Speaking of which.....has anyone seen Sean Penn since Hugo assumed room temperature????He's been dating Charlize Theron, who is a heck of a lot more attractive than that ol' commie Hugo!
:pondering:
(Reuters) - Venezuelan security forces arrested opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez on Tuesday on charges of fomenting unrest that has killed at least four people, bringing tens of thousands of his angry supporters onto the streets of Caracas.
Crowds of white-clad protesters tried to block the vehicle carrying the 42-year-old Harvard-educated economist after he made a defiant speech, said an emotional farewell to his family, and gave himself up to soldiers.
Opposition leaders hope Lopez's arrest will galvanize street demonstrations against President Nicolas Maduro, though there is no immediate sign the protests will topple the socialist leader.
"I am handing myself over to an unfair justice system," the protest leader told supporters, standing on a platform next to a statue of Cuban poet and independence hero Jose Marti.
"May my imprisonment serve to wake the people up."
The crowd lifted his wife up to give him a final embrace and hang a crucifix around his neck.
Minutes later, he surrendered to military officers, pumping his fist and then stepping into the military vehicle with a Venezuelan flag in one hand and a white flower in the other.
~~~~~~~
'CHAVEZ LIVES!'
In a nation split largely down the middle on political lines, 'Chavistas' have stayed loyal to Maduro despite unflattering comparisons with his famously charismatic predecessor. Many Venezuelans fear the loss of popular, oil-funded welfare programs should the socialist lose power.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/19/us-venezuela-protests-idUSBREA1H0WU20140219?feedType=RSS&feedName=topNews&utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter&dlvrit=992637
The shape of things to come?
When the producing class finally decides it has had enough, the "free stuff" leeches fight back to defend their entitlements.
We're headed that way.
He's been dating Charlize Theron, who is a heck of a lot more attractive than that ol' commie Hugo!
The abuses became intolerable...
... and the people lost all fear.
The crowds in Venezuela are chanting "we will not stand for a Cuban style dictatorship."
God bless them, and see them through the night.
@backatone000 1h
#Venuezuela sign says... The only thing in the freezer is the dead!! pic.twitter.com/37qJE7GCEG
(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/BiVRlpyCAAAgIIC.jpg)
Biden says Venezuela 'concocting' bogus stories
Biden accuses Venezuela of using 'armed vigilantes' against peaceful anti-government protests
By Frank Bajak, Associated Press | Associated Press – 1 hr 26 mins ago.
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) -- U.S. Vice President Joe Biden calls Venezuela's situation alarming in remarks published Sunday, suggesting its government is using "armed vigilantes" against peaceful protesters and accusing it of "concocting false and outlandish conspiracy theories" about the United States.
Biden's remarks, issued in writing to a Chilean newspaper in response to questions, drew an angry rebuke from Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.
"We reject their aggression," President Maduro told supporters at a rally the socialist-led government held at the presidential palace. "They were defeated in the OAS and now they want revenge."
The U.S. had strongly objected to a declaration of solidarity for Venezuela issued by the Organization of American States on Friday night.
Washington said the declaration contradicted the OAS charter, in part, by stressing non-intervention in Venezuela over guaranteeing that human rights and free speech are respected there. Twenty-nine states voted in favor of Friday night's declaration with only the United States, Canada and Panama objecting.
"The situation in Venezuela reminds me of previous eras, when strongmen governed through violence and oppression; and human rights, hyperinflation, scarcity, and grinding poverty wrought havoc on the people of the hemisphere," Biden told El Mercurio.
"The situation in Venezuela is alarming," he wrote. "Confronting peaceful protesters with force and in some cases with armed vigilantes; limiting the freedoms of press and assembly necessary for legitimate political debate; demonizing and arresting political opponents; and dramatically tightening restrictions on the media" is not what Washington expects from a signatory to international human rights treaties.
Rather than engaging the opposition in a "genuine dialogue," Biden added, "Maduro has thus far tried to distract his people from the profound issues at stake in Venezuela by concocting totally false and outlandish conspiracy theories about the United States."
Maduro claims student-led protests that ignited Feb. 12, mostly peaceful but including almost daily street clashes with security forces, are an attempt by the extreme right to overthrow him.
The demonstrations have been joined mostly by middle-class Venezuelans fed up with inflation that reached 56 percent last year, chronic shortages of some food staples, and one of the world's highest murder rates. But some poorer Venezuelans, students in particular, are taking part. The government says 21 people have died.
