Censorship in 2007: Venezuela

Part two of our look on censorship in 2007 looks at one of the great enigmas of politics in the Americas. That would be Venezuela under it's socialist leader Hugo Chavez. Communism was marred with censorship and abuse of citizens. This is a simple truth that has occurred in every country that has signed onto this political and economic doctrine. Since the fall of the USSR, it has been dying a slow death. There are only five communist countries that remain: China, Laos, Vietnam, North Korea, and Cuba. Arguably, China is communist only on paper now though the abuses continue, which I will address in part three of this series. Vietnam has also largely followed China's path.
So communism is dead, but in comes Hugo Chavez. A mid-ranking military officer, he staged two coup attempts in 1992 against the Venezuelan government. He later became president in 1999 through democratic means. (There is definitly parelles that can be drawn between Chavez and Hitler here) He was briefly removed from office in 2002 after an anti-socialist coup but regained his position two days later. He is the leader of the Fifth Republic movement, an increasingly radical socialist movement that seeks to dramatically change the country. Since Chavez's landmark reelection in 2006, the movement has become increasingly radical. At a recent visit to the UN, he referred to US president Bush as the devil. In ironic choice of words in my opinion considering his political stance and the events of 1992. Chavez hails Fidel Castro, Cuba's long time president. In many ways , Chavez wishes Venezuela to become the next Cuba. He is attempting to stamp out private enterprise, and many of the country's industries have been nationalized under his rule. Chavez has gained a vast number of supporters across Venezuelan society.

The problem with Chavez comes with his treatment of those who do not support the Fifth Republic movement. Though they are the minority, they are a large and vocal one. According to Chavez, they are also a threat to national security. This week, the Chavez government denied RCTV, a popular TV station based in the capital of Caracas, a broadcast license renewal. The station will remain on cable TV (which the vast majority of Venezuelans don't have access to) and will be replaced by TVES, a pro-Chavez, public television station. This move has outraged the Venezuelan political minority. Chavez cited a few reasons why the license was not renewed. He claimed the TV network has supported the 2002 coup attempt against him, something that RCTV denies as the station blocked off by demonstrations during the events. He also claims that the station corrupts the masses through it's pop culture entertainment programs such as soap operas and a popular satire/comedy show that often pokes fun at Chavez. RCTV was the only opposition aligned TV station in Venezuela that has a nation wide free-to-air broadcast range. Today, there are none. This further solidifies Chavez's power as he now controls the media. Any good revolutionary knows that one must control the media to control the country. Chavez has known this since his first coup in 1992. However, by doing this, Chavez is leading Venezuela down a very dangerous and all too familiar path. The government has threatened severe punishment if RCTV broadcasts illegally. This basically cuts off any opposition to his leadership. Without a voice, the opposition will shrink and Chavez becomes a dictator, and Venezuela yet another totalitarian country. I somehow doubt that this is what Venezuelans bargained for when they first elected him. Social change does not mean social silence and no revolution can be legitimate if it doesn't allow people to speak their minds.

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PAC

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Censorship in 2007: The New McCarthyism

This is part one of a series looking at political censorship today in 2007. I'll be examining a variety of countries in which censorship comes from both left and right political forces. Part one looks at the United States.

Society in the United States is collapsing. No, it's not because of Bush but rather small groups with too much power leading a witch hunt against America's most sacred institution: free speech.
First we had the Black Nazis led by Al Sharpton get Don Imus fired for a single comment. Latest on the chopping block is popular comedy show hosts Opie and Anthony. I have XM and listen to that show. I haven't been in my car much this week since I've been on vacation, but when I do go out, I found myself asking why the other comedy show Ron & Fez was running all day. Now I know. Though I don't know the exact circumstances of their firing, it's very disturbing and has me now considering canceling my satellite radio subscription.

