Comments on: Bolivia: Fascism Seizes Power — Morales Complains http://dissidentvoice.org/2008/09/bolivia-fascism-seizes-power-morales-complains/ a radical newsletter in the struggle for peace and social justice Sun, 22 Nov 2009 23:09:19 -0800 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: Poilu http://dissidentvoice.org/2008/09/bolivia-fascism-seizes-power-morales-complains/#comment-28375 Poilu Thu, 18 Sep 2008 19:48:43 +0000 http://www.dissidentvoice.org/?p=3192#comment-28375 Addendum:The original article, as just located on Petras' web site, is dated *16* September 08. Addendum:The original article, as just located on Petras’ web site, is dated *16* September 08.

]]> By: Poilu http://dissidentvoice.org/2008/09/bolivia-fascism-seizes-power-morales-complains/#comment-28374 Poilu Thu, 18 Sep 2008 19:40:55 +0000 http://www.dissidentvoice.org/?p=3192#comment-28374 IMPORTANT NOTE: This Petras piece -- posted here under today's date -- actually appears to be one from several days ago, BEFORE the Morales government had exerted its control over the the Media Luna mobsters. While it presents an excellent retrospective of the scenario at the time of its writing, it does NOT reflect the current situation in Bolivia, which HAS stabilized for the time being. From 15:57 GMT today: "Bolivian rivals begin peace talks" http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/7623732.stm [You DV folks scared the hell out of me with this one!] IMPORTANT NOTE: This Petras piece — posted here under today’s date — actually appears to be one from several days ago, BEFORE the Morales government had exerted its control over the the Media Luna mobsters. While it presents an excellent retrospective of the scenario at the time of its writing, it does NOT reflect the current situation in Bolivia, which HAS stabilized for the time being.

From 15:57 GMT today:

“Bolivian rivals begin peace talks”
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/7623732.stm

[You DV folks scared the hell out of me with this one!]

]]> By: Michael Hureaux http://dissidentvoice.org/2008/09/bolivia-fascism-seizes-power-morales-complains/#comment-28367 Michael Hureaux Thu, 18 Sep 2008 18:35:52 +0000 http://www.dissidentvoice.org/?p=3192#comment-28367 Lincoln, for all his faults, understood how to handle people who pick up arms against a democratic process. You jail them, you warn them and if it continues, you shoot them. Nothing about their rights, which they abrogated when they decided they were going to reject the constitutional process they swore by. Morales should have begun shooting these bastards days ago. Period. Lincoln, for all his faults, understood how to handle people who pick up arms against a democratic process. You jail them, you warn them and if it continues, you shoot them. Nothing about their rights, which they abrogated when they decided they were going to reject the constitutional process they swore by. Morales should have begun shooting these bastards days ago. Period.

]]> By: Michael Hureaux http://dissidentvoice.org/2008/09/bolivia-fascism-seizes-power-morales-complains/#comment-28366 Michael Hureaux Thu, 18 Sep 2008 18:30:27 +0000 http://www.dissidentvoice.org/?p=3192#comment-28366 Marx said first time it was tragedy, the second time, farce, and he understated it to the gills. The lesson here is that when a revolution had the momentum the working poor gave the Bolivian effort two years ago, the worst thing in the world is to conduct government policy as though such a situation lasts forever. Take the constitutional road if you must, and as Morales did two years ago, but strengthen your street forces so that the right understands you mean business, and let the world say what it will. If the last thirty years have demonstrated one key point to the so-called international left, it is that you strike when the iron is hot and you don't wait permission from the class enemy to do so. Yes, they'll go to war with you and pressure you. But the Bolivian experience has once again demonstrated that even the most innocuous change will be met by vicious response from the right. Haiti offered that information as well when Aristide was deposed simply for wanting Port Au Prince to have running water for everybody. Hugo Chavez, for all his contradictions, is very clear on that point, and the decision to refuse his military assistance could well prove to be a fatal error for Morales and the Bolivian revolution. Once Morales began shutting down the indigenous cooperatives as they moved against private property, the right knew they could push the envelope. When the right began rioting a few days ago, every person with a stick or a brick among them should have been thrown in jail. In jail. With the warning that if it continued upon release, they'll be shot like fucking dogs. This is the reality that Lenin understood, the reality that none of his postmodern critics want to acknowledge. It's a big part of how they've made such a hash of the international resistance. It's certainly how they've destroyed a world wide anti-imperial war movement that numbered in the millions just a few short years ago. Continue to run to organizations like the "democratic" party and continue to accept their terms for how a democratic resistance is built, and you end up not only in the shit house, but under it. It would be amusing if it wasn't so god damn tragic and disgusting. Marx said first time it was tragedy, the second time, farce, and he understated it to the gills. The lesson here is that when a revolution had the momentum the working poor gave the Bolivian effort two years ago, the worst thing in the world is to conduct government policy as though such a situation lasts forever. Take the constitutional road if you must, and as Morales did two years ago, but strengthen your street forces so that the right understands you mean business, and let the world say what it will. If the last thirty years have demonstrated one key point to the so-called international left, it is that you strike when the iron is hot and you don’t wait permission from the class enemy to do so.

Yes, they’ll go to war with you and pressure you. But the Bolivian experience has once again demonstrated that even the most innocuous change will be met by vicious response from the right. Haiti offered that information as well when Aristide was deposed simply for wanting Port Au Prince to have running water for everybody. Hugo Chavez, for all his contradictions, is very clear on that point, and the decision to refuse his military assistance could well prove to be a fatal error for Morales and the Bolivian revolution.

Once Morales began shutting down the indigenous cooperatives as they moved against private property, the right knew they could push the envelope. When the right began rioting a few days ago, every person with a stick or a brick among them should have been thrown in jail. In jail. With the warning that if it continued upon release, they’ll be shot like fucking dogs.

This is the reality that Lenin understood, the reality that none of his postmodern critics want to acknowledge. It’s a big part of how they’ve made such a hash of the international resistance. It’s certainly how they’ve destroyed a world wide anti-imperial war movement that numbered in the millions just a few short years ago. Continue to run to organizations like the “democratic” party and continue to accept their terms for how a democratic resistance is built, and you end up not only in the shit house, but under it.

It would be amusing if it wasn’t so god damn tragic and disgusting.

]]> By: Scott http://dissidentvoice.org/2008/09/bolivia-fascism-seizes-power-morales-complains/#comment-28353 Scott Thu, 18 Sep 2008 14:13:13 +0000 http://www.dissidentvoice.org/?p=3192#comment-28353 Why didn't you mention anything about the people Morales transported to Sucre, Bolivia during the Constitutional Convention to intimidate and murder people protesting against his new constitution? Or why didn't mention the fact that Morales refused to follow legal rules and allow the opposition to introduce items into his new constitution such as moving the legislative and presidential branches of government back to Sucre? You go out of your way to identify the opposition as "neo-fascists" and "racists" for defending their right for self determination. Also, you do not mention how Evo Morales is receiving large amounts of money and materials from Hugo Chavez to prop up his government. Your long-winded article is extremely ignorant of the true situation. Why didn’t you mention anything about the people Morales transported to Sucre, Bolivia during the Constitutional Convention to intimidate and murder people protesting against his new constitution? Or why didn’t mention the fact that Morales refused to follow legal rules and allow the opposition to introduce items into his new constitution such as moving the legislative and presidential branches of government back to Sucre? You go out of your way to identify the opposition as “neo-fascists” and “racists” for defending their right for self determination.
Also, you do not mention how Evo Morales is receiving large amounts of money and materials from Hugo Chavez to prop up his government.
Your long-winded article is extremely ignorant of the true situation.

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