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What Would George W. Do? Posted: Sunday, November 17, 2002 VHeadline.com by Charles Hardy George W. Bush is President of the United States of America. Hugo Chavez Frias is president of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela. George W. Bush's brother is Governor of the State of Florida. Hugo Chavez Frias' father is Governor of the State of Barinas. George W. Bush works out of the White House in Washington, D.C. Hugo Chavez Frias works out of Miraflores in Caracas, D.F. George W. was a pilot in the Texas Air National Guard ... he eventually became a lowly Lieutenant. Today he is Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces of the United States. Hugo C. became a Lieutenant Colonel. Today he is Commander-in-Chief of the Venezuelan armed forces. George W. had an interest in baseball. He became part owner of the Texas Rangers in 1989 and invested $606,000. In 1998 he sold his interest for $15,000,000. Hugo C. also has had an interest in baseball, but not the luxury of a financial one. He enjoys playing the game. We have, then, two men with somewhat similar backgrounds. Now here's today's question for all those who see the United States as the bastion of freedom of expression and the beacon of democracy: What would George W. Bush do if a handful of military officers decided to declare themselves in disobedience to him as Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces and set up camp between the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C.? The answer: he would unhesitatingly send in federal troops to immediately arrest and jail them. Now my question is, why doesn't Hugo Chavez Frias do the same? I don't know but here are two possible answers: 1) He is dealing with a part of society that is having a tantrum. They're babies who will cry and kick because they can't have their way. They lost their election three years ago and, until daddy will give in to them and give them what they want, they are not going to stop yelling. Chavez Frias would like to spank them, but that wouldn't help. Besides that, the television cameras would blare any spanking around the world and give the Venezuelan family an even poorer image than that which the opposition has already given it. 2) He doesn't want violence. In spite of all the claims that Chavez Frias is the reason for the division that exists today in Venezuela, I continue to maintain that it was always there. Chavez Frias just happened to be the one to announce the bad news. It is not Chavez Frias, but the opposition who have exacerbated the situation and who continue to do so. Hugo Chavez Frias has shown an incredible patience ... George W. Bush would never have done so. Now another question: What would George W. Bush have done if the Mayor of Washington, D.C. acted like Alfredo Pena, using the police as "an appendix" (the words of a Metropolitan Police officer) to support a group of people in favor of overthrowing the government? The answer: He would take over the police. What did Hugo Chavez Frias do? The answer: After a lot of patience, he finally did the same that George W. Bush would have done long ago. I didn't vote for President Bush (and I cringe as I write this), but maybe President Chavez Frias should be more like him. So, here we have two men with many similarities. Yet one acts and would act in an authoritarian manner and considers himself to be the leader of the free world ... the other acts with extreme patience and gentleness and is called a "dictator" and "communist." We have George W. Bush ... who just barely won an election under very strange circumstances ... with the Supreme Court, not the people, voting him into office. Nobody questions his legitimacy. We also have Hugo Chavez Frias who won an election with almost 60% of the votes and now the opposition wants him to resign. Let's face it. They don't want a referendum, really. They want a resignation because they, who have held the power for so long, want it back. They have $ millions to spend on publicity to try to convince everyone that they were right all along: that the democratic elections in 1998 were a mistake. Yes, they were a mistake. . . for them. Their strategy failed. Chavez Frias was never supposed to have won. He did. So, go on. Cry! Shout! Kick your feet! I'm not saying you won't get your way someday. But I will always maintain that, just because you have money and power, you don't deserve it and you never have. In the meantime, don't criticize Hugo Chavez Frias if he starts acting like your hero, George W. Bush. You asked for it! |
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