Conservapedia - User contributions [en]

Augusto Pinochet

2011-09-21T16:14:51Z

Kapitalismesuger:

{{Dictator bio
| image =[[Image:Pinochet de Civil.jpg|200px]]
| name =Hugo Chavez
| birth =1915 [[Santiago de Chile]], [[Chile]]
| parents =
| religion =Roman Catholic
| education =
| spouse =[[Lucia Hiriart]]
| children =[[Ines Lucia Pinochet|Ines Lucia]], [[Khorloogin Choibalsan|Khorloogin]], [[Maria Veronica Hiriart|Maria Veronica]], Jacqueline Marie, Augusto Osvaldo Pinochet, 
Marco Antonio Pinochet
| death =2006
| deathmanner =n/a
| burial =n/a
| country =[[Chile]]
| military =[[Chilean Armed Forces]]
| rank =Lieutenant colonel
| polbeliefs =[[Capitalism]], [[Liberalism]], [[Anti-Communism]]
| party =[[Chilean Armed Forces]]
| dictatordate = 1973-1990
| war =[[Chilean coup d'etat of 1973|US invasion]]
| deathnumber =70 000 or more
}}
General '''Augusto José Ramón Pinochet Ugarte''' (1915–2006) was a [[Chile]]an [[soldier]] and [[politician]] who became Chile's capitalist dictator from 1973 to 1990. He came to power as a member of a council of military leaders after the overthrow of the government of President [[Salvador Allende]]. US intelligence reports implicated Allende in the assassination of several opponents,<ref>http://nixontapeaudio.org/chile/517-004.pdf</ref> while KGB files smuggled out of Russia by Vasily Mitrokhin indicate that Allende received funds from the Soviet Union.<ref>http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/219461/pinochet-history/nro-symposium</ref> Allende was formally condemned by Chile's parliament for systematically destroying democracy in Chile.<ref>“Declaration of the Breakdown of Chile’s Democracy,” Resolution of the Chamber of Deputies, Chile, August 22, 1973.</ref> The Chilean Chamber of Deputies Resolution of August 22, 1973, accused Allende of support of armed groups, torture, illegal arrests, muzzling the press, confiscating private property, and not allowing people to leave the country. In the infamous "Cuban Packages Scandal" that precipitated the coup, large quantities of weapons were sent from Castro's Cuba to arm pro-Allende terrorists in Chile.<ref>http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/219461/pinochet-history/nro-symposium</ref> Kissinger privately told Nixon that Allende might declare martial law.<ref>http://nixontapeaudio.org/chile/517-004.pdf</ref> By 1973, as a result of covert US aid to Chilean dissidents and financing of pro-democracy protestors, US intelligence indicated Allende would likely lose the next Chilean election if it was held.<ref>http://archive.frontpagemag.com/Printable.aspx?ArtId=15648</ref> According to ''The Wall Street Journal,'' faced with illegal seizures of farms and factories, of defiance of judicial orders, unchecked street violence and death threats against the judges themselves, the Supreme Court warned on May 26, 1973, in a unanimous and unprecedented message, that Chile faced "a peremptory or imminent breakdown of legality."<ref>http://www.lyd.com/noticias/violencia/what_really.html</ref> Volodia Teitelboim, the chief ideologue of the Communist Party in Chile, declared that if civil war came, "it probably would signify immense loss of human lives, between half a million and one million."<ref>http://www.lyd.com/noticias/violencia/what_really.html</ref> On September 11, 1973, Allende committed suicide during a military coup launched by Pinochet, who became President.

General Pinochet headed a military government for 17 years (1973-1990), suppressed [[communist]] revolutionaries in Chile, and got a new Constitution approved in 1980 that established a gradual and legal path for the return to full democracy.

General Pinochet instituted free market reforms in Chile in the 1970s that resulted in lower [[inflation]] and an economic boom. During this period, he held a [[plebiscite]] on his rule and 75% of the people affirmed their support for his emergency government.

During his time in power, including the 1973 coup, at least 1,200 people were killed or vanished. The most common estimate is that 3,000 were killed,<ref>BBC profile http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6167237.stm</ref> while other estimates go as high as 10,000. In addition, over a quarter million Chileans were arrested. Universities were purged of terrorist sympathizers, Marxist books were burned, and rival political parties banned. Thousands of members of the Socialist Party of Chile and the Communist Party of Chile fled the country out of fear of the [[secret police]], which allegedly tortured citizens.<ref>Augusto Pinochet Biography http://www.moreorless.au.com/killers/pinochet.html</ref>

A new constitution was adopted in Chile in 1981, which authorized General Pinochet to serve as president for another eight-year term, to be followed by a plebiscite on his presidency.

Pinochet moved Chile into a market economy, privatizing many inefficient government businesses, and opening the country to foreign investment. The stability that his government gave encouraged foreign investors to come to Chile. He also started one of the first [[private pension accounts]] pension systems in the world, which has been highly successful.

Using its leverage over Pinochet to curtail Chilean human rights abuses, the US simultaneously pressured Chile to introduce a series of economic reforms, a process that escalated sharply in the eighties. This led to a period of rapid economic expansion and development without precedent in Latin America, in which growth averaged 7% annually, that came to be known as the "''miracle of Chile''" (it also included the region's greatest reductions in infant mortality<ref>Nick Eberstadt, The Poverty of Communism (Transaction Publishers, 1990), pp188,
196-206, 240-6, in which he discusses living standards in [[Communist]] [[Cuba]] versus Pinochet's Chile.</ref>). In turn, this allowed Chile to make a long-term transition to sustainable democratic rule that would likely have been otherwise inconceivable.<ref>http://www.lyd.com/noticias/violencia/what_really.html</ref>

As promised, President Pinochet held another plebiscite in October 1988 on the issue of whether he should continue as president. He was defeated by a vote of 55-43%, and subsequent free elections were won by the [[Christian]] Democrat Patricio Aylwin, who was installed as president on March 11, 1990.

General Pinochet was a graduate of the [[School of the Americas]] at Fort Benning, [[Georgia]].

In 1998, the [[leftists]] who had long hated Pinochet arranged for his arrest while he was in [[London]] receiving medical treatment. An unprecedented arrest warrant was issued in [[Spain]] for alleged [[human rights]] violations that occurred in Chile while he was president. The stunt failed, and Pinochet was subsequently returned to Chile due to his ill health. He was later indicted and charged with [[kidnapping]] 19 supporters of Salvador Allende during the 1973 coup in which Pinochet took power. The Chilean [[Supreme Court]] suspended the prosecution in July 2002, again due to Pinochet's continuing poor health.

Pinochet died of a heart attack on December 10, 2006.<ref>http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/10/world/americas/10cnd-pinochet-timeline.html?ex=1174449600&en=7b24f9d3e63ff60a&ei=5070 NYTimes</ref>

== References ==
<references />

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pinochet, Augusto}}

[[Category:Dictators]]
[[Category:Dictators backed by the United States]]
[[Category:Capitalist dictators]]

Hugo Chavez

2011-09-21T16:05:46Z

Kapitalismesuger: Dictator?! But hes elected?! And he isnt communist How anti-semite?

{{Dictator bio
| image =[[Image:chavez.jpg|200px]]
| name =Hugo Chavez
| birth =July 28, 1954 Sabaneta, Venezuela
| parents =Hugo de los Reyes Chávez Elena Frías de Chávez
| religion =Roman Catholic
| education =Daniel Florencio O'Leary High School, Barinas Venezuelan Academy of Military Sciences, Caracas
| spouse =Nancy Colmenares (div.) Marisabel Rodríguez (div.)
| children =Rosa Virginia María Gabriela Hugo Rafael Rosinés (with Marisabel)
| death =n/a
| deathmanner =n/a
| burial =n/a
| country =[[Venezuela]]
| military =Venezuelan army
| rank =Lieutenant colonel
| polbeliefs =[[Socialism]]
| party =Fifth Republic Movement United Socialist Party
| dictatordate =November 2000
| war =n/a
| deathnumber =Unknown
}}
'''Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías''' (b. July 28, 1954) is the current president of the Bolivarian Republic of [[Venezuela]].
A self-proclaimed [[socialist]] and [[collectivist]], he have modernized the country.
Chávez assumed power as President in 1999 and pledged to aid Venezuela's poor majority.
Elections were held in 2000 and in 2006, allowing Chavez to retain his presidency.

