Tuesday, January 10, 2006

Belafonte Has Gone Crazy

Harry Belafonte has lost his mind, but apparently he is right about one thing; some Americans agree with him.  I have already written about some of this but it bears saying again. The Left in the United States is morally and intellectually bankrupt. The Right in the United States is not far behind.

Anyone who praises Hugo Chavez or Fidel Castro is either incredibly naïve, extremely uninformed, or just plain stupid. For Harry Belafonte to call George Bush a dictator and a terrorist illustrates in the simplest terms how when someone with Belafonte’s perspective opens his mouth to speak; nothing comes out. Mr. Belafonte would not be able to make the same statement about Chavez or Castro, in their respective countries, without being imprisoned shortly afterwards. George Bush will not be president or even much of a political force after 2008. Mr. Castro has been in power since 1959, that’s 47 years, and it would not surprise me to find out that Mr. Chavez intends to be president for life.

Belafonte applauds the socialist revolution in Venezuela, as a journalist I must disagree with his assessment. I have met and interviewed many Venezuelans and while there are many supporters of Chavez at the moment, among the youth there are but a few. This is not good for the future of the socialist revolution, which will collapse under its own weight as it ruins what is left of a vital economy. Socialism doesn’t work, period. Look around the world. All this talk of an elite running the US is actually true and it is true everywhere. Elite doesn’t have to be a bad word it simply means the best. This word has been corrupted to refer to wealth and the privilege that derives from wealth. In another sense it is used to convey contempt for those who have risen to power or have simply excelled in their chosen field.

It is normal for human beings to resent those in power particularly if they are not providing real leadership, as is the case most of the time. Who really believes that Fidel Castro has been a beneficial leader for the Cuban people? He is what he calls the United States; an imperialist. His goal of quashing dissent, evidenced by his imprisonment of journalists and political opponents, and of exporting his brand of communism is the same as colonizing another society. Why the Left loves Castro and Chavez is beyond me but I am glad they feel free to express their admiration. Their speeches provide a warning about what they want and what would happen if they could ever get that kind of power in the United States.

Such a disaster will not happen, but it could happen. Suppose a major economic catastrophe struck the world. Demagogues would arise and people desperate for hope would follow. The one thing that keeps the United States safe is the reasonable, not perfect, distribution of wealth, and the power of the ballot box. We are a free nation. Just because someone disagrees with you doesn’t meant they hate you. George Bush was fairly elected and re-elected (the polling stations in Dade county were controlled by the Democrat Party so who did the disenfranchising), and he will leave office in2008. Believe me, that is not very long from now.

1 comment:

John said...

Wow! Thanks for the response, but it doesn't answer the points that he is a dictator and that the Cuban people for the most part want to be rid of him. No statues? Quit smoking? Free education,more like brainwashing(of course all countries do this) Free health care? I must check the infant mortality rate you might have point there. Thanks again