Wednesday, May 03, 2006
Some Dicatorships are More Equal than Others
Vladimir Putin and Hugo Chavez can buy off their publics with generous subsidies and ignore Western pressure while sabotaging democratic developments from Central America to Central Asia.
It seems to me that Max Boot is confusing'democracy' with 'neoliberal'. Hugo Chavez was elected, survived a coup due to popular support, and (I believe) has been reelected. Putin was electedc, and facing a country whose assets were sold off in a corrupt privatization, which faces a demographic collapse, and whose true major export is prostitutes, is taking tough steps to save his nation. Neither of these guys are pursuing the neoliberal course, but so what?
Max wants to coordinate with China (?!) to make sure it constructs a less "gas guzzling" infrastructure. Good luck on that, buddy -- China does what it wants. But the internal inconsistancy is stunning. China is a democracy? Why is China's party dictatorship, nationalism, and total control of the media otay with ol' Max but Putin and Chavez are the devil incarnate?
Moreover, why does anyone even care what Max Boot thinks. Is it the uncanny accuracy of his predictions on the Iraq war? (Is that his really name? I am beginning to suspect "Max Boot" is an elaborate hoax, a characature is the neoliberal/neoconservative dvoika that passes for "foreign policy strategy" in our great nation.)
It seems to me that Max Boot is confusing'democracy' with 'neoliberal'. Hugo Chavez was elected, survived a coup due to popular support, and (I believe) has been reelected. Putin was electedc, and facing a country whose assets were sold off in a corrupt privatization, which faces a demographic collapse, and whose true major export is prostitutes, is taking tough steps to save his nation. Neither of these guys are pursuing the neoliberal course, but so what?
Max wants to coordinate with China (?!) to make sure it constructs a less "gas guzzling" infrastructure. Good luck on that, buddy -- China does what it wants. But the internal inconsistancy is stunning. China is a democracy? Why is China's party dictatorship, nationalism, and total control of the media otay with ol' Max but Putin and Chavez are the devil incarnate?
Moreover, why does anyone even care what Max Boot thinks. Is it the uncanny accuracy of his predictions on the Iraq war? (Is that his really name? I am beginning to suspect "Max Boot" is an elaborate hoax, a characature is the neoliberal/neoconservative dvoika that passes for "foreign policy strategy" in our great nation.)
Comments:
Post a Comment