*{{Venezuela blunder}}

==Election fraud==
Steven F. Hayward wrote:
* While exit polls conducted by the very reliable American firm of Penn, Schoen, and Berland showed Chavez losing by a large margin (41 to 59), the official results put Chavez free and clear by a vote of 58 to 41 percent.<ref>[http://frontpagemag.com/Articles/Read.aspx?GUID=5A8D0094-4590-4DFB-A7F0-C2E06A6820FB]</ref>

A 26 February 2003 report by Robert Tracinski obliterates the left-wing mythology around Chavez:
<blockquote>
: '''Step one''': Chavez has initiated formal proceedings to revoke the licenses of independent, privately owned television and radio stations. Meanwhile, his political militias, the Bolivarian Circles, have staged violent attacks on independent media outlets. After all, elections don't mean much if all people watch is propaganda on state-run television.

: '''Step two''': Chavez has used a moratorium on currency conversion--needed to pay for imported goods--to punish his opponents. Vowing "no dollars for coup-mongers," he has used this power, for example, to prevent opposition newspapers from importing ink. After all, elections don't mean much if your opponents are too busy worrying where their next meal is coming from.

: '''Step three''': Venezuelan police acting on Chavez's orders have arrested Carlos Fernandez, the head of Venezuela's largest business federation and a leader of the recent anti-Chavez strike, charging him with rebellion and sabotage. Another strike leader, Carlos Ortega, head of Venezuela's largest labor union, has gone into hiding. In one move, Chavez has neutralized two potential rivals for the presidency. After all, elections don't mean much if all of the other candidates are in jail.

: '''Step four''': Last week, four protesters were kidnapped while returning from an anti-Chavez rally. They were blindfolded, tortured, and shot execution-style. Some of the victims were witnesses to a previous pro-Chavez political killing, and they had planned to testify against the shooter. Consider the message sent to the opposition when the mutilated bodies of their friends start showing up in the city streets. After all, elections don't mean much if your opponents are afraid to leave their houses and walk to the polls.

: '''Step five''': A few days ago, Chavez delivered a speech denouncing Spain, Colombia, and the US for interfering in Venezuela. This morning in Caracas, the diplomatic missions of Spain and Colombia were bombed. Credit was claimed by a splinter pro-Chavez group--but this was not a bunch of kids cooking up homemade bombs in their basement. The bombs were powerful plastic explosives, the kind of weapons that are difficult to obtain without government complicity.<ref>http://www.capitalismmagazine.com/world/americas/2514-dictatorship-by-the-numbers-in-venezuela.html</ref>
</blockquote>

$4 billion dollars were spent paying paramilitary groups to attack unarmed protestors and other dissidents during and after the elections.<ref>http://www.capitalismmagazine.com/world/americas/2968-venezuela-a-new-junket-for-a-dictator-s-best-friend-jimmy-carter.html</ref>

The European Union condemned the conditions placed on election monitors as unacceptable and declined to attend. The Carter Center was shut out for three days. Experts from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard University have identified signs of fraud based on statistical analysis.<ref>http://www.capitalismmagazine.com/world/americas/3924-the-carter-stamp-of-approval-on-the-venueuzlan-election-less-than-worthless.html</ref>

==Human rights concerns==
Hugo Chávez is a great friend of the tyrannical [[Cuban]] despot [[Fidel Castro]] and is said to have drawn his political style through influences such as [[Che Guevara]], [[Karl Marx]] and [[Simon Bolivar]]. The U.S. State Department ''Report on Global Anti-Semitism'' cited Chavez in August 2004 warning citizens against following the lead of Jewish citizens in the effort to overturn his referendum victory.<ref>[http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/40258.htm Report on Global Anti-Semitism] U. S. Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, [[Human Rights]], and Labor, January 5, 2005. </ref> Chavez has also embraced a number of world leaders that have hostile relations with the United States, including Holocaust-denier [[Mahmoud Ahmadinejad]], the President of [[Iran]], who Chavez has referred to as "my brother".<ref>[http://english.eluniversal.com/2006/07/31/en_pol_art_31A756133.shtml Chávez decorated in Iran; initials cooperation pacts]</ref> U.S. Speaker of the House of Representatives [[Nancy Pelosi]] said of Chavez, "Hugo Chavez fancies himself a modern-day [[Simon Bolivar]], but all he is is an everyday thug."<ref>[http://www.jewishworldreview.com/cols/pruden092206.php3 Back to the old days, if only for a minute], Wesley Pruden, ''Jewish World Review'', Sept. 22, 2006.</ref> He is also considered to be an ally of [[leftist]] [[Ecuador|Ecuadorian]] president [[Rafael Correa]], [[Bolivia|Bolivian]] president [[Evo Morales]] and the president of [[Nicaragua]], [[Daniel Ortega]] ... all radical leftists.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6187364.stm Correa]</ref>

In May 2007, Chavez silenced the only remaining opposition television station critical of his repression by revoking its licence.<ref>[http://www.guardian.co.uk/venezuela/story/0,,2085952,00.html Chávez silences critical TV station], Rory Carroll, ''The Guardian'', May 23, 2007.</ref> Crowds of students demonstrated saying they feared for the future of human rights in Venezuala. National Guard troops were ordered to fire [[tear gas]] and [[rubber bullets]]. Two students were injured, a third was hit with a tear gas canister, and about 20 people needed emergency medical attention for inhaling tear gas. <ref>[http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2007/05/28/ap3763178.html Troops Fire Upon Protesters in Venezuela], Fabiola Sanchez, Associated Press, 05.28.07. Retrieved from Forbes.com 05/31/07. </ref> Chavez employs discrimination against [[migrant workers]] in the country.<ref>http://www.capitalismmagazine.com/world/americas/3924-the-carter-stamp-of-approval-on-the-venueuzlan-election-less-than-worthless.html</ref>

Chavez has said, “I am going to go after those who resist the revolution and eliminate them one by one.”<ref>[http://www.naplesnews.com/news/2007/jul/07/guest_commentary_we_must_help_venezuela_because_fr/ Because Freedom Matters], By U.S. Rep. Connie Mack IV and Blanquita Cullm, ''Naples Daily News'', July 7, 2007.</ref>

===Trafficking in Persons===
Venezuela under Chavez has been on the U.S. State Department’s Tier 3 list for [[trafficking in persons]] since 2004, which means that the government is categorized as one that has failed to make significant efforts to bring itself into compliance with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking in persons. The State Department’s June 2007 Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report maintains that Venezuela is a source, transit, and destination country for women and children trafficked for [[sexual exploitation]] and [[forced labor]].<ref>U.S. Department of State, [http://www.state.gov/g/tip/rls/tiprpt/2007/ Trafficking in Persons Report], June 12, 2007, p. 207.</ref>

==Relations with US==
[[File:Chavez Obama.jpg|thumb|At the Fifth Summit of the Americas.]]
Foreign relations between the [[United States of America]] and [[Venezuela]] are presently unstable. Chavez often criticizes the United States for its 'imperialism' on his radio segment 'Alo Presidente', and alleges the United States's supported a 2002 coup in Venezuela which toppled Chávez momentarily and later removed by Chávez supporters, also known as 'Chávistas'. Venezuela is heavily dependent upon trade revenue from oil sales to the United States.

===Terrorism===
In May 2006, the State Department determined that, pursuant to Section 40A of the [[Arms Export Control Act]], Venezuela was not fully cooperating with U.S. [[antiterrorism]] efforts. This triggered a prohibition on the sale or license of defense articles and services to Venezuela. Other countries on the Section 40A list include [[Cuba]], [[Iran]], [[North Korea]], and [[Syria]], not to be confused with the "state sponsors of
terrorism" list under Section 6(j) of the Export Administration Act of 1979, which currently includes Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Sudan, and Syria. The State Department asserted that the Section 40A determination was based on Venezuela’s near lack of antiterrorism cooperation over the last year, citing its support for Iraqi insurgents and Iran’s development of nuclear capabilities, the country’s status as a safe haven for Colombian and Basque terrorist groups, and its effort to derail hemispheric efforts to advance counter-terrorism policies in the OAS. In May 2007, the State Department again included Venezuela in its annual Section 40A determination that it was not cooperating fully with U.S. antiterrorism efforts.

