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https://freedium.cfd/https://medium.com/a-culturated/what-venezuela-twenty-years-ago-taught-me-about-the-usa-today-2d73bca400a6>
"I became familiar with the political evolution of Venezuela during roughly
twenty years of visiting and working there. The things I saw and heard echo my
country's societal changes. It is deeply ironic, considering the combative
trajectory of Venezuelan politics was inspired by an anti-capitalist aspiration
for its society.
When Hugo Chavez won the 1998 presidential election in Venezuela, he had plenty
of 'street cred' behind him. He was known to be a feisty scrapper, having tried
in 1992, as an army Lieutenant Colonel, to lead a coup d'etat and was
imprisoned when his efforts failed. Only by a presidential pardon was he free
to try again, this time, successfully, through the ballot box.
He tapped into the discontent of many Venezuelans left behind in the oil boom
that should have lifted all boats but did not. Up to this point, the two
biggest political parties were tired and static, trading off power every few
elections in a predictable ritual. The ordinary people languished, and their
dreams of an upwardly mobile life were fiction. Chavez channeled their
disenchantment and reflected their origins: a simple man, unacquainted with
political decorum, always speaking in the vernacular, seeding his speeches with
slang and buzzwords he knew would connect him to the masses.
I first began living in Venezuela, on and off, from the time of his release
from prison and through his rise into effectively perpetual presidential power,
which was extinguished only by his untimely death from cancer.
I watched the progress of his rule and his intense hold on the imaginations of
his adherents, including some of my friends, co-workers, and the family who
would, years later, become my in-laws."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
