Hugo Chavez has died

[ag]

And hopefully his oppressive, undemocratic regime shall die with him.

Yes, winning 13 out of 14 elections during his presidency is very undemocratic. Hopefully the heroic lovers of democracy that attempted to overthrow him in a coup will now replace him.

Actually, it is losing that 1 out of 14 that makes him a democrat, not winning.

Venezuela under Chavez was a deeply flawed, unequal, corrupt democracy - but a democracy, nonetheless.  It was, however, an illiberal democracy.

[ag]

If you can't say anything nice in the minutes after someone's death, stfu. Seriously trashy. I'm not a Chavez fanboy by any strecth, but have some basic respect for human dignity.

[ag]

Venezuela has some of the freest, best-run elections in the world (certainly better than those in the United States). But if it makes you feel better to put quotations around things, be my guest.

Well, that's a wild exaggeration. They are, certainly, not stolen wholesale. But calling them freest and best-run is denigrating to a lot of places that do it better and freer - US included.

[ag]

Also, anyone who seriously claims Chavez didn't win his elections fair and square is an idiot.

"Fair" might be a tad of an exaggeration. In a country, where so many people depend on the government for job and sustainance, serious pressure was often applied to make sure that those people vote the right way. Nor has access to media been at all fair. Not even mentioning the minor stuff, like the Singaporean-style nationwide gerrymandering of congressional districts in favor of the government that would make any US state blush (if I recall correctly, last time in the capital they had opposition getting a few dosen votes more than the government - and 2 seats, against 5 seats the government got). And, of course, just in case there has always been loyal electoral commission leadership - though, it seems, that hasn't been much used, at least not too blatantly.

Still, dictatorship this does not make.

[ag]

They won the last parliamentary elections in large part with gerrymandering, so your putting the US system as one of the best run elections in the world by that logic.

Except that US has never known such gerrymandering. First of all, it is centralized gerrymandering - one nationwide gerrymandering authority for the entire country. Illinois vs. Wisconsin it ain't. More importantly, they are not restricted to single-member districts - nor even by a fixed district size. This opens such extra scope for gerrymandering, and they used it so brazenly, that Mr. Eldridge Gerry himself would have blushed.

I am not sure Chavez himself was much concerned with this matter - too brutally efficient, it would seem, and efficiency has never been his forte.

[ag]

Devil's advocate:
I think I used to subscribe to the whole grace period thing, but why not be honest in our assessment/feelings in life and death? Are we, an anonymous internet forum, hurting the dead's feelings? Is it not a relic of some superstitious nonsense?

Like all rules of decorum.  So what? They are useful. A grace period to think, before spouting whatever one has to spoute - if that's not provided by death, what would provide it?

[ag]

Well, if centralized gerrymandering makes elections not fair, then Sarkozy is an issue (except it was done by someone incompetent).

I am not aware of the French case. What happened? If it really was attempted, it is THE issue. But, perhaps, it was not really attmepted - or severely institutionally constraint?

[ag]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HsWsZmyL1QU

Here's a nice summary why people will celebrate Thatcher's death. Chavez was actually competent and improved lives of many people, which is why you don't see Venezuelans expressing the same sentiment, but mostly Americans.

Calling Chavez "competent" is, methinks, a rather unusual English usage, for this is the one virtue the late man never staked much by.

[ag]

Maybe ag, but Venezuela and the ALBA countries are not the only flawed, unequal and corrupt democracies in Latin America,

Not the only. But in many places we are seeing progress, while here there has been evident retrogression. Still, retrogression is not collapse - unlike Cuba, Venezuela is still an electoral democracy, for which I am most willing to praise the late departed caudillo. Unfortunately, this is one of the fewer things on which he is definitely praiseworthy.

Now, Chavez wasn't evil. And he was, indeed, full of great intensions. Unfortunately, he, classically, used those intentions to personally pave the road to hell for his country. Still, on the day he died I rather felt it was wrong to concentrate on mistakes and stupidities. Stalin (or even Castro) he wasn't.