Positions

Since I have a hard time discussing Venezuelan stuff, I might as well take the opportunity to discuss current world issues so I can get into way more trouble than I am already in.


Gaza

Although quite aware of Israeli abuses, in particular the intractable "colon" policy of unjustified expansion, on this one I am squarely on Israel side.

If Israel has done heavy bombing it really had little choice. Hamas has not hesitated to spend and undue amount of foreign aid to build a network of tunnels and purchasing weapons for a war it cannot win, instead of using that help to improve the lot of Gaza denizens. That the people of Gaza voted for Hamas a few years ago is no excuse, just as the people of Venezuela voting for Chavez is no excuse for the disaster falling today over Venezuela. People vote on gut reaction and then they do not want to pay the consequences.

I am also observing that this current war has unleashed a wave of antisemitism from the left. That is right, in today's world the most antisemitic folks seem to come from the radical left than from the radical right. There is no clearer evidence than to look for the track record of those defending Hamas today: where are the massive anti Assad protests? Where is the massive anti ISIS protests? Is it OK for Arab to do Arab but not OK when non Arab is involved ? You may change "Arab" for "Muslim" or equivalent as you please, the point remains the same.

I am sorry if I offend anyone with the next sentence. From this corner, the clash of civilizations comes from the Muslim world and I am waiting for the moderate, educated, civilized ones to take a stand. I know they exist, I know they are many, but I am not holding my breath.

As for my Jewish friends I apologize sincerely for the antisemitism that is flourishing in chavista ranks these days. Please, be assured that they are still a minority in Venezuela and I am sure a minority inside chavismo. This is not a native phenomenon, this has been imported by Chavez for strategic Cuban reasons. More crimes to be put on the Castro murderers when the day of reckoning comes.

ISIS and Iraq

It is a sin to even have to discuss the horror that we are seeing in Northern Iraq, an horror that I feel would have happened with or without the Iraq war. An horror that was created from Syria when the cowardly West had no problem letting Assad massacre its people because he had no oil and they surely did not want to confront Putin over Syria. I lay squarely the current massacre of Christians and other religious minorities in Northern Iraq at Putin's feet. He should have known better instead of being worried at getting his second grade weaponry paid in full.

Ukraine

And talking of Putin leads us to Ukraine, of course. My position there is less clear cut. In Ukraine there are ethnic from one or the other side speaking native the language of one or the other side, languages that are not that different to begin with. Plus a failed revolution we all rooted for. Political mistakes, like the ones we did in Venezuela, are always paid at some point.

This being said, I was not sanguine at Crimea going to Russia, though anyone should be sanguine at the way it was done. There are enough historical reasons to have forced Ukraine to accept a referendum on Crimea, but there are not enough historical reasons to accept Putin taking over Crimea because he just said so.

Then again the West did not want to boycott Sotchi over Putin anti gay laws on top of his censorship, repression and what not. We got what we deserved.

The only true strategic need for Putin is access to the Black Sea, this come from Peter the Great of which Putin is a mere under par imitator. But the need exists.

Many mistakes were made such a rushing a presidential election without giving the time to the East to organize itself after the lost of their man in Kiev. Putin was not going to miss that.

But everything considered, Putin is a dictator and he must be stopped before he takes us to a new Munich version. That Putin's friends are among the most unsavory rulers of the world does not stop apologists that should know better. Putin, like Chavez did, thrives on transgression and will never stop doing so.