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And it begins. Or is it the beginning of the end of freedom in
their country. I think it is the later.
Just another look at socialism, liberalism and progressivism. But what so many on this board want. It is so sad.
http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/americ....ap/index.html
and it beginsCARACAS, Venezuela (AP) -- National Guard troops fired tear gas and rubber bullets Monday into a crowd of protesters angry over a decision by President Hugo Chavez that forced a critical television station off the air.
University students blocked one lane of a major highway hours after Radio Caracas Television ceased broadcasting at midnight and was replaced with a new state-funded channel. Chavez had refused to renew RCTV's broadcast license, accusing it of "subversive" activities and of backing a 2002 coup against him.
Two students were injured by rubber bullets and a third was hit with a tear gas canister, said Ana Teresa Yepez, an administrator at Caracas' Metropolitan University. She said about 20 protesters were treated for inhaling tear gas.
The new public channel, TVES, launched its transmissions with artists singing pro-Chavez music, then carried an exercise program and a talk show, interspersed with government ads proclaiming, "Now Venezuela belongs to everyone."
Crowds of students demonstrated across Caracas, saying they fear for the future of free speech.
"I plan to keep protesting because we're Venezuelans and it's our right," said Valentina Ramos, 17, a Metropolitan University student who was hit in the head with a tear gas canister and received s ches.
She said the protest was peaceful, but National Guard troops said they acted after students hurled rocks and sticks. Police said 11 officers were injured in separate protests on Sunday that were broken up with water cannon and tear gas. (Watch as police turn water cannons on protesters)
Thousands of government supporters reveled in the streets as they watched the midnight changeover on large TV screens, seeing RCTV's signal go black and then be replaced by a TVES logo. Others launched fireworks and danced in the streets.
Inside the studios of RCTV -- the sole opposition-aligned TV station with nationwide reach -- disheartened actors and comedians wept and embraced in the final minutes on the air.
They bowed their heads in prayer, and presenter Nelson Bustamante declared: "Long live Venezuela! We will return soon."
The socialist president says he is democratizing the airwaves by turning the network's signal over to public use.
Germany, which holds the European Union presidency, expressed concern that Venezuela let RCTV's license expire "without holding an open compe ion for the successor license." It said the EU expects that Venezuela will uphold freedom of speech and "support pluralism."
Founded in 1953, RCTV regularly topped viewer ratings with its talk shows, sports, soap operas and comedy programs. But Chavez accused the network of helping to incite a failed coup in 2002, violating broadcast laws and "poisoning" Venezuelans with programming that promoted capitalism. RCTV's managers deny wrongdoing.
The government promises TVES will be more diverse, buying 70 percent of its content from independent Venezuelan producers.
"We've come here to start a new television with the true face of the people, the face that was hidden, the face that they didn't allow us to show," said Roman Chalbaud, a pro-Chavez filmmaker appointed by the government to TVES' board of directors.
TVES received $4 million in startup funds from the government, but officials said it also may seek commercial advertising.
Most Venezuelan news media are in private hands, including many newspapers and radio stations that remain critical of Chavez.
But the only major surviving opposition-sided TV channel is Globovision, which is not seen in all parts of the country.
And it begins. Or is it the beginning of the end of freedom in
their country. I think it is the later.
Just another look at socialism, liberalism and progressivism. But what so many on this board want. It is so sad.
I just want legal pros ution and weed. Too much to ask?
xray, are your responses just automated?? WTF are you rambling about? Did you not understand what I meant when I said "and it begins"? Clearly not, because if you had, you wouldn't be arguing the same point I was!
Cant I agree? Guess Not.
Is that what you were doing?
Chavez is the single greatest de-stabilization force in the South American continent today.
Where's P&G to defend this sonofa ?
No need to find that idiot, we got Dan defending Chavez and his latetest "democratic" action: close a radio station because it does not suck up to the regime.
