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Beauty and the Bearded Marxist

By: Uma Richie (Diary)  |  October 18th, 2010 at 11:43 AM  | 

RESIZE: AAA

The coastal state was embroiled in hard economic times.

Expensive government programs had done little to ease poverty or unemployment.

Entrenched fiscal mismanagement and corruption stirred the voters’ anger.

She a was right-center candidate in a party associated with Christianity.

He was a professed leftist running in a left-center electorate.

She couldn’t escape her personal history of superficial interviews and big hair.

He advocated a socialist agenda of government-forced wealth-spreading.

She was described as “ill-prepared” for the office she sought.

He demonized private corporations.

Her proposals to reduce government bureaucracy were called “fuzzy”.

Both ran as outsiders.

The year was 1998.

The state was Venezuela.

She was Miss Universe 1981, Irene Saez.

He was Hugo Chavez.

He won.

He won with 56% of the vote.

The people lost.

The people lost freedom of expression.

The people lost property rights.

The people lost Democracy.

Don’t let perfect be the enemy of non-marxist.

Support Christine O’Donnell any way you can, if only with your silence.
        
Because elections have consequences.

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COMMENTS

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  • http://thesandsinstitute.org Vassar Bushmills

    VB

    • Uma Richie

      nt

  • Return to Revolution

    Anyone can see he has no beard :)

    Great diary, great perspective

    • Uma Richie

      Thanks for the reco.

    • AceInTX

      • Uma Richie

        Oh my stars! : )

  • Aaron Gardner
  • Uma Richie

    null

  • eburke
  • itrytobenice

    Those who don’t know history are doomed to repeat it.

    Another of the ways our education system and media are damaging America today.

  • Uma Richie

    blank

  • Uma Richie

    turned out in Venezuela if Saez had been successful, but I suspect in the three years between the election and the rise in oil prices, she wouldn’t have nationalized oil companies, seized private land, and taken over media outlets.

  • penguin2

    Scary how similar the story lines are, but certainly worth taking note of. It is all in the language, words matter, and how they insidiously creep into the public’s consciousness. This is what the Leftist Democrats have been feeding into the American meme for decades and how they marginalize those that would stand up to them. Now they are trying to marginalize a huge segment of the population. Two excellent points you made:

    Don?t let perfect be the enemy of non-marxist.
    Support Christine O?Donnell any way you can, if only with your silence.

    Amen.

  • texasgalt

    Coons would be Chavez, if he had the chance.

  • http://www.thejoyofreason.com thejoyofreason

    Thanks for sharing this story, Uma. I know virtually nothing about the history of Venezuela, so this is fascinating. You hit me particularly hard with your point, “Support Christine O?Donnell any way you can, if only with your silence.”

    You see, I wrote a piece about last week’s Coons/O’Donnell debate. It’s a bit snarky, because I like the idea of defusing the arguments about her flakiness with humor. The post is meant to look at how silly and inappropriate the media have been and how we are facing significant constitutional problems that will take a lot of hard work to undo. Even though I imagine that I’d disagree with Ms. O’Donnell about things like evolution and various social (wedge-type) issues, I hope that she is elected, because I think that things like that are pretty irrelevant in the scheme of things, and she would stand up for limited government and proper constitutional principles. I’m not sure that this comes through, as a it’s framed with quite a few witchcraft jokes. The intention is to mock the coverage, but I’m not sure that it comes across that way.

    At any rate, my blog doesn’t get much traffic, so it’s not likely to influence as much as one voter, but here’s a link to my piece, if you’d like to read it:
    http://www.thejoyofreason.com/2010/10/we-can-mandate-maximum-allowable-amount.html

    Thanks
    Greg

  • janis

    You laid out the stark choice that is in front of the people of Delaware, and the rest of us as well. Seeing what Venezuela has become under the iron boot of Chavez should be enough to make a lot of folks reconsider their preference for a RINO over a conservative.

    Unfortunately, there are too many folks, even here, who are too damned proud of themselves and their intellect to make that distinction. Let’s hope they are disappointed by the morning of November 3rd. You have played a great part in moving us in that direction! Thank you for your diary.

  • Uma Richie

    Truth be told, I discovered the analogy during the last presidential campaign when Miss Wasilla 1984′s name was on the ballot. No doubt, I’ll be able to use it again in the future.

  • Uma Richie

    Yes he would.

  • Uma Richie

    I read your blog, and I agree that humor is the best way to dispel personal criticisms. I thought you were particularly effective when you set up a Christine O’Donnell joke, and used Joe Biden as the punch line.

  • http://www.thejoyofreason.com thejoyofreason

    Thanks, Uma. It’s been my experience that when Joe Biden pops into my head, not making him a punchline is considerably more difficult than making him one.

  • http://impudent.edublogs.org/ kyle8

    Sarah Palin and Obama, except that she was not at the top of the ticket.

  • Lloyd Davis

    Unfortunately, too many people who comment on RS seem to have a vested interest in seeing her fail.

    Reco’d
    ……………………………………………………………………………………………………….

    ?Never say sorry – it?s a sign of weakness?
    John Wayne

  • ocleverone

    5!

  • bus2dc

    You are right, and GREAT analogy :) Thanks!

    Why are all the brilliant people who can see the writing on the wall also DOING all the writing? Why are the “analysts” getting all the air-time not able to SPEAK pointedly like this and make the case? Why is it always a stumbling, apologetic, defensive or cutesy-poo conservative or constitutionalist who can’t seem to get the message across when the cameras are on? The commies and radicals seem to have no trouble whatsoever.

  • Uma Richie

    And thank you for the reco.

  • Uma Richie

    I appreciate your recommendation.

  • Uma Richie

    With Palin there is the additional similarity that she was Miss Wasilla 1984. Also Palin’s and Saez’s terms as small town mayors were dismissed as irrelevant.

  • Uma Richie

    I admire anyone who goes on the air to defend conservatism in good faith. I for one couldn’t do it…I am not clever off the cuff…Heck, I’m rarely clever with a few hours time and a word processor.

  • Uma Richie

    One of the best things about this race is that it helps us to define what the baseline Conservative vote is in a left-leaning state. I hope that she inspires others not accept the “unelectable” label. For example, a potential citizen-candidate with an honorable discharge and a shiny resume might say to a skeptical GOP county chairman, “If Christine O’Donnell can get X percent of the vote in Delaware, I should be able to get X+Y in my district.”

    In that sense, I feel that every percentage point she gains is a victory.