What say now, Martin*?
By Val Prieto | Babalu Blog
26.01.05 | A few weeks ago I posted an entry titled The Final Stages where I described the stages of castro's revolution vis-a-vis Venezuela.
I wrote:
One: Convince the have nots that the haves are evil.Two: Decry the evils of foreigners.
Three: Manipulate an election.
Four: Nationalize all media sources.
And the fifth stage: Expropriations.
I also mention the six stage, the Nationalization of Banks, which, if I am not mistaken, has already begun in castro's Venezuela.
In the comments of that post, I had a run in with a person named Martin who stated, among other things, the following:
A little on the dramatic side, don't you think? Government opponents have been using the threat of Cubanization since day one--Christ, I remember being in Venezuela three years ago and hearing women screaming bloody murder about how it was only a matter of time before Chavez exposed his Castroite roots. I'm still waiting.
And:
Like I said earlier, Val, the threat of impending cubanization is thrown around all too often, much too freely, and with much to little regard for the truth. It's one thing to say you are concerned about the state of a country, it's quite another altogether to equate those concerns with the establishment of a totalitarian dictatorship. I visit Venezuela regularly enough to know that the opposition has used the same argument for years, though interestingly enough, few of them have ever travelled to Cuba to make that comparison. Trust me on this one--Venezuela is nowhere near Cuba, nor is it going in that direction.
Well, I wonder what Martin is saying now that mini-fidel Chavez has just given his mentor carte blanche to arrest anyone in Venezuela with no legal due process.
Cuban agents can accompany Venezuelan cops on raids and force statements from Venezuelans in Venezuela with no accountability. If this isn’t a surrender of sovereignty, what is? And you can see where this will lead. Anyone who can’t be snagged by Venezuelan ‘justice’ can be hauled off to face Cuban ‘justice.’
Yes, that's right. Cuban agents will no longer be called diplomats (as they have been called the past few years). They can now operate overtly about the country, with the public endorsement of the Chavez government, and impose the will of the bearded one himself without implication or repercussion.
That, Martin, is the final stage. A country rife with State Security agents experienced with the oppression and heavy handed tactics necessary to rid a people of their free will.
Still think we're being overdramatic, Martin?
There's lots more on Venezuela's downfall over at VCrisis.
* Martin Andres Austermuhle is an employee of the Venezuelan Embassy in Washington DC.
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