[erratum] It is not me saying it, it is the Washington Post in today's editorial. Do not miss it, as complete in a few paragraphs as it gets.
The last line is just great:
His power grab is a backhanded tribute to the strength of Venezuela's democratic opposition -- proof that this tribune of the people actually fears them.
But there is an interesting detail for which I will ask the collaboration of the readers of this blog. Read the comments on this editorial and you will read a collection of PSF old and tired clichés. I mean, really old and really tired. You must know that there is concerted effort by the Venezuelan government to discredit the WaPo, all started by a letter from Izarrita (a.k.a. Andres Izarra the on and off communications minister). If you read the comments you will quickly realize this, by the lack of originality, the repetitive tone, etc... No point of course in rebutting these people, do not waste a minute of your precious time. However if you could drop a simple note of support it would be great (you need to register, sorry, but it is for a good cause and the Post does not send spam). The note could be simply "Excellent editorial! Great to see that the Washington Post sees clearly the situation in Venezuela." Let's see if this blog by itself can place as many positive notes as the negatives Izarrita is trying to send.
And in case you wondered who are the people besides the comment handles, one of them is probably Greg Wilpert at Venezuelanalysis. His descent into pro Chavez sycophancy is making him a strange version of a XXI century Tokyo Rose. It is amazing that someone would put his pen so easily at the service of justifying the disqualification of folks for political motives. He goes as far as writing that Primero Justicia was a political party in 1998 when it was just an NGO, becoming a party two years later, I believe. He also forgets, conveniently, that the real accusation was to use some budget money to pay employees instead of something else of the budget, due to Chavez not sending the funds owed to Chacao. But Chavez does fund shifting all the time and Ruffian is blind to it, hence Wilpert accomplice silence?. That Leopoldo Lopez did not profit himself of a single penny does not seem to bother Greg Wilpert either. Then again the Tascon list does not seem to have deprived him of sleep in its days.
[erratum] I put the wrong link for the editorial. Sorry. It is corrected now.
-The end-