Hey Dan, way to go. You've sunk to an all time low. And you call yourself democratic.
How long would a Tv or radio station last in the U.S. if it actively participated to overthrow the government? Not very long, and the station owner and GM would be in Gitmo.
Even if it were true (that TV Caracol participated to overthrow Chavez) your call is BS.
All over LatAM, even in leftist media outlets, Chavez has been called out by what the majority view as an authoritarian move by the Comandante Ignorante.
But leave it to Dan to defend him.
You are a joke . . . and a really bad one.
Just because Chavez has been called out by Latin American globalist-supporters doesn't make him a dictator. Post articles criticizing Chavez and I will match you with articles supporting this move.
I said leftist, not globalists.
Even his kind critizice him.
Supporting censorship is disgusting, no matter how many articles supporting it you can post.
Chavez should have closed down this station long ago and tried the owners as traitors. Free speech is one thing, anarchy speech is another.
ABC NewsVenezuela says it will file charges against US cable network CNN for linking President Hugo Chavez to Al Qaeda.
It says it will also sue a Venezuelan TV network for encouraging Mr Chavez's assassination.
The move comes a day after popular Venezuelan TV network RCTV went off the air after the Chavez Government cancelled its broadcast licence.
Information Minister William Lara has presented what he says is CNN footage displaying pictures of Mr Chavez juxtaposed with those of an Al Qaeda leader.
Mr Lara says CNN also aired a story about the Venezuelan protests but used images taken in Mexico of an unrelated story.
"CNN broadcast a lie which linked President Chavez to violence and murder," he said.
More 'unimpeachable facts' we'll probably be hearing about tommarrow on wing-nut radio.
Very democratic of your part.
Deep inside, leftist are totalitarians.
Disgusting.
Call me when Chavez throws the heads of 02' conspirators in jail, that is, if they dare leave the U.S.
You know the latest Chavez law?
Daily indoctrination. Public workers have to go through hours of Marxist lectures a week.
And they are forced to wear red clothing when going to work.
I have friends that have been to Venezuela.
It is pathetic.
Again, you do not deserve to live in the US.
Flee to Venie no that you have the chance.
Chavez needs a BJ.
Chavez is the democratically elected leader of Venezuela. When he starts tnrowing opposition leaders in jail for life, we'll re-evaluate the validity of his regime.
Remind me again why Chavez's strongarm tactics are a good thing, if it's at all possible for you to extricate yourself from the 'globalist neocon martian conspiracy' or whatever.
What strong-arm tactic is that? The FCC can refuse to renew broadcast licenses here for equal offenses and does. Throwing the station manager in jail would have been a strong-arm tactic.
There's your strong-arm tactic. First sentence in the article.CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) -- National Guard troops fired tear gas and rubber bullets Monday into a crowd of protesters angry over a decision by President Hugo Chavez that forced a critical television station off the air.
What about the silencing of the American press?
Use of the public airwaves is a privilege not a right. A government license is required to use some of the inherently limited TV/radio bandwidth, and every democracy in the world regulates those licenses in some way, often demanding proof that the station is operated in the public interest.
Prior to Reagan, we had the "Fair Doctrine" here, that encouraged a broader political discussion (than the fascist diet of talk radio and M$M we have now) by, among other things, requiring that opposing political views (to those of the station) be given equal time. The corporate fascists had first to get rid of the "Fairness Doctrine" (and a few other things, like the progressive tax) in order to follow the Reagan Era of Greed with the Bush Era of Naked Looting--by greatly narrowing the spectrum of allowable political opinion to the right and the far right, thus to silence and demoralize the great progressive American majority.
They were rioting. Did you completely miss what happened in California?
Chavez shut down the only national TV channel which opposed him and replaced it with a state-funded one supporting him. A 'Fair Doctrine' indeed.Inside the studios of RCTV -- the sole opposition-aligned TV station with nationwide reach -- disheartened actors and comedians wept and embraced in the final minutes on the air.
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