Coming February 6, 2024 . . .
MURDER, POLITICS, AND THE END OF THE JAZZ AGE
by Michael Wolraich
Pre-order at Barnes & Noble / Amazon / Books-A-Million / Bookshop
Coming February 6, 2024 . . . MURDER, POLITICS, AND THE END OF THE JAZZ AGE by Michael Wolraich Pre-order at Barnes & Noble / Amazon / Books-A-Million / Bookshop |
By Mery Mogollon and Chris Kraul, Los Angeles Times, Feb. 22, 2014
CARACAS, Venezuela -- Massive demonstrations by opponents and supporters of President Nicolas Maduro were underway Saturday in central Caracas as the official death toll rose to eight on the 10th day of civil unrest roiling Venezuela.
Leading the opposition demonstration in eastern Caracas was Liliana Tintori, wife of Leopoldo Lopez, the former Caracas borough mayor who was arrested last week and charged with inciting violence that by official count has also led 137 injuries. Lopez and other opposition leaders say armed pro-government vigilantes have been responsible for the deaths.
News media on Saturday reported two more deaths Friday night in Caracas. And in a surprise announcement at a late night news conference Friday, President Nicolas Maduro called on President Obama to enter into negotiations with Venezuelan officials to settle differences. He also rescinded a previous order expelling CNN news crews from Venezuela [.....]
The focus of the opposition demonstration Saturday is a demand that Maduro disarm groups of motorcycle-borne vigilante groups who opposition leaders claim are responsible for the violence. Henrique Capriles, the oppositon presidential candidate who lost to Maduro last April in a special election to replace the late Hugo Chavez, was attending the demonstration.
Prior to his death last March, Chavez admitted to distributing firearms to members of paramilitary militias to safeguard his Bolivarean Revolution [....]
Comments
Earlier news thread on this HERE. Partly because it is so commonplace for it to happen, I had neglected to post on that the story that Maduro only days ago expelled 3 U.S. diplomats, partly blaming U.S. interference for the unrest. But now it should be noted because of his request for Obama to be involved. A very abrupt about face, different from the frequent Venezuelan government narrative whenever trouble rears its head of "it's a U.S. plot."
by artappraiser on Sat, 02/22/2014 - 2:50pm
Surprise Surprise, the other side arms itself and I'm surprised you continue to tell me on other posts, people should disarm. Criminals and corrupt government will never disarm themselves, but they'd like to disarm others.
by Resistance on Sat, 02/22/2014 - 3:14pm
Explain exactly how Maduro opponents would help themselves by firing on these paramilitiaries. Rather than demanding the paramilitaries be disarmed, as they are now doing, so that they can have a more civil society, and not one with escalating violence. Keep in mind: their goal is not civil war. And that they apparently have made Maduro very nervous and possibly backtracking, doing exactly what they are doing without weapons. And how their leader seems to be losing no lustre leading from jail (i.e,, martyrdom as weapon.)
by artappraiser on Sat, 02/22/2014 - 3:50pm
One live dog, is better than one dead lion.
Want to explain to me how Maduro opponents would help themselves, when paramilitiaries.fire on them, or pay them and their families a visit in the night?
by Resistance on Sat, 02/22/2014 - 6:07pm
That's a switch.
by Peter Schwartz on Tue, 02/25/2014 - 4:00pm
by artappraiser on Sat, 02/22/2014 - 6:45pm
It's especially sad, because there were some good things going on in Venezuela under Chavez(alongside things that weren't good). Maduro seems to be a lot more violent and authoritarian than Chavez was. I wonder what take Western radicals will have on this.
by Aaron Carine (not verified) on Sat, 02/22/2014 - 9:46pm
I've been wondering along different lines, Aaron. Whether the divide between pro-Chavista and anti-Chavista may still be the same as when he was still alive, but with Maduro not being as skillful the anti-Chavista's feel emboldened to challenge? The clue for me to suspect that is that it started with university students, and my understanding is that pro vs. anti-Chavista was not always a simple division along class lines, of the poor & working class vs. upper class. But also the poor and working class vs. the intelligentsia and those who aspire to high culture and those with cosmopolitan ambitions. I do think Chavez played heavily to that, too, while not exactly going whole hog cultural revolution along the lines of everyone with glasses has to work in the fields. (He would, for example, deride people with long speeches who did things like celebrate Halloween, as a non-native effete foreign cultural affectation.)
by artappraiser on Sat, 02/22/2014 - 11:39pm
A start to the answer to my questions above; it's not the same-old, same-old:
by artappraiser on Tue, 02/25/2014 - 2:53pm
"...the world's highest oil reserves"?
by Peter Schwartz on Tue, 02/25/2014 - 3:56pm
by artappraiser on Mon, 02/24/2014 - 11:59pm
by artappraiser on Thu, 03/13/2014 - 8:56pm
by artappraiser on Thu, 03/13/2014 - 9:00pm
by artappraiser on Thu, 03/13/2014 - 9:08pm
One more try by Maduro to get Obama more on his side, then it's probably back to blaming Obama's CIA or whatever:
by artappraiser on Sat, 03/15/2014 - 1:47pm