For a country RULED by an evil "Dictator",

[bvar22]

who violently suppressed Opposition Parties,

and threw Opposition Leaders in JAIL without trials,

whose "Jack Booted Thugs" SHUT DOWN the Opposition Media,
.
.
.
.
.
The Opposition Parties and Opposition Media in Venezuela seem remarkably alive and well.
How could THAT happen?
.
.
.
.
.
Chavez must have been a very poor "dictator".


VIVA Democracy!

[TimberValley]

1. Suppression can backfire.

It can actually make the opposition stronger.

[Dawson Leery]

2. Chavez is in the same mold as Huey Long.

He touches the edges, but he is NO tyrant.

[Danascot]

3. Chavez' approval rating was around 60%

... and the GOP's is what, about 6%?

[bvar22]

5. A "Ruthless Dictator" who violently suppresses the opposition....

....with an approval rating of only 60%?

One thing is clear,
his Death Squads, Secret Police and network of informers weren't
weren't worth a damn!

For such a "Dictatorial, Authoritarian Megalomaniac",
Chavez didn't know very much about Dictating.
He was terrible at it.

Any dictator worth his Riding Crop & Interrogation Cells can pull down at least a 98% approval.
What an embarrassment Chavez must have been to all the other Dictators.

[Cleita]

4. K&R