think it was out of the Economist, but since Chavez came into power and seized personal control over the Venezuelan state-run oil company that same oil wealth too is sliding. Chavez seized investment money that was needed to keep some oil fields pumping and because the company was no longer able to pay its contractors they were forced to shut some fields which cannot be restarted again.

That was a few years ago and since then Chavez has reversed course allocating billions to investment. But he has already eliminated all the capable managers from the company because they protested his usurpation of the companies autonomy (and its investment), so odds are the resumed investment will not be managed properly.

If oil crashes to $20 a barrel then in six months time Venezuela would suffer a huge balance of payments crises, producing rampant inflation and economic instability. Lucky for Chavez oil is not likely to get that cheap anytime soon.

[Edited on September 22, 2006 at 12:30 AM. Reason : .,.]

9/22/2006 12:28:42 AM

Quote :

"According to yet another rag, I think it was out of the Economist"

I'm interested in why you think think The Economist is a rag. It's probably where I get most of my world news from.

9/22/2006 12:33:20 AM

http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/09/21/chavez.ny/index.html

Haha, New York city and its universities, such wonderful cornerstones of America!

9/22/2006 12:50:54 AM

chavez sharpton 08

9/22/2006 1:36:50 AM

[On March 18, 2005] Chavez handed [Venezuela's minister of communication and information Andres] Izarra a still-bigger stick: a new penal code that criminalizes virtually any expression to which the government objects -- not only in public but also in private.

Start with Article 147: "Anyone who offends with his words or in writing or in any other way disrespects the President of the Republic or whomever is fulfilling his duties will be punished with prison of 6 to 30 months if the offense is serious and half of that if it is light." That sanction, the code implies, applies to those who "disrespect" the president or his functionaries in private; "the term will be increased by a third if the offense is made publicly."

There's more: Article 444 says that comments that "expose another person to contempt or public hatred" can bring a prison sentence of one to three years; Article 297a says that someone who "causes public panic or anxiety" with inaccurate reports can receive five years. Prosecutors are authorized to track down allegedly criminal inaccuracies not only in newspapers and electronic media, but also in e-mail and telephone communications.

9/22/2006 8:41:53 AM

we should of put his punk ass in jail when he was here visiting

and then we should of televised bush personally kicking his ass

now that would of been funny

[Edited on September 22, 2006 at 10:22 AM. Reason : ]

9/22/2006 10:22:44 AM

Quote :

"Iran can't even have nuclear energy?"

Yes Iran can have nuclear energy. With the enrichment happening in Russia. But they wouldn't accept that.

Also, you are no longer allowed to call yourself an EC major because you're going to fail out of it or switch to BA in order not to.

You are obiously a moron.

9/22/2006 10:43:41 AM

^wow, that post makes you sound like the most egotistical econ major ever.

9/22/2006 3:41:02 PM

I think you're already seeing a large portion of Latin America already start to distance themselves from Chavez. For example, Peru's recent election was between one of Chavez' allies (or alleged ally) and the guy that ruined the country in the 1980s. And the Peruvians, despite having recent memory of the previous president and 2.5 million % inflation rates, still elected him over the Chavez-like candidate.

[Edited on September 22, 2006 at 5:55 PM. Reason : .]

9/22/2006 5:54:42 PM

might I add that Brazil and Ven are in a bit of a spat namely because Brazil set up some factories and invested $$$. Then Ven said they are ours, you need to leave. I personally find it funny since brazil has a tendency to steal our stuff (mainly crops)

9/22/2006 9:17:07 PM

I liked how earlier tonight CNN regarded this story as BREAKING NEWS.

Like it really matters in the long run. He tried to pull a Kruschev and only succeeded in looking like a silly imitation to the rest of the world, or so it seems.

good luck in your home country, chavez. now shut up.

9/23/2006 3:20:51 AM

Regarding corruption in Venezuela:

http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/americas/09/25/guatemala.prison.reut/index.html

While sending troops in to end it is a good sign, the fact that such a situation could arise is pretty terrible.

9/26/2006 1:41:26 AM

in Guatemala?

9/26/2006 2:13:14 AM