OPINION:
Venezuela, rich with oil and reputed for its beauty, has hit on hard times — putting it mildly.
Why? In a word: socialism. This is the ugly truth that leftists, Hollywood types and other elites — socialists-in-training and wannabes — don’t want revealed about their favorite government ideology and political philosophy.
Protesters in Venezuela have been storming the streets for weeks, tossing rocks, bombs, tear gas and now, most recently, gobs of feces, at police wearing riot gear.
“They have gas; we have excrement,” blared forth an image on social media advertising the so-called planned “S—t March” for Wednesday, the Guardian reported.
And it’s not just a slogan. They’re really doing it.
“One of my patients is collecting excrement from her child,” said one dentist, in the throes of stuffing feces into containers for protesters to use in the streets, the Guardian reported.
What’s their bone of contention?
The country, once the gem of South America, is now racked by triple-digit inflation, medicine shortages and food scarcities that have left millions hungry. Such is the outgrowth of socialism.
Hundreds of thousands have rallied and taken over the streets, demanding the ouster of current President Nicolas Maduro, who took over the high office in 2013. His political leanings?
He’s with the United Socialist Party of Venezuela.
Maduro assumed the seat from Hugo Chavez, who died in March 2013 after serving about 14 years as president.
Chavez’s political leanings?
“Chavez styled himself as the leader of the Bolivarian Revolution, a socialist political program for much of Latin America … [with] key elements [that] include[d] nationalism, a centralized economy and a strong military actively engaged in public projects,” according to Britannica.
He fancied himself a Karl Marx-type reincarnation; he was one of Fidel Castro’s pals.
And now, Chavez’s legacy? Same as Maduro’s.
Feces-packed, hand-made glass-bottled “poopootov cocktails,” as media outlets dubbed.
For a watching America, the takeaway should be blunt: Socialism is not the way to go. Politicians speaking that language have no place in U.S. constitutional governance. The fate of a blind eye on this is too drastic to contemplate — or ignore.
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