In late April 2007, the State Department issued its annual Country Reports on Terrorism, which asserted that President Chávez "persisted in public criticism of U.S. counterterrorism efforts, deepened Venezuelan relationships with Iran and Cuba, and was unwilling to prevent Venezuelan territory from being used as a safe haven" by Colombian terrorist groups.

There have been long-held suspicions that Chávez has supported leftist Colombian guerrillas, although Chávez denies such support. The State Department’s terrorism report maintains that units of Colombia’s two leftist terrorist groups — the [[Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia]] (FARC) and the [[National Liberation Army]] (ELN) — often crossed into Venezuela "to rest and regroup with relative impunity."

In addition, according to the report, splinter groups of the FARC and a rightist terrorist group, the [[AUC|United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia]] (AUC) reportedly operate in various parts of the country and are involved in drug trafficking. The report maintained, however, that "it remained unclear to what extent the Venezuelan
Government provided material support to Colombian terrorists."

In addition, according to the report, Venezuelan citizenship, identity, and travel documents remained easy to obtain, making the country a potentially attractive waystation for terrorists. In July 13, 2006, congressional testimony, the State Department’s Principal Deputy Coordinator for Counterterrorism, Frank Urbancic, asserted that the United States was detaining increasing numbers of third-country aliens at its borders carrying falsified or fraudulently issued Venezuelan documents. U.S. officials also have expressed concerns about President Chávez’s close relationship with Cuba’s Fidel Castro, but Chávez defends his relationship with Cuba. Overall Venezuelan support to Cuba is estimated to be more than $2 billion a year.<ref>Frances Robles and Phil Gunson, ''Cuba Spotlights Chávez Friendship,'' Miami Herald, January 26, 2007.</ref> Venezuela supplies some 90,000 barrels of oil per day to Cuba on a concessionary basis under PetroCaribe. In return, Venezuela has received support from thousands of Cuban health care workers and sports instructors in the country.

During an April 2005 trip to Cuba, Presidents Chávez and Castro announced commercial deals worth over $400 million, including a joint shipyard to build small navy ships and a joint housing construction company. In January 2007, a delegation of Cuban officials visited Caracas and signed a number of agreements to increase economic linkages, including an agreement for joint oil exploration in both countries.

PdVSA is also involved in refurbishing an unfinished oil refinery in Cienfuegos, Cuba. Beyond Latin America, the Bush Administration has expressed concerns with Venezuela’s growing relations with Iran. In February 2006, Secretary of State Rice referred to Venezuela, along with Cuba, as “sidekicks” of Iran in reference to those countries’ votes in the International Atomic Energy Agency against reporting Iran to the U.N. Security Council over its uranium enrichment program.<ref>Pablo Bachelet, “Rice Bashes Venezuelan Leader, Politics,” Miami Herald, February 17, 2006; House International Relations Committee, Hearing on the Fiscal Year 2007
International Affairs Budget, Testimony of Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, February
16, 2006.</ref> In testimony before the Senate Select Intelligence Committee in February 2006, Director of National Intelligence John Negroponte expressed concern that President Chávez "is seeking closer economic, military, and diplomatic ties with Iran and North Korea."<ref>Senate Select Intelligence Committee, Hearing on World Wide Threats, Testimony of Director of National Intelligence John Negroponte, February 2, 2006.</ref> ran and Venezuela signed an agreement for a $200 million fund to finance joint investment and social projects, and commercial agreements in the early stages include plans for a cement factory, oil exploration in the Orinoco River belt, and a joint operation to build oil and liquid natural gas tankers.<ref>Steven Dudley, "Chávez’s Wooing of Iran Called Troubling," Miami Herald, March 2, 2006.</ref> During a visit by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to Venezuela in mid-January 2007, the two countries announced they would use a $2 billion investment fund to finance projects in both countries and other countries as well.<ref>Simon Romero, ''Iranian President Visits Venezuela to Strengthen Ties,'' New York Times, January 14, 2007.</ref>

Some Members of Congress have expressed concerns about relations between Venezuela and Iran. In the 110th Congress, H.Res. 435 (Klein) would, among its provisions, express concern over national security implications of the relationship between the leaders of Iran and Venezuela.

According to the ''Washington Post'' Chavez has been accused of supplying weapons to Colombian rebels, of financing Bolivian and Ecuadorian groups seeking to establish "Marxist" states, and of being, with Cuban leader Fidel Castro's guidance, a "[[subversion (political)|subversive]]" everywhere else in the region.<ref>[http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/08/25/AR2005082501420.html?nav=rss_world/centralamerica ''Dealing With the Good and Bad Hugo Chavez''], Marcela Sanchez The Washington Post 25 August 2005.</ref>

==Expropriation==
[[Image:Hugo-chavez8.jpg|left|175px|thumb|Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez with Fidel Castro.]]

In typical socialist rhetoric, Chavez makes wild claims to fund the government by nationalizing foreign assets. Typical reasons include accusing companies of environmental damage and exploiting its workers. In 2010 alone, Chavez seized 195 companies. <ref>[http://english.eluniversal.com/2010/10/20/en_eco_art_a-total-of-195-busin_20A4631291.shtml A total of 195 businesses has been seized in 2010, El Universal, October 20, 2010]</ref> Spanish-owned farm supply and U.S.-based Ohio bottle company were recently taken over. Other recognized multi-national companies such ExxonMobil, steel maker Sidor, cement company CEMEX fell to the same fate. <ref>[http://wellsy.wordpress.com/2010/10/26/chavez-takes-over-venezuelan-plants-of-oh-company/ Chavez takes over Venezuelan plants of OH company, Wellsy's World, October 26, 2010]</ref> Venezuala is supposed to compensate the companies but nobody expects Chavez to provide other than peanuts for assets he steals.

Through Venezuela's state owned petroleum industry and membership in [[OPEC]], Chávez has now used powers granted to him by Parliament to increase oil prices, adding revenue for the Bolivarianist projects. Countries such as the United States have criticized Chávez for the increase in cost for crude oil. Chavez is at the forefront of wanting to set crude oil prices at $60 a barrel minimum, according to the ''Asia Times''<ref>[http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Global_Economy/HL07Dj01.html ''Bush, OPEC and Chavez of Arabia''], Pepe Escobar, Asia Times, 7 December 2006.</ref>

==Religious==
Chavez demanded that [[Pope Benedict]] apologize for saying the Roman Catholic Church purified Indians in Latin America. Chavez called the treatment of Indians after [[Christopher Columbus]] landed in 1492 a "holocaust".<ref>[http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSN1819661120070519 Chavez demands Pope apologize for Indian comments], Reuters, May 19, 2007</ref>

==2011 Health Crisis==
On June 30th, 2011, the 56 year-old President admitted, in a televised speech, of having cancer. <ref>[http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-13991906]</ref>

==Quotes==
*On closure of RCTV, claiming the network's broadcasts amounted to a "permanent attack on public morals" with cartoons that were "poisoned with hatred, violence and even sex."

*"Private banks have to give priority to financing the industrial sectors of Venezuela at low cost...If banks don't agree with this, it's better that they go, that they turn over the banks to me."

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

==See Also==
[[Previous Breaking News/Hugo Chavez|Articles about '''Hugo Chavez''' from previous "Breaking News"]]
* [[Kim Jong Il]]
* [[Idi Amin Dada]]

==Further reading==
*[http://www.venezuelanalysis.com/] An in depth view on Venezuela under Hugo Chávez.
*[http://www.latinbusinesschronicle.com/app/article.aspx?id=706] An overview of articles on Venezuela's business under Hugo Chávez.
*[http://www.realclearpolitics.com/Commentary/com-2_24_06_AVL.html ''Why The Left Should Cringe at The Mention of Hugo Chavez''], Alvaro Vargas Llosa, Independent Institute, February 24, 2006.
*[http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_kmnew/is_200108/ai_kepm313968 ''Bolivar, Dictator or Paladin?''] Interview: Hugo Chavez talks about Venezuela, Maria Amparo Lasso, Newsweek, Aug 20, 2001.

