The liberals are all against fascism and authoritarianism. Except when it happens to be in a socialist country, like Venezuela, or Cuba, or China, or any other socialist/communist country. Then it is fine apparently. And the people just happen to be oppressed and starving because of an unfortunate "dip in oil prices" or some such.
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Originally posted by Sparko View PostThe liberals are all against fascism and authoritarianism. Except when it happens to be in a socialist country, like Venezuela, or Cuba, or China, or any other socialist/communist country. Then it is fine apparently. And the people just happen to be oppressed and starving because of an unfortunate "dip in oil prices" or some such.
I DENOUNCE DONALD J. TRUMP AND ALL HIS IMMORAL ACTS.
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Originally posted by Sparko View PostApparently, that's what they keep accusing the conservatives and Trump of being while they go around burning cars and throwing hissie-fits when anyone says anything they disagree with.I DENOUNCE DONALD J. TRUMP AND ALL HIS IMMORAL ACTS.
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Originally posted by Sparko View PostApparently, that's what they keep accusing the conservatives and Trump of being while they go around burning cars and throwing hissie-fits when anyone says anything they disagree with.
Don't ask how; it just is.Some may call me foolish, and some may call me odd
But I'd rather be a fool in the eyes of man
Than a fool in the eyes of God
From "Fools Gold" by Petra
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Originally posted by Starlight View PostIt [Venezuelan Socialism] did well for decades...
Letter From a Venezuelan Jail
By Leopoldo López
The Wall Street Journal
December 25, 2014
I am one of scores of political prisoners locked away because of our words and ideas.
My country, Venezuela, is on the verge of social and economic collapse. This slow-motion disaster, nearly 15 years in the making, was not initiated by falling oil prices or by mounting debts. It was set in motion by the authoritarian government’s hostility toward human rights and the rule of law and the institutions that protect them.
I know this on an all-too personal level. I am writing from a military prison, where I have been held since February as a result of speaking out against the government’s actions. I am one of scores of political prisoners in my country who are locked away because of their words and ideas.
This unjust incarceration has given me a firsthand view of the pervasive abuses—legal, mental and physical—perpetrated by the ruling elite in my country. It has not been a good experience, but it has been an enlightening one.
My isolation also has given me time to think and reflect on the larger crisis facing my country. It has never been clearer to me that Venezuela’s road to ruin was paved years ago by a movement to dismantle basic human rights and freedoms in the name of an illusory vision of achieving greater good for the masses through the centralization of power.
When the current ruling party, the United Socialist Party, first took power in 1999, its supporters viewed human rights as a luxury, not a necessity. Large segments of the population were living in poverty, and in need of food, housing and security. Protecting free speech and the separation of powers seemed frivolous. In the name of expediency, these values were compromised and then dismantled entirely.
The legislature was neutered, allowing the executive to rule by decree without the checks and balances that prevent government from veering off track. The judiciary was made accountable to the ruling party, rendering the constitution and the law meaningless. In an infamous 2009 case, Judge Mary Lourdes Afiuni was imprisoned for ordering the release of a businessman and government critic who had been held for three years in pretrial detention, one year more than allowed under Venezuelan law.
Meanwhile, political leaders—myself included—were persecuted and imprisoned, stifling the competition of ideas that could have led to better decisions and policies. Independent news organizations were dismantled, seized or driven out of business. The “sunshine that disinfects,” and the scrutiny that motivates good decision-making, no longer benefit our leadership.
Venezuela’s current president, Nicolás Maduro, has taken this to a terrible new low. Rights are rationed as though they were scarce goods to be traded for other means of subsistence: You may have employment if you give away your free speech. You may have some health benefits if you give away your right to protest.
Apologists, many from other countries, including the U.S., say these sacrifices were and are for the collective good of the country. Yet the lives of Venezuelans, especially the poor, are worse by every measure. Inflation, at more than 60%, is rampant. Scarcity of basic goods has led to empty shelves and long lines. Violent crime is skyrocketing and the murder rate is the second highest in the world, behind only Honduras. The health-care system is collapsing. And many financial experts are predicting a default on the country’s debts in a matter of months.
The challenges now facing Venezuela are complex and will require years of work on many fronts. That work must begin with restoring the rights, freedoms and checks and balances that are the proper foundation of civil society.
The international community has an important role to play—especially our neighbors in Latin America. To remain silent is to be complicit in a disaster that doesn’t just impact Venezuela but could have implications across the hemisphere. Organizations such as the Union of South American Nations (Unasur) and the South American trade bloc Mercosur must come off the sidelines. Countries such as Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Peru and Argentina must get involved.
At home, our constitution provides a way forward if we will heed its words. Our proposal is simple but powerful: All rights for all people. Not some rights for some people. No regime should have the power to decide who gets access to which rights. This idea may be taken for granted in other countries, but in my country, Venezuela, it is a dream worth fighting for.That's what
- She
Without a clear-cut definition of sin, morality becomes a mere argument over the best way to train animals
- Manya the Holy Szin (The Quintara Marathon)
I may not be as old as dirt, but me and dirt are starting to have an awful lot in common
- Stephen R. Donaldson
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Originally posted by Bill the Cat View Post[letter...]
At home, our constitution provides a way forward if we will heed its words. Our proposal is simple but powerful: All rights for all people. Not some rights for some people. No regime should have the power to decide who gets access to which rights. This idea may be taken for granted in other countries, but in my country, Venezuela, it is a dream worth fighting for.[/box]
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Originally posted by Sparko View PostThe liberals are all against fascism and authoritarianism. Except when it happens to be in a socialist country, like Venezuela, or Cuba, or China, or any other socialist/communist country. Then it is fine apparently. And the people just happen to be oppressed and starving because of an unfortunate "dip in oil prices" or some such.
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Originally posted by JimL View PostBet you can't produce such a quote. I guess thats what you'd call putting your foot in your mouth.
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Originally posted by Sparko View PostOK. Tassman was defending a liberal value: Global Warming and argued that no one should question the scientific consensus. We argued that of course they should that is what science is about and how science advances. I made a sarcastic comment that copernicus should not have questioned the scientific consensus and then you chimed in and totally trashed Tassman's initial argument by actually making the very point we made to Tassy:
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Originally posted by JimL View PostThats how I put my foot in my mouth defending liberalism? Geesh Sparko, can you not even keep track of what your accusation was from one post to the next?Enter the Church and wash away your sins. For here there is a hospital and not a court of law. Do not be ashamed to enter the Church; be ashamed when you sin, but not when you repent. – St. John Chrysostom
Veritas vos Liberabit<>< Learn Greek <>< Look here for an Orthodox Church in America<><Ancient Faith Radio
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I recommend you do not try too hard and ...research as little as possible. Such weighty things give me a headache. - Shunyadragon, Baha'i apologist
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