Op-Ed: Obama acts like he believes the myths about Venezuela

[Enrique]

http://www.albanytribune.com/16052013-venezuela-and-the-propaganda-war-oped/

By Dr. Ronn Pineo

In Hugo Chávez’s Venezuela there is no free press—just state controlled anti-American propaganda.” Republican Congressman Connie Mack, Florida

“Under Chávez life for Venezuela’s poor only got worse … Public health is deplorable.” Republican former governor Bob Ehrlich, Maryland

President Barack Obama behaves as if he does not understand Latin America and only fitfully addresses its concerns. As a rule he just ignores the region, which, given prior U.S. misconduct in Latin America, could be considered a positive development except that his lack of interest in Latin America has meant there has been no reassessment of past policies. From the continuation of the war on illegal drugs, the beefing up the U.S. border patrol, or pressuring of Latin American states to adopt Republican-style free market policies, Obama has allowed aimless inertia to guide U.S. foreign policy for the region. These policies continue, zombie-like, staggering onward. When it comes to Latin America, the Obama camp is proving as intellectually incurious as the administration of George W. Bush.

Now the U.S. has rejected any notion of joining the family of American nations in recognizing the lawful victory of Chávez protégé Nicolás Maduro in last month’s presidential election in Venezuela. While the opposition is claiming election rigging, more than 170 international observers were present throughout the country, verifying the honesty of the Venezuelan electoral process. The election results have been endorsed by José Miguel Insulza, the Secretary-General of Organization of American States, and even by some ranked officials of the opposition.

Obama’s decision to challenge the legitimacy of the election seems to be informed by a naïve willingness to believe the self–serving inventions of the well-financed anti-Chávez and anti-Maduro smear machine. Like too many other ill – informed American political figures, Obama seems to have uncritically accepted the conclusions of the Venezuelan opposition, members of its middle-class and its favored élites who have long nursed a profound and racially-tinged disdain for Chávez.

This anti-Chávez and now anti-Maduro animosity is constructed around two persistent political myths about Venezuela: one is that there is no freedom of the press, and two, that Bolivarian Revolution’s economic and social policies are deeply irresponsible and wholly ineffective.

(...)

[niyad]

1. this should prove interesting