This my friends is the new McCarthyism. We'll call it the Blue Scare since it seems like conservatives in the media are being targeted, though many liberals have found themselves targets as well. Indeed, this is something that the two sides of the political spectrum need to get together on.
We live in a feel good age. These days, it's a crime to make anybody feel bad, provided they aren't white males. Boy, if I could successfully sue every person that has offended me, I certainly wouldn't be living in Milton. This trend though is very disturbing. It seems like it takes only one person among legions of listeners or viewers to be offended by the content of the program to get it pulled off the air. I'm no expert when it comes to American politics but I'm pretty sure that's a violation of the First Amendment. Right now, powerful groups on both the left and the right are leading a witch hunt to get offensive things off the air. How does one define something as being offensive though? The thing is, you can't. Of course we don't want programs targeted at young children that talk about graphic sex and what not. However, the programs being targeted by these special interest groups are shows specifically for adults. If you are so offended by a program, why the hell are you even watching it in the first place! Turn it off. That's the problem. Nobody is forcing these people to view or hear offensive content, yet, these interests groups are forcing people not to view it. Isn't that fascism? With increasing FCC fines for obscene content, it seems the US government is on their side.
Why do networks pull these shows though, even when the FCC doesn't threaten them with fines? Well, that's a very good question. It's primarily due to manipulation of advertisers, implicitly and explicitly. Special interest groups threaten product boycotts of the advertisers unless they pull their support from the show. That's how shows with huge ratings that bring in stations huge amounts of money can get pulled. It makes little business sense but it just shows the power that these small groups have. Mind you, these advertisers have nothing to fear as those loyal to the shows (who are in the majority) would probably buy more of a product if the advertisers continued support in the face of a minority boycott. That was the case with Sinefeld DVDs after the Michael Richards incident and the subsequent call by African American fascists for a boycott of his works.

Now what about Canada. Well, that is what this blog is about. I like to ask, can this happen here? Canada is significantly more tolerant of content than the US is. The CRTC and Industry Canada regulate how the communications industry does business but they don't really care about content. Not as much as the FCC does anyway. For example, one of the few countries that allows all South Park episodes to be shown is Canada. Don't say it cannot happen here though. It can. A few years ago, the CRTC pulled the license of a Quebec radio station due to the "offensive" comments of two popular shock jocks. The CRTC received 10 complaints on a show that had tens of thousands of listeners. To them, that was cause to shut it down. There's also some Broadcast Standards thing, that is separate from the government. It's a board made by the industry to self-police. In other words, it's yet another group for the special interest people to manipulate to promote their fascist agendas.

Censorship is running rampant in North American society and it must be halted. People blast the McCarthy era for censorship yet they blissfully ignore it happening today. Do somethign so stop it. Here's US based website dealing with it. It's down for maintenance as a write this now but it might be a good idea to check it out later.
http://www.peopleagainstcensorship.com/

Here's a video from CNN about the issue.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SuzdaFajByg

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The War on Sexual Abuse

Child sexual abuse is on the rise world wide, or so it would seem. The media has given a great deal of attention to this issue but it seems to have gone under the political radar. Every week we hear about another internet predator being arrested for assaulting a child. It is truly sickening at the amount of people willing to do such things. I've talked about this in the past but I think it's worth bringing up again.

Last year, the Harper government made a move to raise the age of consent from 14 to 16. Still not far enough in my opinion but a good start. It really should be 18 to bring us inline with the United States. This was done to prevent older men from having relations with young teens, while still allowing teens to have legal relations with each other. Personally, if I found some 40 year old guy having relations with my 14 year old daughter, even though it's legal, I would probably murder him. I sure most sane and responsible men wouldn't hesitate to do the same thing. However, this does not solve the larger problem caused, at least partially, by the internet. Of course it's not the internet's fault that sick people do sick things but it has made child abuse more accessible, and dare I say acceptable to these disturbed people. Therein lies the problem. How do we fight this?

