Political Cortex: Brain Food for the Body Politic

If you're interested in the tale of US involvement in the Venezuelan coup, you don't have to look very hard.  From the moment the Bush administration hit the door, they were planning for this one, starting with inserting the government funded International Republican Institute to act as an organizing force for the coup.  It's fair to say that the overthrow of Chavez was higher on the list of the Bush administration's goals than the ouster of Saddam.  With or without 9/11, they were going after Chavez.

It's also fair to say that 9/11 did have an effect on the coup.  Without the mountain of praise the media had handed to Bush following 9/11, the failed attempt to overthrow a democratically elected government might have actually drawn a little criticism.  As it was, US media still had far too many "fearless leader" stories in the pipeline to let something like the death of a hundred or so people in Caracas make it past page six.  

So why Chavez?  What makes this former military man turned politico worth such attention?

Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías was involved in his own coup attempt against free-trade President Perez a decade earlier, and served two years in prison before being pardoned by Perez' successor.  After his release, Chavez traded in his fatigues for a suit, and began working for a political movement to succeed where guns had failed.  Chavez based his movement on "Bolivarism" which include heavily funding education, health, and social welfare programs.

In 1998, Chavez was elected President by the largest margin in Venezuelan history.  He immediately began to implement his plan, pouring funds into development and health projects.  He even ordered the military to halt much of their normal operations and involve themselves in programs that would fight poverty instead of more traditional enemies.  He helped force through a new constitution in 1999 that, among other things, purposely limited his term and that of future presidents.  

However, a drop in oil prices in 1999 nudged the country into recession, and Chavez began a political struggle.  Another election was held in 2000, which Chavez won, but the Carter Center refused to validate the election because of problems (Which doesn't stop the right wingers from claiming Carter and Chavez are buds).  Since then, Chavez has won a recall election, and his party swept lower house elections in 2005.  Following the coup, with oil prices on the rise, Chavez returned to and expanded his plan.  A plan which includes high quality, free health care, thousands of new homes for the poor and disposed, universal literacy, and an expansive approach to education at all levels.

Make no mistake, there's a reason why Chavez plays nice with Castro: Chavez is a socialist.  Don't think this means Chavez is intent on turning himself into the next Lenin, or even the next Castro.   Chavez has shown himself committed to democratic government and to limits on his own power.  No, Chavez isn't opposed to democracy, he's fighting against capitalism.  And there's a reason why he's so hated among the wingnuts -- Chavez might just make communism work.

Communism and socialism has floundered worldwide, and not just because Ronald Reagan said mean things to them.  Though "from each according to their ability, too each according to their need" is a beautiful motto, it ignores the innate selfishness of most people.  Traditional communism would make a great government for angels; it's not so hot with fallible people.  

Even so, Chavez seems on a path to avoid the pitfalls that have brought down communist governments worldwide and turned China into the home of dictatorial capitalism.

1)    Efficiency -- without as much incentive for individual gain, people just don't seem to work "according to their ability."  More like, according to their ability to get away with it.  If nothing else, capitalist systems are fiercely good at milking worker productivity to obscene levels.  

So how can Chavez hope to compete?  First, unlike most governments, Chavez appears to be plowing the bulk of his resources into the health and education of the citizens.  And it's working.  Already literacy rates have soared, and the health care system is garnering praise from around the world.  Chavez might just be able to improve his work force enough to more than overcome losses in efficiency.

2)    Religion -- anyone on the winning side of the Cold War should be very glad Marx was an atheist (not that there's anything wrong with that).  By setting himself and his movement in opposition to religion, Marx cut many people off from their traditions, left his movement feeling stale and artificial, and generated a ready source for internal strife.  If Marx had been a nice Catholic boy, we might all be humming along today like a nice little hive of Mormon bees (no offense, Senator Reid).  

Chavez is not an atheist, or at least he has gone out of his way not to attack religion.  He's met with Catholic leaders -- even though several had sided with the coup plotters -- in efforts to reassure them he doesn't want to become a dictator, he's kept his hands off church property, and he frequently uses references to God or biblical themes in his speeches.  Chavez emphasizes the call for community action and community property among Christians.  This alone should make him an ultimate boogeyman to anyone who fears commies under the bed.

3)    Corruption -- The real downfall of every communist government so far has been the home-grown worms that always show up to consume the apple.  The idea of a single party state ruled by a strict hierarchy makes it just too tempting for members of the apparatchik to gather in more power and loot.  Single party systems have to either constantly sit on their own populace, or distract them with external threats.  Combine this with the efficiency factor, and the attacks on traditional religion, and you get dispirited, disgruntled, disappointed workers.  That is not a long term formula for success.

Though Chavez' party now has a majority control at all levels, Chavez has at least said the right things about maintaining a competitive, open democracy.  So long as they follow through, the forces that have crumbled previous states may be held at bay.  Should Chavez start bringing more powers into his own office (and he's already done so to some extent), it'll be a bad sign.  Should he decide to stay past the time limit he helped pass, it'll be the death knell.

Chavez may well have found the balance between communism and democracy.  One is, after all, an economic system, while the other is a political system.  There's no reason the two can't be wed.  There's not a pure capitalist society on Earth (thank God).  

Even if Chavez makes mistakes, he still has his ace in the hole -- oil.  Venezuela is the fourth largest source of US oil.  Every time we get into a wrangle in the Middle East, or a hurricane takes a track through the Gulf, Chavez gets more money for his plans.  Now that really has to stir up some bees in bush administration bonnets.

Should Chavez pull this off, he may not only restore interest in communism, he's already showing signing of increasing South American bonds in opposition to the United States.  That should come as no surprise.  Chavez' Bolivarian plans are named for Simón Bolívar, the "George Washington of South America" whose revolutionary zeal led to the independence of not only Venezuela, but Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Panama and Bolivia.  

Chavez might not be ready to free a continent from foreign rulers, but he certainly appears to be holding foreign corporations and control at bay for now.  Unlike leaders of oil-rich nations in the Middle East, he actually seems interested in something beyond his own enrichment.

There's no doubt that, to the Bush administration and their allies, that makes Chavez a very serious threat.

 
(Crossposted at Daily Kos)