Under The Same Sun: Stop Pandering to the Poor, Mr. Chavez.

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June 18, 2004

Stop Pandering to the Poor, Mr. Chavez.

Another anti-Chavez piece with some information and a lot of barely disguised hostility. Check out the brilliant headline: "With Social Programs, Chavez Buying Loyalty, Critics Charge."

Really! Who do you think those oil revenues are for? "Buying" loyalty by providing social services and education? Shame on you, Mr. Chavez.

Can you imagine similar headlines for other institutions doing their jobs, such as a state actually trying to help the poor. "With Providing Crucial Aid during Disasters, Red Cross Buying Loyalty, Critics Charge"; "By Providing Health Care, Hospitals Buying Loyalty, Critics Charge."

But critics say Chavez is pandering to the poor to save his political career and gambling irresponsibly with the long-term fiscal health of a state company that provides half the country's revenues.

Of course, the opposition is so fiscally responsible. Their strike last year, aimed at ousting the legally elected president, managed to shut down the oil industry --since they had occupied all the key positions-- at a cost of many, many billions of Dollars to Venezuela's national economy. Now that some money is being spent on the poor, we are all suddenly worried about "fiscal health."

And the article goes on to quote a very responsible sounding Alfredo Keller:

But Alfredo Keller, a pollster and political analyst, said Chavez was trying to "buy loyalty to maintain power" and "using the oil industry as a political weapon." Keller said Chavez was playing on the fears of a nation where 67 percent of the people live in poverty, 35 percent live in extreme poverty, three-quarters of the population is either unemployed or works in the informal sector, and there have been 43,000 homicides in the past five years.

And if Venezuela's people finally give up after so much assault, you know it will be heralded as proof of Chavez's unpopularity.

Posted by zeynep at June 18, 2004 02:31 AM

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Comments

In other words, "by pandering to 67% of the population, Chavez is buying loyalty". Isn't "pandering to 67% of the population" a contradiction in terms?

Posted by: Miguel at June 18, 2004 11:14 AM

Why can't we get a deal like that here? Besides not having any oil, I mean.

At least the linked article got me to find my nearest Citgo outlet, and it'll be a pleasure to switch from Mobil.

Posted by: CitizenDog at June 18, 2004 01:14 PM

It is quite a statement, isn't it? Uh, yes, 67 percent live in poverty but, hey, why should an oil-rich country do anything about it?

I wonder if Citgo makes substantial profits from its gas stations.

Posted by: zeynep at June 18, 2004 01:54 PM

A back-of-the-envelope analysis suggests that Citgo's retail gasoline business returned ~ US$250 million last year. I was surprised to find that, although the company ultimately is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Venezuela, their website has an investor relations page with a complete set of SEC filings available in .pdf format.

Posted by: CitizenDog at June 18, 2004 04:53 PM

I think such stories will become increasingly plentiful as the August elections approach. Both as a means to excite popular indignation and hostility toward the Chavez regime, and to provide a cover in the not unlikely event of a Chavez victory. This will help "explain" such an outcome after months and years of telling us how "unpopular" his "Cuban-style dictatorship" (I pluck this flower from a recent *Wall Street Journal* editorial) is among ordinary Venezuelans. Modern western media is nothing if not consistent. Just think Abu Graib and the still-missing Paul Johnson.

Posted by: Lou at June 19, 2004 10:13 PM

"Pandering" to an overwhelming majority of the population by providing the very services that governments should provide sound very much more like democracy to me than what passes for it in western (ie. USA) countries. Power in western nations always panders to the powerful and wealthy but this would never fall under the same banner. The constant "doublespeak" of language in corporate press is outstanding.

Posted by: marcus at June 21, 2004 03:19 AM

For those of you interested in Venezuelan current events, please visit my website and read. The Venezuelan crisis is very complicated! Chavez takes his marching orders from Castro but this is just too much for some of you to understand...

Posted by: Editor at June 22, 2004 11:43 AM

Oddly enough, Alaska does a similar thing with its oil revenue.

http://www.apfc.org/alaska/dividendprgrm.cfm?s=4

I am sure that we can expect a Washington Post expose soon.

Posted by: Ted Stein at June 23, 2004 12:27 AM

To Editor:

Hugo Chavez DOES NOT take his marching orders from Castro!! Where do you get your information? Miami? Or perhaps the CIA? Complicated is one thing, nonsense is quite another.

Old & In The Way

Posted by: Phil Cicchi at June 23, 2004 01:58 AM

Leave Chavez alone. You say he is "pandering" to an overwhelming majority of his population. Isn't this what democracy is supposed to be? Carolyn Silva

Posted by: Carolyn Silva at July 14, 2004 11:34 AM

Chavez and his Fifth Republic Movement are awesome. The new constitution (an English translation is available on venezueanalysis.com)provides for so much direct, participatory democracy as to put our (USA) version of don't-trust-the-people electoral college, keep-the-elite-in-power two party system, pseudo democracy to shame.

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Under The Same Sun

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June 18, 2004

Stop Pandering to the Poor, Mr. Chavez.

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