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chavez, Hugo}}
[[Category:Venezuela]]
[[Category:Lunatics]]

Hugo Chavez

2011-09-21T16:04:30Z

Kapitalismesuger: Dictator?! But hes elected?! And he isnt communist

{{Dictator bio
| image =[[Image:chavez.jpg|200px]]
| name =Hugo Chavez
| birth =July 28, 1954 Sabaneta, Venezuela
| parents =Hugo de los Reyes Chávez Elena Frías de Chávez
| religion =Roman Catholic
| education =Daniel Florencio O'Leary High School, Barinas Venezuelan Academy of Military Sciences, Caracas
| spouse =Nancy Colmenares (div.) Marisabel Rodríguez (div.)
| children =Rosa Virginia María Gabriela Hugo Rafael Rosinés (with Marisabel)
| death =n/a
| deathmanner =n/a
| burial =n/a
| country =[[Venezuela]]
| military =Venezuelan army
| rank =Lieutenant colonel
| polbeliefs =[[Socialism]]
| party =Fifth Republic Movement United Socialist Party
| dictatordate =November 2000
| war =n/a
| deathnumber =Unknown
}}
'''Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías''' (b. July 28, 1954) is the current president of the Bolivarian Republic of [[Venezuela]].
A self-proclaimed [[socialist]] and [[collectivist]], he have modernized the country.
Chávez assumed power as President in 1999 and pledged to aid Venezuela's poor majority.
Elections were held in 2000 and in 2006, allowing Chavez to retain his presidency.

*{{Venezuela blunder}}

==Election fraud==
Steven F. Hayward wrote:
* While exit polls conducted by the very reliable American firm of Penn, Schoen, and Berland showed Chavez losing by a large margin (41 to 59), the official results put Chavez free and clear by a vote of 58 to 41 percent.<ref>[http://frontpagemag.com/Articles/Read.aspx?GUID=5A8D0094-4590-4DFB-A7F0-C2E06A6820FB]</ref>

A 26 February 2003 report by Robert Tracinski obliterates the left-wing mythology around Chavez:
<blockquote>
: '''Step one''': Chavez has initiated formal proceedings to revoke the licenses of independent, privately owned television and radio stations. Meanwhile, his political militias, the Bolivarian Circles, have staged violent attacks on independent media outlets. After all, elections don't mean much if all people watch is propaganda on state-run television.

: '''Step two''': Chavez has used a moratorium on currency conversion--needed to pay for imported goods--to punish his opponents. Vowing "no dollars for coup-mongers," he has used this power, for example, to prevent opposition newspapers from importing ink. After all, elections don't mean much if your opponents are too busy worrying where their next meal is coming from.

: '''Step three''': Venezuelan police acting on Chavez's orders have arrested Carlos Fernandez, the head of Venezuela's largest business federation and a leader of the recent anti-Chavez strike, charging him with rebellion and sabotage. Another strike leader, Carlos Ortega, head of Venezuela's largest labor union, has gone into hiding. In one move, Chavez has neutralized two potential rivals for the presidency. After all, elections don't mean much if all of the other candidates are in jail.

: '''Step four''': Last week, four protesters were kidnapped while returning from an anti-Chavez rally. They were blindfolded, tortured, and shot execution-style. Some of the victims were witnesses to a previous pro-Chavez political killing, and they had planned to testify against the shooter. Consider the message sent to the opposition when the mutilated bodies of their friends start showing up in the city streets. After all, elections don't mean much if your opponents are afraid to leave their houses and walk to the polls.

: '''Step five''': A few days ago, Chavez delivered a speech denouncing Spain, Colombia, and the US for interfering in Venezuela. This morning in Caracas, the diplomatic missions of Spain and Colombia were bombed. Credit was claimed by a splinter pro-Chavez group--but this was not a bunch of kids cooking up homemade bombs in their basement. The bombs were powerful plastic explosives, the kind of weapons that are difficult to obtain without government complicity.<ref>http://www.capitalismmagazine.com/world/americas/2514-dictatorship-by-the-numbers-in-venezuela.html</ref>
</blockquote>

$4 billion dollars were spent paying paramilitary groups to attack unarmed protestors and other dissidents during and after the elections.<ref>http://www.capitalismmagazine.com/world/americas/2968-venezuela-a-new-junket-for-a-dictator-s-best-friend-jimmy-carter.html</ref>

The European Union condemned the conditions placed on election monitors as unacceptable and declined to attend. The Carter Center was shut out for three days. Experts from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard University have identified signs of fraud based on statistical analysis.<ref>http://www.capitalismmagazine.com/world/americas/3924-the-carter-stamp-of-approval-on-the-venueuzlan-election-less-than-worthless.html</ref>

==Human rights concerns==
Hugo Chávez is a great friend of the tyrannical [[Cuban]] despot [[Fidel Castro]] and is said to have drawn his political style through influences such as [[Che Guevara]], [[Karl Marx]] and [[Simon Bolivar]]. The U.S. State Department ''Report on Global Anti-Semitism'' cited Chavez in August 2004 warning citizens against following the lead of Jewish citizens in the effort to overturn his referendum victory.<ref>[http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/40258.htm Report on Global Anti-Semitism] U. S. Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, [[Human Rights]], and Labor, January 5, 2005. </ref> Chavez has also embraced a number of world leaders that have hostile relations with the United States, including Holocaust-denier [[Mahmoud Ahmadinejad]], the President of [[Iran]], who Chavez has referred to as "my brother".<ref>[http://english.eluniversal.com/2006/07/31/en_pol_art_31A756133.shtml Chávez decorated in Iran; initials cooperation pacts]</ref> U.S. Speaker of the House of Representatives [[Nancy Pelosi]] said of Chavez, "Hugo Chavez fancies himself a modern-day [[Simon Bolivar]], but all he is is an everyday thug."<ref>[http://www.jewishworldreview.com/cols/pruden092206.php3 Back to the old days, if only for a minute], Wesley Pruden, ''Jewish World Review'', Sept. 22, 2006.</ref> He is also considered to be an ally of [[leftist]] [[Ecuador|Ecuadorian]] president [[Rafael Correa]], [[Bolivia|Bolivian]] president [[Evo Morales]] and the president of [[Nicaragua]], [[Daniel Ortega]] ... all radical leftists.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6187364.stm Correa]</ref>

In May 2007, Chavez silenced the only remaining opposition television station critical of his repression by revoking its licence.<ref>[http://www.guardian.co.uk/venezuela/story/0,,2085952,00.html Chávez silences critical TV station], Rory Carroll, ''The Guardian'', May 23, 2007.</ref> Crowds of students demonstrated saying they feared for the future of human rights in Venezuala. National Guard troops were ordered to fire [[tear gas]] and [[rubber bullets]]. Two students were injured, a third was hit with a tear gas canister, and about 20 people needed emergency medical attention for inhaling tear gas. <ref>[http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2007/05/28/ap3763178.html Troops Fire Upon Protesters in Venezuela], Fabiola Sanchez, Associated Press, 05.28.07. Retrieved from Forbes.com 05/31/07. </ref> Chavez employs discrimination against [[migrant workers]] in the country.<ref>http://www.capitalismmagazine.com/world/americas/3924-the-carter-stamp-of-approval-on-the-venueuzlan-election-less-than-worthless.html</ref>

Chavez has said, “I am going to go after those who resist the revolution and eliminate them one by one.”<ref>[http://www.naplesnews.com/news/2007/jul/07/guest_commentary_we_must_help_venezuela_because_fr/ Because Freedom Matters], By U.S. Rep. Connie Mack IV and Blanquita Cullm, ''Naples Daily News'', July 7, 2007.</ref>

===Trafficking in Persons===
Venezuela under Chavez has been on the U.S. State Department’s Tier 3 list for [[trafficking in persons]] since 2004, which means that the government is categorized as one that has failed to make significant efforts to bring itself into compliance with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking in persons. The State Department’s June 2007 Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report maintains that Venezuela is a source, transit, and destination country for women and children trafficked for [[sexual exploitation]] and [[forced labor]].<ref>U.S. Department of State, [http://www.state.gov/g/tip/rls/tiprpt/2007/ Trafficking in Persons Report], June 12, 2007, p. 207.</ref>

==Relations with US==
[[File:Chavez Obama.jpg|thumb|At the Fifth Summit of the Americas.]]
Foreign relations between the [[United States of America]] and [[Venezuela]] are presently unstable. Chavez often criticizes the United States for its 'imperialism' on his radio segment 'Alo Presidente', and alleges the United States's supported a 2002 coup in Venezuela which toppled Chávez momentarily and later removed by Chávez supporters, also known as 'Chávistas'. Venezuela is heavily dependent upon trade revenue from oil sales to the United States.

