We've recently seen a massive outpouring of grief over the death of Venezuela's president, Hugo Chavez, a man who, in the opinion of many, did an excellent job. Socialists can agree that he did indeed do an excellent job -- of muddying the waters. The improvements he made in nationalizing the country's largest private electric company and Telecommunications company and the steel making and cement industries were improvements made within capitalism, that are no improvements at all. It's largely forgotten that in 2002 he fired 18,000 workers in the state-run oil company for striking when he refused to agree to a non-binding referendum on his rule. Chavez was merely another leader to attempt to administer the running of capitalism and calling it socialism. If the minority own the tools of production, the land, and the resources, it's still capitalism. If the majority must work for wages in order to survive, it's still capitalism. And what is Chavez' legacy to the Venezuelan people? A deeply troubled and divided country with high unemployment and crime rate. The fewer "socialists" like Chavez, the better. John Ayers
The Glasgow & Edinburgh Branches Blog. Towards a better understanding of the world, in order to change it.
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The "strike" was as much an expression of workers class struggle as the lorry drivers "strike" was here in protest of fuel prices, but more an employers orchestrated one. Chile too had a transport strike of haulage operators which was politically inspired by the right against Allende. Or the general strike by the loyalists in Northen Ireland. We should be cautious at treating certain things at a surface level.
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