I think we need to start looking at these cases from a different perspective. These people are obviously mentally ill. This activity is not a sexual orientation. They cannot use the same argument that homosexuals as gays are still two consenting adults who understand what's going on. That is not the case with child abusers. A child cannot possibly consent to those actions. Rather than jail, which has proven itself time and time again, we should label sexual offenders who target children as being criminally insane. As such, they will be sent to maximum security mental institutions. This offers numerous advantages over jail. The public is still protected as these people are in these institutions indefinitely until they are well. It also allows opportunity to study and develop better treatments for this condition, which could be used to hopefully cure these people. Sure, it's a long shot, but it makes more sense than the revolving door prison system that these people are subject too, where they're back on the streets to reoffend rather quickly.

In the mean time, how should our society protect children? Well, keeping offenders off the street is the first way. Being smart is the second. In most cases, the offender knows there victim. They aren't the stranger in the car with candy as most people imagine. Be weary of other adults around your children. That doesn't mean you shouldn't trust people, but just don't let them get too close. Keep an eye on your kids. When it boils down to it, suspicious activity is fairly easy to spot out.

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Justin Trudeau: So It's Come To This Again

Pierre Trudeau was Canada's worst Prime Minister. Definitely debatable but true none the less. The laughing stock that Canada became under the Chretien government all roots back to Canada's most questionable political figure. A staunch communist, with friends such as Fidel Castro, Turdeau latched onto the Liberal party as a ploy for power. While there, he did such memorable things as flip the bird to reporters and made smart ass comments. Hardly appropriate for somebody at his level of education, power, and responsibility. It took far to long to get that joke out of office and he seemed to keep coming back like a bad cold. The man died seven years ago. Good riddance, or so we though.

Now we come full circle to a politician who is just arrogant. No, not Chretien. Though Trudeau was Chretien's mentor, he was more interested in furthering his own goals and could hardly be called a communist. No, I'm taking about Trudeau's son Justin. He's now running for office under his father's old Liberal banner. Justin will be running in the next election in the ridding of Pappineau, Quebec. Perhaps the Liberals believe he will revitalize the party as Stephane Dion has proven to be an ineffective and unpopular leader. I caution them that this is a path they do not want to go down again. Considering that Trudeau and his lackey's antics didn't save the party but doomed it to loose. Twice to Mulroney and now to Harper.

Still, the Turdeaus have become Canada's unofficial royal family, for some largly unknown reason. Sure, he did give us the Charter of Rights but even it has its flaws. Native special treatment and legalizing affirmative action come to mind. Other than that, he did relatively little to make Canada a great nation. Arguably, the slump and malaise began during his rule as Prime Minister. Now here comes Justin, seemingly at the right time. Justin though is simply an echo, a clone of his father. He even continues the legacy of questionable actions. While in Windsor recently, Justin Trudeau gave a speech to high school students telling them to question our capitalist economy and suggested that it would bring the downfall of this country. He has suggested that our environmental and social justice records have deteriorated. Is this true? Of course not! Canada is wealthier than it ever has been and is still the sixth best country in the world to live in according to the UN. The UN cites lingering problems with aboriginals as part of our decline from first, though the top five are countries that have been developing very rapidly over recent years. We are still ahead of the US and Japan and we are still one of the eight richest countries in the world. We successfully eliminated poverty in our country years ago. We must be doing something right.

Justin, like his father, is a communist that is just latching onto the Liberals because he knows he would never make it to power as a member of the Communist Party, or NDP. Personally, I think the NDP would feel a little uncomfortable with his ideas as they are very far left. Like his father, he is a friend of Cuban dictator Fidel Castro. We all know how well those people are living it up in communist paradise. If the Liberals are smart, they'll keep this man from getting any serious power in their party. God forbid if he ever were to become Prime Minister. I'd head south for good at that point.

