Reply #221: good post. sadly, even some liberals, pseudo or not, shut down on logic with the chavez button.

[marasinghe]

fuming over rhetoric, few look at actions & results. let's list some.

obama:
- mass bail out of wall street & bank corps. but middle & low income workers & home-owners - not so much.
- sends out mass-murdering scum* kissinger, on diplomatic missions.
- appoints corporate hack & kissinger associate, geithner, to one of the most important cabinet posts.
- keeps bush flacks on in important cabinet posts; viz.: secdef gates.
- spends more effort trying to cajole repukes into his bipartisan coalition, than listening & providing a say, to true progressives like kucinich.
- allows a free hand to the cia & pentagon, in continuing the status quo. cases in point: as many posters pointed out - school of the americas; drone attacks in pakistan; continuing presence of troops in iraq.
- vote in support of govt. eavesdropping.
- but, he's a smart, intelligent, ivy-league post-grad, and - i agree - a nice, decent guy, who is sympathetic to those not at the top of the money pyramid, and did & does try to help and look out for them.

chavez:
- nationalization of resources to benefit poor & indigenous venezuelans.
- free elections, vetted by the european union, jimmy carter, et al.
- oil assistance to poor countries, and the poor in rich countries.
- trying & succeeding in increasing literacy in venezuela.
- trying & succeeding in decreasing the poverty rate in venezuela.
- tried to bring farc to the negotiation table; negotiated on hostages.
- allowed the fascists who tried to shut his govt. down in the coup attempt to continue their miserable existence, ad our nauseam.
- helped to propagate a renewed nationalism in the south american continent, to benefit the people of the land; instead of a bunch of rich oligarchs, and the multi-national corps. they ride on.
- but, he's a blunt, plain-spoken, rough-talking, drop-out from grad school, who doesn't have the smooth facade of your average statesman; and will insult other world leaders at the drop of a hat, when they indulge in b-s.

yet, who's the more progressive here?