Let's learn from Venezuela to Protect our Democracy

As a Venezuelan (and now US citizen) people keep telling me, "but we're not Venezuela" but let me remind you that we in Venezuela kept saying "but we're not Cuba." We never thought our Constitution would be changed so drastically for the worse - but it did slowly - and LEGALLY - over a period of time. It changed in favor of an ego-centric leader who became a dictator and turned our beautiful, rich, oil-producing country into a major humanitarian and economic crisis. We never thought that our flag would change! We never thought our history books could be re-written! I urge all Americans - we shouldn't worry about what our new President has done, but what he could potentially do. We need to understand, have empathy for WHY he was elected, work to fix those problems, and urge our leadership - republicans and democrats alike - to examine every proposed amendment to change the constitution very carefully through the lens of the long term impact it will have on our democracy. I may never see Venezuela recover in my lifetime, but we still have the chance to keep our great United States' democracy in tact.

The people of Venezuela must repeat the events of January 23,1958.

For Venezuela, January 23^rd, 1958, marked for Venezuela the end of the Perez Jimenez regime, and it opened the doors for a democracy that lasted for many decades.  Perez Jimenez was a ruthless military dictator, a General from the right, a logical man who had a vision for his country. He was a corrupted authoritarian but despite all, most of the infrastructure work that exists in Venezuela today, including major highways, and buildings like the Central University were part of his idea to build the country.

We can say many things about this merciless Dictator, including his intolerance and his oppression against the opponents of his regime and who were treated with brutality and/or spelled out of the country, but there is one thing that we can’t say about this man: He was NOT a traitor to his country.  A great portion of the money that entered Venezuela those days from the oil revenues was invested in the country.

Venezuela today has fallen behind in every aspect of its life, from the economy, to its infrastructure to having the highest inflation in the world, all these thanks to Hugo Chavez, whom like Perez Jimenez was a dictator but of a different kind:  Hugo Chavez was a man with an egotistic vision of his country and with great ambition for him himself.  A man who loved being glorified without creating glory. Hugo Chavez was a true traitor to his country, his people and the dignity of his nation. Hugo Chavez gave his country away to the poor Island of Cuba, which has been run by a ruthless dictator who became his mentor.  17 years later, since Hugo Chavez came to power, trillions of dollars had disappeared and Venezuela became a poor nation with sick and hungry people.

 What democracy?

Venezuela is living today the worse period on its democratic history.   Until 1999, Venezuela was considered a successful oil producing country with one of the most stables and successful democracies in the region. The arrival of Hugo Chavez to power hindered the democratic process with promises of a Bolivarian Revolution while dismantling all the democratic institutions of government. Hugo Chavez’s ambition for power and control and his megalomaniac desire to be in the limelight, forced him to give everything to those who "admired" him and "adulated" him for the piece of the oil profit Venezuela has incurring those early years.  Hugo Chavez had many followers, including many foreign "progressive" individuals and mandataries. Hugo Chavez lost his focus to provide the social and economic solutions that he once promised and he embraced a socialist agenda that has produced nothing but more poverty, corruption, waste of money and above all a hyper-inflation.  His desire to be the second Simon Bolivar, the liberator, blinded him until his death.

Hugo Chavez legacy for Venezuela is a sad one. He opened the country to foreign intervention living it vulnerable to the blood sucking Castro brothers, Iran, China, Russia and may others. These foreign interests are doing extensive damage to the progress and well being of the Venezuelan people.  The passing of Hugo Chavez and the arrival of Nicolas Maduro opened a new chapter for Venezuela. The production of food and goods became less and less and today is almost non existent. Nicolas Maduro who has proving to be uneducated and an inept, has engaged in human right violations and in driving Venezuela even deeper into an abysm.  Today Venezuela is a narco-state and the high rank Military officers and political leaders have engaged in growing their wealth through drug trafficking and they are less interested in a productive Venezuela or in democratic Venezuela. The unleashed of delinquency early enacted by Hugo Chavez through with his “colectivos”, a group of criminals in motorcycles commenting crimes while protected by the regime, has placed Venezuela in the list of one of the most dangerous countries in the world.

Venezuela isn’t a democracy today, neither there are democratic institutions left that benefit and protect its citizens. The government have stolen and continues stealing shamelessly to the private businesses to pack of supplies the empty shelves of the regime without paying the for their goods to those business with that the excuse that they are controlling the monopoly of goods by the private sector.  These arbitrary an unjust practice have ruined many businesses. Venezuela today is a poor with miserable people desperate to run away and leave everything behind this country rich in natural resources. I feel very strong and confident to say that Venezuela is being run by a pack of thieves hiding under a so call socialist ideology that needs more than the Venezuelan people protesting, it needs foreign intervention as well.

Venezuelans Need a Visa to Visit Cuba

 On July 24, 2015 Conviasa, one of the airlines that provides service from Venezuela to Cuba, announced that Venezuelans will be required to obtain a visa to travel to Island. What has changed?  Did the love affair created by Hugo Chavez with the dictatorial Castro regime ended with the United States decision to lift the Cuban embargo?

Ever since Hugo Chavez started his relations with Cuba, Venezuelans enjoyed visiting the poor, oppressed and dilapidated country of Cuba without the inconvenience of getting a visa.  The new relation between the United States or the “Imperio” as the late Hugo Chavez and Nicolas Maduro calls it, has awaken Cuba to a new reality. Venezuela is a broken country, with no money, damage infrastructure and an out of control delinquency.

 The biggest danger to the rest of the free world is terrorism. Venezuela has opened its door to Hamas, Hezbollah and it is currently the biggest bridge for drug trafficking coming from Colombia to Europe and the United States.

Cuba was removed from the list of countries that sponsored terrorism by the Obama administration, even though many in Congress disagreed with this move. Cuba was placed on this list in 1982, a year after Ronald Reagan was elected president and the discussion over the El Salvador’s civil was on the table. President Reagan’s decision was to stop the Soviet Union from influencing Latin America with the help of  Fidel Castro.

On August 2014 The Congressional Research Service release a study done by Mark P Sullivan Specialist in Latin American Affairs and June S. Beittel, Analyst in Latin American Affairs about "the United States concerns on Venezuela’s lack of cooperation on antiterrorism efforts, its relations with Iran, and the involvement of senior Venezuelan officials in supporting the drug and weapons trafficking activities of the FARC.”


Cuba is now under the watch of the United States and the Castro dictators know well that there is a big discontent among Cuban Americans with the Obama’s decision. The “Imperio” is watching them, and any terroristic activity is bound to jeopardize their future economic success.