On Sunday afternoon in eastern Caracas, about 100 demonstrators threw rocks at police, who responded with tear gas and water cannon. Some protesters tore a bus kiosk from the sidewalk and set it ablaze, providing authorities with an opportunity to repeat on state media its accusation that anti-government activists are vandals.
Despite a growing body of evidence to the contrary, Maduro on Sunday denied that armed paramilitary supporters of the government have employed violence against protesters.
"The only violent armed groups in the street are those of the right," he told the crowd.
In a statement issued by the presidency, Maduro also accused the opposition was "receiving financing from the United States" to undermine "a solid democracy that has had the popular backing in 18 elections over 15 years." He offered no evidence.
The statement said Venezuela was nevertheless interested in renewing" full diplomatic relations with the United States based on "mutual respect" and "non-intervention."
The two nations have been without ambassadors since 2010 and Venezuela has expelled eight U.S. diplomats in the past 13 months for alleged meddling.
Maduro, the hand-picked successor of the late Hugo Chavez, later met at the presidential palace with actor-activist Sean Penn and Haiti's prime minister. Penn is an ambassador-at-large for Haiti, where he runs a nonprofit aid group. He was shown on state television and made no public comments.
Biden and Maduro are both scheduled to attend Tuesday's swearing-in of Michelle Bachelet as Chile's president.
Bachelet, who was also Chile's president in 2006-10, recently said her administration will support Maduro's government and the Venezuelan people so they can "search for the democratic means to social peace."
Rationing In Venezuela Brings Eerie Markings On People’s Arms
(http://weaselzippers.us/wp-content/uploads/550x309xBiNdPjHIEAAdWAY-550x309.jpg.pagespeed.ic.UV6Fb_95UI.jpg)
https://twitter.com/cwcarabia/status/442315176369328128 (https://twitter.com/cwcarabia/status/442315176369328128)
Venezuela Will Soon Begin Implementing A Food Rationing Card System Like In Cuba
(http://weaselzippers.us/wp-content/uploads/food-card.jpg)
http://weaselzippers.us/178793-venezuela-will-soon-begin-implementing-a-food-rationing-card-system-like-in-cuba/ (http://weaselzippers.us/178793-venezuela-will-soon-begin-implementing-a-food-rationing-card-system-like-in-cuba/)
The caption for the pic of people in line at the Makro supermarket indicates they're waiting for 2kg - basically two litres - of milk. This is the legacy of Obama's BFF Chavez.
Will the progressives complain when they have to line up/pull out a knife/gun for their non organic food?
How many young men have ZERO hunting survival skills? They took woodworking/mechanics/shop out of schools; what skills do they have other than a smartphone?
Thankfully, many kids in my area hunt and fish. Those of you in metropolitan areas may have to contend with roving bands of urban yoots whose idea of roughing it is ten minutes without an iPhone. :whistle:
I have an idea that could certainly fulfill a need and in the process compensate you nicely.
Think of Summer Camp for children of all ages, with no electricity or public facilities. No internet...no social media...no nothing.
The purpose is to teach/tap an individual's survival skills and find something each person can do that would contribute to the group or alliance.
The experience for any child should prove priceless....the value could be too...if and when the grid is shut down.
Then again of course, there's Lord of the Flies.....scenario :pondering:That's what first came to mind when I read your proposal. My misbehaving nephew was spirited away from his suburban New Jersey house in the middle of the night and whisked to some isolated area in Idaho for just that sort of "tough love" discipline when he was 17 or so. Instead of learning to cooperate with others and come to and understanding of the error of his ways, he continued to misbehave even out in the wilderness and got the entire group of boys punished for his misdeeds. So they beat him up.
That's what first came to mind when I read your proposal. My misbehaving nephew was spirited away from his suburban New Jersey house in the middle of the night and whisked to some isolated area in Idaho for just that sort of "tough love" discipline when he was 17 or so. Instead of learning to cooperate with others and come to and understanding of the error of his ways, he continued to misbehave even out in the wilderness and got the entire group of boys punished for his misdeeds. So they beat him up.
That's what first came to mind when I read your proposal. My misbehaving nephew was spirited away from his suburban New Jersey house in the middle of the night and whisked to some isolated area in Idaho for just that sort of "tough love" discipline when he was 17 or so. Instead of learning to cooperate with others and come to and understanding of the error of his ways, he continued to misbehave even out in the wilderness and got the entire group of boys punished for his misdeeds. So they beat him up.
I can't stand Oprah but years ago she showed segments in commercial promos of a military drill instructor for troubled teens. I wonder if this really exists