tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7446598839792348689.post3579140592025996954..comments2024-02-24T23:00:25.348-08:00Comments on a gringo in the bolivarian republic: The Communal Councils of 23 de enero--dhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11531855311241445023noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7446598839792348689.post-58966282090371010322007-05-17T19:41:00.000-07:002007-05-17T19:41:00.000-07:00Chavez is certainly a charismatic figure, i don't ...Chavez is certainly a charismatic figure, i don't mean to diminish the weight he carries. The amount of influence he carries and the extent to which he is able to overdetermine specific groups' actions vis-a-vis constitutional reform, the organization of the PSUV, etc largely depends on the 'type' of Chavista you are. there are a few rough lines one might be able to draw (the list is by no means exclusive) -- there are the folks like Julia, who've been struggling forever, and aren't so egotisitical as to refuse the aid of a comrade -- even if they happen to be in a position of state power. However, at the same time, their position is more qualified, less a position of blind faith, than some sectors. There are of course also the middle classish sectors, who hope Chavez will stop somewhere around Scandinavian social democracy, and who have obviously had their heads in the sand, but hey, at least they chose the right side, which they normally don't, enit? And then there are the so-called popular sectors, those who attended the big bash Barretto threw. Seems like most 'this is yet another iteration of populism' sort of readings would caution that the masses are fickle and yadda yadda. But of course, we shouldn't underestimate the depth of their support for the revolutionary process, and perhaps more importantly, their hatred for the old regime (April 2002, thank you very much).<BR/><BR/>This is the sector we're talking about, enit? This is where all the marbles rest. The cynical reading, shared by both the left and right opposition, is that the reading circles are less for reading and more for ideological indoctrinationas. <BR/>the (perhaps paradoxical) common denominator then, of both the 'ultra leftist opposition' and the escaulidos, is a deeply absurd position vis-a-vis democracy (really, can there be any other?)<BR/>On the one had, the starting point is the idea that 'democracy' is nothing other than legitimated manipulation.<BR/>on the other, the criticism all but says 'but the deal was, it was popularly legitimated so that WE could get OUR goodies (aristocratic privilege or middle class self delusion, depending on whether we're talking right or left opp), NOT for you to feed poor people.<BR/><BR/>anectdote: i was watching ViVe the other night (which is a government sponsored TV station. fairly 'objective' -- whatever that means -- by venezuelan standards, although they rarely give air to the 'opposition' position, though i really see nothing wrong with that, which is the topic of another post entirely) and they were interviewing folks as they signed up to join the PSUV. EVERYONE said they wanted to be a part of the president's vision, that they wanted to do what they could to help Chavez. BUT, the vast majority of folks also said they thought this was the best way possible or available for them to change the country. So there is a bit of a differentiation going on -- slight, and tentative, but there nonetheless -- between Chavez and Change. That is to say, for many speakers, the two terms had yet to become equal or instrumental, but were rather seen as allies. Why is this important? Because as long as that gap continues to exist, the space between the revolutionary drive and its percieved head, vanguard, or institutional(ized) force, there remains the potential and power to see this thing through.<BR/><BR/>One final note--i'm prepping some, well, notes to myself that i should have ready to post by the weekend, that in part address the role of the constitution, and of further constitutional reforms, in the deepening of the Bolivarian Revolution. To put it shortly, one of the major pushes fomenting at present is a series of constitutional reforms which will, among other things, initiate a series of social property rights to counter the still private-centric economic model here...point being that the gov't isn't trying to 'outlaw' private property, just emphasize and encourage different forms of 'managing things' that are more community centered, focusing, if you will, on the species-being rather than on humans as floating/colliding exchange values <BR/>(still trying to track down all that is proposed, i'll get them out eventually)<BR/><BR/>of course, the crazy thing is that the 1999 constitution already asserts as social rights, guaranteed by the state and the homeland, a roof, food, education, and security -- giving the missiones (Barrio Adentro, Negro Hipolita, Che Guevara [formerly Vuelan caras], and etc) a Constitutional stamp of approval. also in the constitution are the building blocks for the transfer of power to the communal councils (this has already been set in place by presidential decree, one of the first things Chavez did when he recieved enabling powers earlier this year) that folks want to put into the constitution. the logic then being that if the bad guys come back, they have to hold a constitutional assembly to roll back the advances made since 1999, or rule via tanks, and most likely both.--dhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11531855311241445023noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7446598839792348689.post-69960879515097488192007-05-17T10:28:00.000-07:002007-05-17T10:28:00.000-07:00Ahhhhhh, Donny me boy, wonderful to hear such deta...Ahhhhhh, Donny me boy, wonderful to hear such detailed descriptions and the photos are getting better and better...<BR/><BR/>This idea of the Constitution as reading material, it's interesting... It makes me think of Miles Horton and his Highlander school here in the USofA. That was the framework he proposed for literacy training and not only did it begin to work (through employing locals to teach locals, etc.) it worked so well that the entire operation was dubbed a Communist institution and one to be snuffed out...and, it was. The very idea of the working class actually understanding their rights, as guaranteed them, is so terrifying to the elite it's almost humorous...<BR/><BR/>almost.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14769959714571017122noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7446598839792348689.post-68225847829515004792007-05-17T10:15:00.000-07:002007-05-17T10:15:00.000-07:00Terrific update Don! Please keep them coming. Yo...Terrific update Don! Please keep them coming. Your observations are keen and your photos beautiful. It's fascinating to read about revolution as a here-and-now process, unthinkable for me entrenched in the empire. <BR/><BR/>"These will also be the folks who keep the revolution radical, who push it past the timidity of the middle classes and the manipulations of escualidos."-- well said. And perhaps that same contingency may help to mitigate the potential trappings of a beloved, paternalistic leader figure Cris mentions.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02609042259914758578noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7446598839792348689.post-65831077707879101692007-05-16T21:03:00.000-07:002007-05-16T21:03:00.000-07:00When I saw the documentary "The Revolution Will No...When I saw the documentary "The Revolution Will Not be Televised" one of the things that impressed me the most was that Chavez not only wanted people to read the Constitution, he wanted them to form study groups to talk about it. I thought that was amazing for a number of reasons. First, as you point out, it's novel enough to think about people even reading the Constitution. I often notice that people in the U.S. often confuse the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence to begin with, never mind it's safe to say that any given adult here has not read the Constitution lately. <BR/><BR/>But I was even more impressed that Chavez wanted people to form groups to study the Constitution and talk about it on their own. I think that's taking an important step toward changing the culture itself. Through discussion people not only understand it, but make it part of their thinking and take ownership of it. If people discuss the Constitution they're not fetishizing it, which can make them more resistant to politicians who want to use it not as a framework for democracy but will invoke it to reinforce elite power and silence dissent. I think about Chavez saying that whenever the media here depicts him as a despot who want to impose censorship and quash the opposition. Despots are afraid to let people think and talk for themselves. <BR/><BR/>Though I must say in the film also depicted Chavez as a charasmatic and paternalistic figure, which made me a wee bit nervous since I wondered if people would then rely on him too much. What are your thoughts on that?Cristina Lopezhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10994215292617686518noreply@blogger.com