


New proposal would allow up to 15 percent ethanol in fuel









II. EPA: Problem? What Problem?








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RE: How about we...
By Iaiken on 7/6/2011 1:56:22 PM , Rating: -1
Venezuela. dictatorial regime

Somebody has been brainwashed.

First of all, Chavez was democratically elected and has BEEN democratically elected ever since because the standard of living for the average Venezuelan is now higher than it ever has been before in the history of the country.

- All citizens have access to free Universal Health Care
- All citizens have access to free education (up to high school)
- Infant mortality is the lowest of any South American nation
- Poverty rate is one of the lowest in South America (used to be one of the highest)
- Access to clean drinking water is increasing
- Famine is decreasing
- The constitution was introduced via referendum vote by the people.
- Literacy is approaching 100% (in all age groups).
- The charter of rights is available in a little blue book and is the single best seller in the country ever since.
- Under the constitution, the state pays housewives.

If you are wondering why the US media and world media have such different perspectives on Venezuela, you need only look to the the 2002 coup d'état attempt. Unamazingly, the US media was all over praising the coup as a victory for democracy like a fat kid on a skittle. The coup had received funding from the US government via the National Endowment for Democracy that was used to fund opposition (a crime of sedition) and to bribe military personnel (a crime of corruption) to bring them on side for the coup.

I've seen Venezuelan television and there is absolutely no censorship. This is a fabrication by the US media, the privately owned Venezuelan media rakes Chavez with negative opinion and criticism. Anti-Chavez demonstrations are still allowed to this date. What's more, capitalism has never had it better in Venezuela and the rich there still manage to get richer.

Before the coup, a brilliant bit of planning went down by the opposition. They scheduled an anti-Chavez demonstration on the same day as a pro-Chavez march under the restriction that the two groups be kept apart in order to keep things peaceful. Each would have a turn to march by the presidential palace; pro during the morning and anti during the afternoon. Both groups formed in the early morning, but shortly after forming, the organizers of the anti group directed the march to the presidential palace. As the groups clashed, gunfire broke out that the local and US media then blamed on Chavez supporters. All of the people who were injured or killed had been shot by high velocity rifle rounds, often to the head. The military then stepped in and staged a coup after a televised message.

The problem with this is that the message (which specifically mentioned the shooting and killing of civilians by snipers) was later revealed to have been taped days before the event had happened. They then fired on their own people and blamed it on Chavez, it was all a setup. In spite of this glaring discrepancy being made known on BBC world and other international media, White House spokesperson Ari Fleischer likewise blamed the shootings on Chavez and his supporters. The US media then ran with the story as rubber stamped by the White House.

The plotters then announced that Chavez had resigned, he hadn't he had been kidnapped. The following morning, the national assembly, the courts, the electoral board and the ombudsman's office were all suspended and dismantled. In one morning, the democracy that had elected Chavez was demolished and a dictator sworn in to chants of 'Democracy'. The media was consolidated under the new government and celebrations were televised.

But there was a problem, independent talk radio then confirmed that the resignation was a sham and something amazing happened. The public didn't go to work that day, they got up out of their homes, they got on buses, bikes, packed into cars or anything else that would take them to Caracas. Millions of people descended upon the capital and demanded their elected president back. Faced with such people power, the plotters fled to Miami with the assistance of the US government and the palace and the presidential guard of Chavez was able to take it without a single shot and by that night, he was back in power and all government reinstated.

The US government denied all knowledge of the coup, despite CIA documents showing that they were actively seeking people within the Venezuelan government and military who were sympathetic to a coup. After these CIA documents came to light, they changed their tune and said that they had used this information to warn Chavez, something that the Venezuelan government denies.

So really it's up to you as to who you want to believe...