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Yet Another Liberal Scandal

When will Canadians get the message. When you elect Liberal governments, they naturally turn to corruption. Once again, we have another scandal. Ontario's sponsorship scandal. It seems that the Ontario Liberals were handing out tax payer dollars to Liberal friendly immigrant groups. One in particular was an Iranian charity that received a huge pile of money only a few weeks after it was registered as a charity. Before, it claimed to be an animal welfare group. Come on.

This is a case of buying votes. Many immigrants will tend to be lifelong voters of the political party that does the most "favours" for their community. The Liberals buying votes? Wow, as if that's never happened before. The Liberals just can't seem to help themselves from sticking their hands in the cookie jar. In the mean time, Canadians are paying record high taxes while services are decreasing. All we're paying half our salaries for is so Liberal governments can waste money on administration and slush funds to help their friends. Of course, Finance Minister Sobara dismissed the issue as an election tactic by the opposition.
What's worse is that Canadians simply just tolerate this kind of behavior with nonsense comments like "better the devil you know." I think I'd rather take my chances by voting in somebody different that to have my hard earned money being handed out to shady special interest groups. Remember that this is the same government who broke all their election promises including levying the largest tax increase in Ontario history after they said they wouldn't raise taxes at all. On average, you have $900 less in your bank account at the end of the year due to that "health premium". (It's hidden in your income tax so it was actually an income tax increase.) Has health care improved on account? No.
Quit being so spineless my fellow Canadians. Open your eyes and see the fraudsters that these people really are.

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Commie Wars: Buzz vs Gore

The Harper Conservatives have found an unlikely ally. Buzz Hargrove, president of the CAW. Once again, the subject is environmentalism and how the issue has become out of control. This is perhaps the only time I agree with Buzz. He's predicting doom to the Canadian economy, especially the auto sector, if Al Gore and David Suzuki get their way. Rightly so. It's a bad time for selling cars in North America right now and American auto makers are struggling. Though I'm no economic expert, I think this is just the tip of the iceberg which will eventually lead to a recession in the auto industries of Japan and Europe as well. High taxes, high inflation, oh my.

The car, arguably the life blood of today's economy, has become public enemy number one for the likes of Gore and Suzuki. Obviously these two men are not gear heads. They've attacked everything from the family compact to your lawn mower. Even ethanol fueled vehicles haven't escaped. Buzz launched an attack against his fellow socialists stating that their environmental plans will cripple the auto industry, forcing the layoffs of possible thousands of workers. With that, you can kiss the likes of Oshawa, Windsor, and Brampton good bye as these cities rely on auto making too keep going. I guess that doesn't really matter to Gore. It doesn't seem to matter that killing industry will alienate a large part of the Democrats' voter base. I guess Gore hopes he can make that up by scaring others into electing him as president om 2008. Global warming is a rich persons, bandwagon issue.
Hargrove called the Conservatives environmental platform more realistic since it takes the economy into account rather than totally ignoring it which the Liberals and NDP have done. Though I suppose if the economy collapsed, we would have reduced emissions. I guess that's their plan. I still think the Conservative plan goes to far. Banning incandecent light bulbs comes to mind. There are many appliances and fixtures that use special bulbs where more energy efficient replacements aren't available. These energy efficient models don't work with dimmers either. I'm off on a tangent now though.

Hargrove likened global warming to Y2K. Remember that. The disaster that wasn't. It became an industry out of people's fear that the world would end. Indeed, global warming has become an industry, and a powerful political machine. As I said, Gore is just in it for the presidency. Suzuki, well, he's just another idiot who was wrongly given a PHD. I'm not sure what his political motives are but I know they are playing a major role.
Gore himself is really starting to bother me. Where's an assassin when you need one. He has the nerve to come into Canada and starts telling us how we should run out country. Rot in hell Mr Gore. Don't bring your election campaign north of the border. At least Hargrove has become an unlikely ally from the socialist side. He seems to be one of the few people who isn't afraid to point out the hoax that global warming actually is. We need more people like that if we want to stop this apocalypse madness.

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