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The Myth About Venezuela

Article By Writer Michael Kraft Author: Michael Kraft
Published: August 16, 2007
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An article from Humanevent.com states what is already the obvious in my household.
The complete story is here: http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=21930

“Contrary to what Americans hear constantly from the media, Venezuelans have a poor opinion of their president, Hugo Chavez, and a positive opinion of Americans and the United States.

As a senior Venezuelan currently living in the U.S. while keeping up-to-date with Venezuelan affairs (I am also a former member of the Venezuelan congress), I have come to accept that Venezuela generally merits little attention from U.S. society, except in three or four areas: baseball players, beautiful women, oil and the antics of Hugo Chavez.

Hugo Chavez’ September 2006 UN speech in which he called President Bush a “devil” and spoke aggressively against the United States, helped to push Chavez and Venezuela, even if negatively, onto the American consciousness. Due to this speech, millions of U.S. citizens felt curious enough to do some research on Chavez and learned, for example, that Citgo, the chain of corner gas stations, is really a major oil company owned by the Venezuelan government and being used by Chavez to make inroads into American domestic politics. Americans also learned that Chavez loved Saddam Hussein and now calls Iranian President Ahmadinejad and Zimbabwean dictator Robert Mugabe “brothers.” However, few still know that his buddies in the U.S. include:

• actor Danny Glover, who received $18 million from Chavez to make a movie.

• Joseph Kennedy Jr., who runs Citgo’s distribution of “cheap” Venezuelan fuel oil for Chavez in the northeast;

• Jesse Jackson, who was decorated by Chavez in Venezuela;

• Ramsey Clark, one of the lawyers who defended Saddam Hussein;

• Don King, the boxing promoter;

• Cindy Sheehan, the anti-war activist; and

• Massachusetts Congressman William Delahunt.

The intense propaganda machine installed by Chavez in the U.S. (that costs the Venezuelan Embassy well over a million dollars per year) is trying to sell U.S. public opinion on the idea that Hugo Chavez is universally loved by Venezuelans while the United States is bitterly hated.

In fact, neither of these two claims is correct, judging by all credible polls, both in Venezuela and outside the country. In Venezuela the most professional and respected polling company, Hinterlaces, produced its poll for the month of June, with a 95% reliability. Some of the results are quite interesting:

• Hugo Chavez is rejected by 43% of those polled and approved of by 39%;

• Attacks against the U.S. by Chavez are rejected by 75% of participants and approved of by 14%;

• To give money away to other countries, as Chavez is doing from the Venezuelan oil largess, received the support of only 9% of those polled, while 87% rejected it;

• The pretense of Chavez to re-elect himself indefinitely by modifying the existing constitution is rejected by 63% of those asked and approved of by 19%.

• 81% of Venezuelans would generally like to see new political leadership in the country.

According to the survey by Hinterlaces, the political style of Hugo Chavez is starting to rub Venezuelans the wrong way, since he is increasingly being perceived as a dictator. A poll conducted by a reputed Chilean company, Latinobarometro, in January 2007, indicated that Venezuelans clearly prefer democracy to any other political system. This poll also revealed that Hugo Chavez had a very low approval rating in Latin America, only better than Cuba’s Fidel Castro and Peru’s Alan Garcia. The highest ranked Latin American leader in this poll was Brazil’s Lula da Silva.”

by Gustavo Coronel
http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=21930

Gustavo Coronel is a petroleum geologist, author and public policy expert, who was elected to the Venezuelan Congress in 1998 before it was dissolved in 1999 following the election of Hugo Chavez as president. Coronel is currently designated as an “enemy” of the Chavez regime.

Chavez is not a popular dictatro despite what the media pretends is true

Hugo Chavez

Saddam Hussein

Venezuela

Chavista

Danny Glover

Sean Penn

Ramsey Clark

Jesse Jackson

Fidel Castro

Gustavo Coronel

6 Responses to “The Myth About Venezuela”

av2ts on August 16th, 2007 3:03 pm

Jeez, where to begin…

First off, every poll - and the 6 or more elections since Chavez have been in office - show nothing but GROWING support for Hugo Chavez and his ideas. The Hinterlaces “poll” was actually based on focus groups and have been discredited as they undercount the poor. They have been way wrong with their polls before every election. cited Most Venezuelans like Americans, but understandably have a grudge against Bush, who (at least) assisted in a military coup d’tat, therefore starting this tit for tat in a big way.

Chavez does not “give away” billions like the MSM keeps repeating. He signs deals to circumvent middle men and speculators, and therefore is able to provide oil at a fair price. They also provide fair, low financing so poor countries can pay for the oil over time - and build refinaries. The US does the same thing BTW. All Carribean countries are benefitting from these humanitarian efforts.

Chavez would not be “re-electing himself indefintely.” The people would do that because he has improved living standards of the vast majority and presided over an economic boom like the country has never seen. Their economy has gone up 40% in just 3 years, unemployment has plummetted, incomes have gone through the roof, even the rich are doing well. Meanwhile the poor majority are seeing tangible benefits in their education, health care, infrastructure and their needs are just taken seriously for the first time.