===Terrorism===
In May 2006, the State Department determined that, pursuant to Section 40A of the [[Arms Export Control Act]], Venezuela was not fully cooperating with U.S. [[antiterrorism]] efforts. This triggered a prohibition on the sale or license of defense articles and services to Venezuela. Other countries on the Section 40A list include [[Cuba]], [[Iran]], [[North Korea]], and [[Syria]], not to be confused with the "state sponsors of
terrorism" list under Section 6(j) of the Export Administration Act of 1979, which currently includes Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Sudan, and Syria. The State Department asserted that the Section 40A determination was based on Venezuela’s near lack of antiterrorism cooperation over the last year, citing its support for Iraqi insurgents and Iran’s development of nuclear capabilities, the country’s status as a safe haven for Colombian and Basque terrorist groups, and its effort to derail hemispheric efforts to advance counter-terrorism policies in the OAS. In May 2007, the State Department again included Venezuela in its annual Section 40A determination that it was not cooperating fully with U.S. antiterrorism efforts.

In late April 2007, the State Department issued its annual Country Reports on Terrorism, which asserted that President Chávez "persisted in public criticism of U.S. counterterrorism efforts, deepened Venezuelan relationships with Iran and Cuba, and was unwilling to prevent Venezuelan territory from being used as a safe haven" by Colombian terrorist groups.

There have been long-held suspicions that Chávez has supported leftist Colombian guerrillas, although Chávez denies such support. The State Department’s terrorism report maintains that units of Colombia’s two leftist terrorist groups — the [[Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia]] (FARC) and the [[National Liberation Army]] (ELN) — often crossed into Venezuela "to rest and regroup with relative impunity."

In addition, according to the report, splinter groups of the FARC and a rightist terrorist group, the [[AUC|United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia]] (AUC) reportedly operate in various parts of the country and are involved in drug trafficking. The report maintained, however, that "it remained unclear to what extent the Venezuelan
Government provided material support to Colombian terrorists."

In addition, according to the report, Venezuelan citizenship, identity, and travel documents remained easy to obtain, making the country a potentially attractive waystation for terrorists. In July 13, 2006, congressional testimony, the State Department’s Principal Deputy Coordinator for Counterterrorism, Frank Urbancic, asserted that the United States was detaining increasing numbers of third-country aliens at its borders carrying falsified or fraudulently issued Venezuelan documents. U.S. officials also have expressed concerns about President Chávez’s close relationship with Cuba’s Fidel Castro, but Chávez defends his relationship with Cuba. Overall Venezuelan support to Cuba is estimated to be more than $2 billion a year.<ref>Frances Robles and Phil Gunson, ''Cuba Spotlights Chávez Friendship,'' Miami Herald, January 26, 2007.</ref> Venezuela supplies some 90,000 barrels of oil per day to Cuba on a concessionary basis under PetroCaribe. In return, Venezuela has received support from thousands of Cuban health care workers and sports instructors in the country.

During an April 2005 trip to Cuba, Presidents Chávez and Castro announced commercial deals worth over $400 million, including a joint shipyard to build small navy ships and a joint housing construction company. In January 2007, a delegation of Cuban officials visited Caracas and signed a number of agreements to increase economic linkages, including an agreement for joint oil exploration in both countries.

PdVSA is also involved in refurbishing an unfinished oil refinery in Cienfuegos, Cuba. Beyond Latin America, the Bush Administration has expressed concerns with Venezuela’s growing relations with Iran. In February 2006, Secretary of State Rice referred to Venezuela, along with Cuba, as “sidekicks” of Iran in reference to those countries’ votes in the International Atomic Energy Agency against reporting Iran to the U.N. Security Council over its uranium enrichment program.<ref>Pablo Bachelet, “Rice Bashes Venezuelan Leader, Politics,” Miami Herald, February 17, 2006; House International Relations Committee, Hearing on the Fiscal Year 2007
International Affairs Budget, Testimony of Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, February
16, 2006.</ref> In testimony before the Senate Select Intelligence Committee in February 2006, Director of National Intelligence John Negroponte expressed concern that President Chávez "is seeking closer economic, military, and diplomatic ties with Iran and North Korea."<ref>Senate Select Intelligence Committee, Hearing on World Wide Threats, Testimony of Director of National Intelligence John Negroponte, February 2, 2006.</ref> ran and Venezuela signed an agreement for a $200 million fund to finance joint investment and social projects, and commercial agreements in the early stages include plans for a cement factory, oil exploration in the Orinoco River belt, and a joint operation to build oil and liquid natural gas tankers.<ref>Steven Dudley, "Chávez’s Wooing of Iran Called Troubling," Miami Herald, March 2, 2006.</ref> During a visit by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to Venezuela in mid-January 2007, the two countries announced they would use a $2 billion investment fund to finance projects in both countries and other countries as well.<ref>Simon Romero, ''Iranian President Visits Venezuela to Strengthen Ties,'' New York Times, January 14, 2007.</ref>

Some Members of Congress have expressed concerns about relations between Venezuela and Iran. In the 110th Congress, H.Res. 435 (Klein) would, among its provisions, express concern over national security implications of the relationship between the leaders of Iran and Venezuela.

According to the ''Washington Post'' Chavez has been accused of supplying weapons to Colombian rebels, of financing Bolivian and Ecuadorian groups seeking to establish "Marxist" states, and of being, with Cuban leader Fidel Castro's guidance, a "[[subversion (political)|subversive]]" everywhere else in the region.<ref>[http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/08/25/AR2005082501420.html?nav=rss_world/centralamerica ''Dealing With the Good and Bad Hugo Chavez''], Marcela Sanchez The Washington Post 25 August 2005.</ref>

==Expropriation==
[[Image:Hugo-chavez8.jpg|left|175px|thumb|Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez with Fidel Castro.]]

In typical socialist rhetoric, Chavez makes wild claims to fund the government by nationalizing foreign assets. Typical reasons include accusing companies of environmental damage and exploiting its workers. In 2010 alone, Chavez seized 195 companies. <ref>[http://english.eluniversal.com/2010/10/20/en_eco_art_a-total-of-195-busin_20A4631291.shtml A total of 195 businesses has been seized in 2010, El Universal, October 20, 2010]</ref> Spanish-owned farm supply and U.S.-based Ohio bottle company were recently taken over. Other recognized multi-national companies such ExxonMobil, steel maker Sidor, cement company CEMEX fell to the same fate. <ref>[http://wellsy.wordpress.com/2010/10/26/chavez-takes-over-venezuelan-plants-of-oh-company/ Chavez takes over Venezuelan plants of OH company, Wellsy's World, October 26, 2010]</ref> Venezuala is supposed to compensate the companies but nobody expects Chavez to provide other than peanuts for assets he steals.

