Witness Special - Red Oil - 15 March 09 - Part 2

An inside look at the financial engine behind Chavez's socialist government: The film follows the dramatic ups and downs of Venezuela's state oil company as Chavez takes control with the aim of using its profits to further socialistic goals.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• Al Jazeera
• Witness
• Rageh Omaar
• Hugo Chavez
• oil
• PDVSA
• Venezuela
• socialist government

[bjarnet3]

How is it going in Hugo's Venezuela? Can anybody give me accurate description? Thank you!

[ChoasTheory2000]

Look I'm not pro communist or pro capitalist... all systems suffer from corruption at times. I know full well of the corruption as I lived in Venezuela for several years during my youth and I know the corruption is throughout South America. Yes you depend on oil right now, but that doesn't mean it can't change. Taking back the oil from the rich western corporations was a good step. I'm not saying Chavez is some savior, it's the people of the country that have spoken. It's democracy in action.

[LJCR]

In these government in now illegal to do a strike, if you do so, you're automatically against the "process" and you get fire. All is accepted in the name of the common good

[LJCR]

esa es la dura realidad, pareceria rasonable que alguien que crece en esas circustancias veria lo dura que es la vida para esos niños, pero aun asi caen en el mismo ciclo vicioso. La muchacha(o) solo busca la primera oportunidad de salir de la casa y formar una familia, con la esperanza de que les ira bien

[LJCR]

Yes, for you we are probably a bunch of monkeys that need a iron fist to get going. You don't have any idea of the corruption that is going on here. And I don't think that everything is bad, but these government has no idea on how complete the project, we depend entirely on oil, nothing is produce here. And please, please don't think that I am rich, white, imperialist, etc. And considering that you read Richard Dawkins, you must be a open minded person

[juancsmix]

eso, tengan mas hijos con esa vida tan miserable, mas y mas y mas miserables...

[jimed]

eddie ramirez is white, doesn't look native to those lands!

[Inkan1969]

O.K. I had forgotten about the other issues on that vote, besides the term limits. If the opposition will ever beat Chavez it has to acknowledge the social inequality in society and commit to working to fix that. I hope they do get organized along that path.

[ChoasTheory2000]

Well it seems that the first vote not only had the issue about terms limits, but also they were voting on a bunch of constitutional changes and reforms to government. Term limits weren't the only thing being voted on and I think the opposition was able to capitalize on that aspect, cause they accuesed him of hiding it within a bigger picture. I think he was trying to do too much, too quickly. That's why when the people voted for just term limits, he won a majority vote.

[Inkan1969]

But why did Chavez insist on having a new vote on term limits, when they already had a vote that he did not win?