This stuff in the MSM about a dictatorship and wrecking the country is nonsense. Caracas and other cities today are on a massive building boom - Subways, bridges, stadiums, shopping , malls, sewers, etc… Freedom of speech is guaranteed for all. The coup plotting TV station supposedly censored a few months ago is back airing on cable and satellite. Enough of the lies!
SGWarner on August 16th, 2007 6:22 pm

I first travelled to Venezuela in 1999 on an assignment with an oil company and lived in Caracas for two years. I lived through the first election of Mr Chavez. I experienced the pot banging and shouts of “fuera” in homes in the hills of the city and watched in amazement at the thousands upon thousands of protesters marching through the streets of Caracas in opposition of Mr Chavez. To see them getting gunned down by shooters on a bridge and the shooter set free by Chavez supporters with a smug grin on his face on television. I lived through the short coup of Mr Chavez. I got sick of the torture of potentially being brainwashed by the 5 hour live broadcasts of Mr chavez on every TV station with his doctrine. I left Venezuela in disgust to see the potential for a civil war at that time. Only to miss the PDVSA strike and the en-mass dismissal of the country’s finest engineers, managers and intelligencia formerly employed by PDVSA just because they were in opposition to the doctrine of Chavez. PDVSA is now currently run by pure communists at the top, cronies and washer women who really have no idea how to keep the “heart” of Venezuela’s economy beating to the tune of Mr Chavez’s spending spree. PDVSA is destined to crash…spectacularly… now that all of the major international partners have pulled out of the country. Every day since then I have been amazed by the daily events and mind popping antics of how Mr Chavez is able to capture the world news. He is supposedly the head of state of Venezuela. Most Venezuelans are embarrased at the way he portrays their beautiful country as a wannabe leader, military, hard man with oil at his feet. Even Chavez cannot gag the world like he is is trying to gag RCTV.. thank god for that. He is acting more like a mix between a mafia boss and third world African king than a true head of a Country. Surrounded by yes men who he pays millions for their support. He has marginalised Venezuela to the same pathetic level as Belarus, Cuba and Iran. He says being rich is bad, but has forced, by law, to have complete access to the coffers of the banks and PDVSA as if they were for his own private use. There are absolutely no checks and balances in the country’s system of law, order or politics as would be found in any other good democractic country. The money currently seen in the “boom” can only come from corruption. How can a civil servant on US$500/month afford a Hummer and a US$500,000 apartment in Margarita? (paid in cash from a suitcase). I was in Caracas just 3 weeks ago. The taxi drivers were scared for their life. They fear being persecuted for saying anything contra Mr Chavez. They fear to be yet another statistic in the increasing numbers of murders that now happen every 45 minutes in the capital city. The barrios are exactly the same as they were 5 years ago. All those billions of US$ of revenue in five years…where has it gone?…oh yes a new bridge that collapsed and Bolivia. I agree that grinding poverty needs a social conscience to improve the lifestyle of the poor. Why is Chavez not using his energy and $$s on that issue alone? He is narcistic and self centred to a point of clinical insantity to remain where he is. This cannot be denied as his image will emblazen the new “stronger Bolivar” soon. The very moment the oil price drops or there is an alternative to oil found he will sink into oblivion and reach the history books with the same impact as Hussein, Castro and Mugabe following quickly behind. By the way, Hitler was once a mere captain in the army, put into prison for his political activism and released to go on to create the third empire…mmmm we need to look carefully at the new Kalshnikov factories being built….over to you now…whoever wants to top this.
chill on August 16th, 2007 6:40 pm

First your stats are out of kilter. You must have asked the questions at the private golf course.

RCTV should have been shut down. They were trying to get the people to over throw the
government. What do you think would happen if CNN would try to do the same to Bush. And Bush actually deserves to be overthrown
Ben epstein on August 16th, 2007 8:28 pm

I live in Venezuela and Chavezs nothing more than a 2 bit banana republic dictator.He makes sure to keep the people poor but subsidized to get their votes.He does nothing for Venezuela but manages to give away billions to Nicaragua,Boliva,Equador and Argentina.Anyone who will be stupid enough to listen to him and his 6 hour rumbling speeches is either paid off or a moron
Michael Kraft on August 17th, 2007 12:34 am

21 to 1 TV air time advantage during the election?

Your not talking to someone who believes this BS, I saw the rallies in Caracas before the election and rosales had twice as many people….over 1 million in attendence.

When the FORMER HEAD OF THE CNE (ELECTION COMMITTEE) is now the vice president.

YES THATS RIGHT EVERYONE. The person in charge of the last presidential election, became Chavez’s Vice President after the election.

Some great spouting of what you hear on the many state owned tv stations.

You guys forgot to say “Goerge Bush did it”

I am having a hard time not deleting the lies in that first post you dont show a single link or fact, just repeating what el commandante plays on one of his many many hours of televised speeches.

You left out the:

food shortages,
the highest inflation in south america,
the soaring crime rates
the road in such bad condition a car could fall in the holes
the train with no stations
the flood destroyed area that still isnt rebuilt 5 years later
the numerous drug busts of ships leaving venezuela…….

The bags of cash floating out with PDVSA executives.

Inflation is 19% per year.

Yeah..but the economy is great.

Chavez is planning to remove 3 zeros from all the money so people think that inflation didnt happen.

(this is true, its happening this year)
Jill Story on August 17th, 2007 11:30 am

Wow !! Finally someone is saying the truth about Chavez. We just left Ven. after being there two years. The world needs to wake up to what kind of man he really is and the condition Ven. is in now . He is not a man to be held up highly and I hope your words go around the world. The people in Ven. need to hear it so bad because so many there are just going by his words. He has control of just about all the news there . Its all they hear so its all so many of them know.

What I really hate is how he has convinced the people that American and Bush are so bad. But ask were they would like to travel and its usually the USA !!