Through Venezuela's state owned petroleum industry and membership in [[OPEC]], Chávez has now used powers granted to him by Parliament to increase oil prices, adding revenue for the Bolivarianist projects. Countries such as the United States have criticized Chávez for the increase in cost for crude oil. Chavez is at the forefront of wanting to set crude oil prices at $60 a barrel minimum, according to the ''Asia Times''<ref>[http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Global_Economy/HL07Dj01.html ''Bush, OPEC and Chavez of Arabia''], Pepe Escobar, Asia Times, 7 December 2006.</ref>

==Anti-semitism==
Chavez is known to be fiercely [[Anti-semitism|anti-semitic]]<ref>http://www.commentarymagazine.com/viewarticle.cfm/hugo-ch-vez-s-jewish-problem-11455
</ref>, which is the likely reason for his friendship and political alliance with Iranian dictator and [[Holocaust denial|holocaust denier]] [[Mahmoud Ahmadinejad]]<ref>http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/04/AR2008020402428.html
</ref>. As a result of the anti-semitic policies of the Chavez regime and the wave of violent attacks on Venezuelan Jews that it has caused, the [[Jewish]] population of Venezuela has decreased by more than 50 percent since Chavez came to power.<ref>http://www.worldjewishdaily.com/venezuela.php</ref>

==Drug trafficking==
The ''Associated Press'' reported in July 2007 that since Chavez's ascension to power, illegal narcotics passing through Venezuela from [[Colombia]] has risen by as much as 30 tons a year and now accounts for roughly a third of the world's supply of [[cocaine]]. Mildred Camero who was in charge of Venezuela's anti-drug efforts stated, "[[Caracas]] is replacing [[Bogota]] as a center of everything related to drug operations." Camero was fired in 2005 after reporting high-level corruption. <ref>[http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2007/07/01/ap3875048.html Venezuela Becomes Cocaine Conduit], By Ian James and Frank Bajak, ''Associated Press'', 1 July 2007. Retrieved from Forbes.com 8 July 2007.</ref>

==Religious==
Chavez demanded that [[Pope Benedict]] apologize for saying the Roman Catholic Church purified Indians in Latin America. Chavez called the treatment of Indians after [[Christopher Columbus]] landed in 1492 a "holocaust".<ref>[http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSN1819661120070519 Chavez demands Pope apologize for Indian comments], Reuters, May 19, 2007</ref>

==2011 Health Crisis==
On June 30th, 2011, the 56 year-old President admitted, in a televised speech, of having cancer. <ref>[http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-13991906]</ref>

==Quotes==
*On closure of RCTV, claiming the network's broadcasts amounted to a "permanent attack on public morals" with cartoons that were "poisoned with hatred, violence and even sex."

*"Private banks have to give priority to financing the industrial sectors of Venezuela at low cost...If banks don't agree with this, it's better that they go, that they turn over the banks to me."

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

==See Also==
[[Previous Breaking News/Hugo Chavez|Articles about '''Hugo Chavez''' from previous "Breaking News"]]
* [[Kim Jong Il]]
* [[Idi Amin Dada]]

==Further reading==
*[http://www.venezuelanalysis.com/] An in depth view on Venezuela under Hugo Chávez.
*[http://www.latinbusinesschronicle.com/app/article.aspx?id=706] An overview of articles on Venezuela's business under Hugo Chávez.
*[http://www.realclearpolitics.com/Commentary/com-2_24_06_AVL.html ''Why The Left Should Cringe at The Mention of Hugo Chavez''], Alvaro Vargas Llosa, Independent Institute, February 24, 2006.
*[http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_kmnew/is_200108/ai_kepm313968 ''Bolivar, Dictator or Paladin?''] Interview: Hugo Chavez talks about Venezuela, Maria Amparo Lasso, Newsweek, Aug 20, 2001.

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chavez, Hugo}}
[[Category:Venezuela]]
[[Category:Dictators]]
[[Category:Lunatics]]
[[Category:Anti-Semitism]]

Pol Pot

2011-09-21T16:00:43Z

Kapitalismesuger:

{{Dictator bio
| image =
| name =Pol Pot
| birth =May 19,1928 Kampong Thom Province, French Indochina
| parents =Pen Saloth Sok Nem
| religion =Roman Catholic (rejected) Buddism (rejected) Atheism
| education =Wat Botum Vaddei Buddist Monastery, 1934–35 École Miche Catholic School, Phnom Penh 1935-43 Collège Preah Sihanouk at Kampong Cham 1943-47 Lycée Sisowath in Phnom Penh 1948–49 École Francaise de radio-électricité, Paris, France, 1949–52
| spouse =Khieu Ponnary Mea Son
| children =Sitha (daughter)
| death =April 15, 1998 Northern Cambodia
| deathmanner =Heart failure (official) Suicide (unofficial)
| burial =Cremated
| country =[[Cambodia]]
| military =n/a
| rank =n/a
| polbeliefs =[[Communism]]
| party =Communist Party of Kampuchea (Khmer Rouge)
| dictatordate =January 5, 1976
| war =Cambodian civil war (aka "killing fields")
| deathnumber =1,800,000 to 2,500,000 est.
}}
'''Pol Pot''' (born '''Saloth Sar''' May 19,1928-1998) was the ruthless [[Cambodia]]n [[Communism|Communist]] [[dictator]] and [[genocide|genocidist]] responsible for killing 1-3 million Cambodians in the late 1970s (nearly a third of the Cambodian population). Anyone thought to be [[intellectual]] was murdered, including the killing of people simply for knowing a foreign language or even merely wearing glasses. Pol Pot held power through a combination of enormous charm and complete ruthlessness. He is infamous for being a communist who apparently did not even like to read the works of [[Marx]].

When Pol Pot took over Cambodia in 1975, he abolished [[private property]], [[money]] and [[religion]] and converted everything back to an [[agricultural society]]. He emptied the cities. His [[Khmer Rouge]] government fell in 1979 when the communist country of [[Vietnam]] invaded Cambodia after a series of violent border confrontations, and Pol Pot fled to the northern jungle with his forces. Pol Pot was popular in China, because they believed Cambodia would be a counterbalance to Vietnam, which was friendly with the Soviet Union. The Chinese support for Pol Pot was a reason he was not ousted earlier to disowned by the communist movement. Also the United States backed the Khmer Rouge guerrilla after [[Ronald Reagan]] took over as president. Also, the American puppet government of Thailand did so. THe USSR and Laos supported the democratic government.

An Oscar-winning film about his dictatorship, ''[[The Killing Fields]]'' brought a wider knowledge of his atrocities, but only years after they had taken place. The United States and other Asian nations were blamed for once supporting him in order to counter Vietnam next door.

There was a bloody power struggle within the Khmer Rouge in 1997. Pol Pot was then arrested by his former supporters in July 1997. They charged him with [[treason]] but a "people's tribunal" merely sentenced him to house arrest for life.

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pot, Pol}}

[[Category:Communists]]
[[Category:Mass Murderers]]
[[Category:Dictators]]
[[Category:Cambodia]]
[[Category:Christians]]
[[Category:False socialism]]
[[Category:Dictators backed by the United States]]

Fulgencio Batista

2011-09-21T15:56:18Z

Kapitalismesuger:

[[Image:Batista4.gif|right|250px|thumb|Batista warmly welcoming U.S. President [[Franklin Roosevelt]]]]
'''Fulgencio Batista''' was the President of [[Cuba]] for two periods, 1940-44 and 1952-1959. He was head of the Cuban military and effective de facto Cuban leader when not in office from 1933. His first period in power saw Cuba undertake significant liberal reforms, and Batista, of mixed heritage, was initially popular amongst black and poor Cubans.

Batista's return to presidency via a coup d'État in 1952 led to the suspension of the Cuban constitution, and sparked unrest in Cuba. Rigged elections and an increasingly corrupt regime with close ties to the United States drew large opposition from a coalition of Cubans from all political backgrounds including [[Fidel Castro]]'s [[26th of July Movement]].

Batista was eventually overthrown by a popular revolution spreading from the east of the island, and fled the country on January 1st 1959. The key turning point in the 6 year long struggle was in 1958 when the U.S. ceased selling Batista arms. These arms had been effective in suppressing the rebels and brutally terrorizing agricultural workers, who had supported the revolution, into submission. A new government took over chosen by Castro and headed by traditional liberals [[Manuel Urrutia Lleó]] and [[José Miró Cardona]]. Castro became head of the new armed forces before quickly maneuvering himself into the position of prime minister.

Batista's second capitalist dictatorship killed 20 000 people - not included those who died of hunger or because of not being able to pay health care. Even right extremist [[Rudolph J. Rumble]] agree that only 15 000 was executed by the Cuban government between 1959 and 1987. Remember that Rumble is controversial and not to believe on socialist countries. A more believable estimate, but though subjective, is the [[Black Book of Communism]], saying 15-17 000 in the period 1959-1999.

{{DEFAULTSORT:Batista, Fulgencio}}

[[Category:Dictators backed by the United States]]
[[Category:Capitalist dictators]]
[[Category:Capitalists]]

Talk:Vietnam War

2011-09-21T15:49:14Z

Kapitalismesuger: /* Number of Vietnamese Who Supported Communism */

What was the first Indochina Conflict? [[User:GodlessLiberal|GodlessLiberal]] 15:06, 29 April 2007 (EDT)

:That was the war between the French and the Viet Cong that took place in the late 1940s - early 1950s, prior to our involvement.--[[User:Conservateur|Conservateur]] 18:22, 30 April 2007 (EDT)

Unless strong documentation can be provided, I have to support Hojimachong's decision to remove what appears to be odd claims of an imminent North Vietnamese surrender at the time we pulled out. [[User:Learn together|Learn together]] 15:38, 9 May 2007 (EDT)

== This article is woefully inadequate ==

A lot of work needs to be done on this topic. There's a great deal of information left out. Also, the U.S. did not lose this war. When the U.S. pulled out S. Vietnam was safe and secure. The VietCong was destroyed and the borders were agreed to by the Paris Peace Accords. It was only after the U.S. was completely out of the region that the North Vietnamese attacked. It was 2 years after the U.S. pulled out that North Vietnam invaded. However, because of communist infiltration of the U.S. govt. and Congressional efforts to squash S. Vietnam and the violation of the SEATO treaty to render air support to the S. Vietnamese, the North felt this was the opportune moment to invade. All this is left out from the article. [[User:Scorpio|Scorpio]] 15:24, 22 May 2007 (EDT)
:Yes, I beleive that outline of telling events is very good. How's this, "Vietnam was lost in a spasm of Congressional irresponsibiltiy after Congress cut off aid to the South Vietnam govt and the hard won peace negotuiations by Henry Kissinger". [[User:RobS|RobS]] 22:52, 22 May 2007 (EDT)

About the only thing the Vietname War article does not discuss... is the Vietnam War. But at least we have a list of really hip songs from that era ;-) [[User:Learn together|Learn together]] 16:17, 23 May 2007 (EDT)

:Yeah, it's not ready to be displayed. I'm going to demote it to a [[/draft]]. --[[User:Ed Poor|Ed Poor]] 16:23, 23 May 2007 (EDT)

"stated military goals of the Americans were not met".. So basically, you lost the war. Funny way to say it. [[User:FreakyM|FreakyM]] 10:10, 25 May 2007 (EDT)

This site is an embarrassment. I included some of the most accurate statistics in respect to the war and they are deleted. I guess having the U.S.A be part of a war claiming the lives of millions; many of them innocent is just too liberal. I guess that implies the facts themselves are liberal (which obviously cant be allowed) making this site no more than poor propaganda. Wikipedia has a very accurate breakdown of this war, the casualties, who was involved, as well as a very detailed escalation as to the events that occurred right up to the present day. I also find it hilarious that Nixon isn't mentioned once in this whole article.

:You may wish to add constructive information about the course of the war, battles, tactics, etc. We are aware this article construction could use assistance as the section title makes apparent. Civilian casualties are largely unknown and guessed at in only the broadest terms. If your edit seems designed to add little except a negative light, then it may well be reverted, as happened here. It would be hoped that in the future you may be able to help to fill in the gaps that we already know exist instead of merely pointing out they are there. [[User:Learn together|Learn together]] 16:29, 2 July 2007 (EDT)

==Speculation as to America's failure==

:The primary reason is probably the total psychological commitment of substantially all North Vietnamese and many South Vietnamese people to reunification of the country.

Whose opinion is that? It doesn't ring true. I was in the army for 5 years (two decades after this war, though). I heard a lot of other reasons. --[[User:Ed Poor|Ed Poor]] [[User talk:Ed Poor|Talk]] 21:08, 9 August 2007 (EDT)
:It was the wrong war at the wrong place at the wrong time.

:Hitler rose to power with the invasion of Czechoslovakia; Britian went to war with Germany so another Czechoslovakia would not occur; the entire world was engulfed in what became known as World War II so no more Czechoslovakia's would occur; the North Atlantic Alliance was created, with Czechoslovakia in mind, "for the right of self-determination of peoples," which the Czechoslovakia lost after 1938; the policy of Containment, which was basis of US involvement in Korea and Vietnam was to insure no more situations like Czechoslovakia; the US kept 175,000 troops in Europe upto the collapse of the Soviet Union supposedly so tiny nations like Czechoslovakia would not be invaded and made slaves again.

:While the hippies rioted in the streets, and while the US (as the article states) was approaching 600,000 men in Vietnam, to contain Soviet expansion, and for the right of self-determination of peoples, the Soviet Union invaded Czechoslovakia. It was pretty obvious at that point, the whole thing was a fraud. That yes, the evil Nazi regime was evil and needed to be destroyed ''because'' it invaded Czechoslovakia. But when the godless commies did it 30 years later, what did NATO & the US do? Nothing. [[User:RobS|Rob Smith]] 21:44, 9 August 2007 (EDT)

::Hitler didn't have nukes. And it was obvious by mid-1939 that Hitler would not stop with Czechoslovakia and Poland. In 1968, we had a reasonable expectation that the Sovs would stop with Czechoslovakia, at least in Europe. Not defending Western inaction, just saying the two situations were different.--[[User:Frey|Frey]] 12:15, 22 October 2008 (EDT)

==Number of Vietnamese Who Supported Communism==

I've read several times that two thirds of the Vietnamese population (both north and south) supported the communist government, and that there were meant to be elections but these were refused. Does anyone else know anything about that, and should it be included in the article?

:I personally met the author of ''[[Le Gulag Vietnamien]]'' (The Vietnamese Gulag), when he first immigrated to the US and was looking for a translator and a publisher. "Support" of a totalitarian regime is enforced by draconian government measures (to say the least).

:When has any Communist dictatorship held a plebiscite on whether Communism should continue (or be replaced by democracy)? The only dictator I know of, who voluntarily stepped down after a successful coup, is [[Augusto Pinochet]]. (Leftists hate to mention this, preferring to smear him with accusations of mass murder while whitewashing [[Che Guevara]], [[Ho Chi Minh]], and so on. --[[User:Ed Poor|Ed Poor]] [[User talk:Ed Poor|Talk]] 07:25, 3 January 2009 (EST)

::OK? What about [[Fulgencio Batista]], [[Ngo Dinh Diem]], [[Nicholas II]], [[Carlos Castillo Armas]], [[Kjell Laugerud]] (Norwegian-Guatemalan serving as dictator of Guatemala), [[Enrique Peralta Azurdia]] and thousands of other capitalist dictators, that was all backed by the USA? And what about that you are joking with that three million people lost their lives under the war? That is not included another million if you include Campuchea and Laos? And what do you say about that after the Vietnamese invasion of Cambodia, the US BACKED THE KHMER ROUGE?

==Is cite for rewrite still needed?==

This page is cited for rewrite due to not giving "the origin of the war, what it was fought about, and what the sides were", but all this is basically mentioned. I will remove it if no objections.[[User:Daniel1212|Daniel1212]] 19:26, 21 November 2009 (EST)

==On My Changes==
An administrator named TK asks me: "Usually editors post on the article's talk page before revamping the entire article, so I need to ask you what direction are you going? I take it you saw the proposed changes page?"

I don't think I've revamped the entire article, though I have expanded on it. I'll let my changes speak for themselves, though I'd be happy to respond if there are any objections.[[User:JakeRMurrin]]

:"An administrator named TK" Yes, that is indeed me, and you most certainly are not at Wikipedia, Jake. Respond where you are questioned, please, and drop the attitude. --<big>[[User:TK|'''ṬK''']]</big>/Admin[[User_Talk:TK|/Talk]] 17:49, 5 September 2010 (EDT)

::TK, although Jake's changes are sweeping, he's new here. Please be gentle, since you are (in fact) a gentleman. --[[User:Ed Poor|Ed Poor]] [[User talk:Ed Poor|Talk]] 09:18, 7 September 2010 (EDT)

::On the other hand, I could not very the quote from the Vietnamese general, supposedly published in the Wall Street Journal. Snopes calls it an urban legend. So let's be careful with this extensive rewrite, both in terms of getting the sources and references straightened out, and also in terms of appreciating efforts by a new contributor. --[[User:Ed Poor|Ed Poor]] [[User talk:Ed Poor|Talk]] 09:29, 7 September 2010 (EDT)

::No attitude was intended, TK.[[User:JakeRMurrin]]
::Snopes does ''not'' call it an urban legend. It debunks claims of an imminent North Vietnamese surrender in 1968 falsely attributed to General Giap, and then notes that the apocryphal quote may be based on the sentiments expressed by Bui Tin in the WSJ. It implicitly endorses the WSJ interview, although it notes that Bui Tin (according to the article) had expressed "disillusionment with the fruits of Vietnamese Communism," adding that “it’s possible" "his changed outlook" "influenced" the opinions he expressed to the WSJ in the piece. http://www.snopes.com/quotes/giap.asp
[[User:JakeRMurrin]]

:::Well, I couldn't find the quote online anywhere. In such a case, I'd like the article say that "so and so" says the quote appeared in the WSJ, but with a note that '''we''' could not verify that. Unless you want to go to the library and dig up a copy of the paper? --[[User:Ed Poor|Ed Poor]] [[User talk:Ed Poor|Talk]] 15:50, 9 September 2010 (EDT)

::Sorry I haven't responded sooner. Feel free to add whatever you have in mind.[[User:JakeRMurrin]]

== Aftermath ==

The citation referenced said:
<blockquote>
"Finally, I can calculate the overall democide of Vietnam in the post-Vietnam War period (lines 762 to 764). This amounts to 346,000 to 2,438,000 Vietnamese, Cambodians, and Laotians, probably about 1,040,000."
</blockquote>
--<big>[[User:TK|'''ṬK''']]</big>/Admin[[User_Talk:TK|/Talk]] 20:53, 19 September 2010 (EDT)

Rummel estimates the total democide by Communist Vietnam as approaching 1.8 million, with nearly 800,000 North Vietnamese slaughtered by the state. Of that 1,000,000 figure; only about half a million were killed in South Vietnam, the rest in Laos and Cambodia ''by'' Vietnam (i.e., Rummel blames Vietnam for 2/3 of the deaths under Samrin's regime in Cambodia, because they installed him). However, that figure does not include war-related deaths or the boat people. Rummel estimates that roughly 500,000 boat people died from all of Indochina, with 1/2 of those being counted as democidal. Adding them in, roughly a million were killed in South Vietnam. If we were to take Rummel's numbers, only 150,000 were killed in the renewed Communist offensive from 75 on (see here: http://www.mega.nu/ampp/rummel/dbg.tab11.2.gif).

On Cambodia, at least 1.1 million were executed and 1-2 million worked or starved to death by the Khmer Rouge (we know because we've counted 1.1 million bodies identified as "victims of execution"). Although some believe that executions alone could have reached 1.5 million, the 1.39 million figure comes from Wikipedia. Because the Documentation Center of Cambodia is still conducting studies, I assumed that the 1.39 million figure was a revised execution estimate. However, I've been unable to assess the veracity of the claim, and I'm not sure where the number comes from (Wikipedia has no source).[[User: JakeRMurrin]]

:I can agree to accept that, but your edit that I reversed doesn't seem to reflect what you are saying here.... --<big>[[User:TK|'''ṬK''']]</big>/Admin[[User_Talk:TK|/Talk]] 17:54, 20 September 2010 (EDT)

::I made three changes. One, I lowered the number of Indochinese killed in the ongoing war after US withdrawal, because the current number is legitimately too high. I raised Laos to 100-200,000 killed (from "over 100,000"), and I got rid of the 1.39 million figure for executions under the Khmer Rouge. Although that number most surely ''does'' fall within the accepted range of estimates, the number itself has no clear source. Which of these do you you have a problem with?[[User: JakeRMurrin]]

::Everyone gets upset when discussing genocide, [[Holocaust]]s, and mass murder. The main point that conservatives want to bring out - and which liberals, contrariwise, want to [[censorship|suppress]], is that Communist dictators have '''murdered''' huge numbers of people in the name of Communism; and that this is '''because''' Communism is an evil, anti-human ideology (even though it masquerades or camouflages itself in the mantle of "[[humanism]]"). I daresay that '''anything''' [[atheist]]ic is bound to turn out badly, despite the existence of the odd "ethical" humanist among their ranks. --[[User:Ed Poor|Ed Poor]] [[User talk:Ed Poor|Talk]] 22:02, 20 September 2010 (EDT)

==Avoiding bias==

Jake, are you trying to paint the worst possible picture of US intervention? From what I've just '''begun''' to read, America sounds like the biggest scoundrel and worst bad guy. --[[User:Ed Poor|Ed Poor]] [[User talk:Ed Poor|Talk]] 20:04, 30 October 2010 (EDT)

You might get some perspective by reading [http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Vietnam_War this encyclopedia article].

::Are you serious? Out of all the possible criticisms that might be levied against my additions; this is one charge that I would never have imagined anyone would make. I'm baffled as to what exactly struck you as being in any way sympathetic to the Communist cause.[[User:JakeRMurrin|JakeRMurrin]] 23:00, 30 October 2010 (EDT)
:::I would appreciate a response! My best guess is that you misread the prelude section:

<blockquote>
Neither side respected the legitimacy of the other; as a consequence, the division was widely regarded as temporary. A British diplomat suggested that free elections be held in the North and South to determine the future of a unified Vietnam. Contrary to commonly repeated myths; it was North Vietnam, not South Vietnam, that was the most extreme and steadfast in its efforts to prevent any such election from taking place. Nevertheless, it is true that South Vietnam consistently opposed all such arguments, claiming that the majority of South Vietnamese wanted independence, but that those North Vietnamese who wanted conquest should not be allowed to veto their just demands. The United States was willing to accept free elections and a reunified Vietnam, Communist-led and hostile to China. Indeed, US officials favored such a default outcome; they listed it in secret communications never intended for public consumption (but released in the Pentagon Papers) under the heading "advantages."[2] The US gradually intervened, due to the insistence of the North on a campaign of military aggression, as part of its wider Cold War strategy of containment.

Unwilling to accept or even consider free elections, and with the South's economy growing rapidly and its prospects looking brighter by the day, Ho Chi Minh was up against a wall. A unity government was established in Laos, and the US was firmly committed to defending South Vietnam from conquest. Huge numbers of North Vietnamese desperately fled to the South for freedom. Cambodia was neutral and united behind the rule of Sihanouk. Despite repeated diplomatic efforts by the US to bring about a peaceful regional settlement; Hanoi became increasingly convinced that the revolution could be spread throughout Indochina only by force.
....
In 1958, North Vietnam launched an invasion of Laos.[41]

In 1959, by its own admission, North Vietnam decided on war in South Vietnam. North Vietnam created the Viet Cong and sent 20,000 men to attack the South. In 1961, North Vietnam used 30,000 troops to build invasion routes via Laos and Cambodia. North Vietnam later admitted that it “played a decisive role” in bringing to power the Pathet Lao in Laos and the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia.[42]
</blockquote>

As every serious historian of the time knows, it simply is not true that free elections were ''ever'' "scheduled" for Vietnamese reunification. On the contrary, the Communists established a totalitarian dictatorship that made free elections impossible in the North after seizing power through mass murder and genocide! Far from mandating free elections, a British diplomat at the Geneva conference, noting that the odds of a non-violent solution seemed hopeless in the face of North Vietnam's intransigent refusal to accept the sovereignty of the South, pleaded for an election to settle the question. He had no illusions that this was anything but a pipe dream.[[User:JakeRMurrin|JakeRMurrin]] 22:32, 3 November 2010 (EDT)