this post was submitted on 01 Feb 2024
116 points (93.9% liked)

World News

38979 readers
2169 users here now

A community for discussing events around the World

Rules:

Similarly, if you see posts along these lines, do not engage. Report them, block them, and live a happier life than they do. We see too many slapfights that boil down to "Mom! He's bugging me!" and "I'm not touching you!" Going forward, slapfights will result in removed comments and temp bans to cool off.

We ask that the users report any comment or post that violate the rules, to use critical thinking when reading, posting or commenting. Users that post off-topic spam, advocate violence, have multiple comments or posts removed, weaponize reports or violate the code of conduct will be banned.

All posts and comments will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. This means that some content that violates the rules may be allowed, while other content that does not violate the rules may be removed. The moderators retain the right to remove any content and ban users.


Lemmy World Partners

News !news@lemmy.world

Politics !politics@lemmy.world

World Politics !globalpolitics@lemmy.world


Recommendations

For Firefox users, there is media bias / propaganda / fact check plugin.

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/media-bias-fact-check/

founded 1 year ago
MODERATORS
 

The US has reimposed economic sanctions against a Venezuelan state-owned mining company and says it could go on to reimpose further sanctions on the country’s oil and gas sector after Venezuela’s Supreme Court barred main opposition candidate Maria Corina Machado from running for president last week.

The US Treasury on Monday revoked General License 43, which had authorized dealings with mining conglomerate CVG-Minerven. The Treasury said US companies have until February 13 to wind down transactions that were previously authorized by that license.

While US economic sanctions against the mining company are unlikely to cause significant damage to the Venezuelan economy, the US State Department has crucially signaled it intends to renew oil and gas sanctions from April 18, if there’s no progress between Venezuela’s authoritarian president Nicolas Maduro and the opposition “particularly on allowing all presidential candidates to compete in this year’s elections,” it said in a statement.

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[–] gedaliyah@lemmy.world -1 points 9 months ago (2 children)

Yes, because he has been impeached and indicted multiple times for charges related to violations of the oath of office of the presidency.

What are Machado's crimes that she should be barred?

[–] Shyfer@ttrpg.network 4 points 9 months ago* (last edited 9 months ago)

From what I can tell, conspiracy (against the government), inciting violent protests, and corruption. It's weird they don't say it in the article. But she says the protests were supposed to be peaceful and some of the conspiracy evidence was faked, which it might be, idk, I wasn't in the court room.

But considering the US is still doing shit like this, I could see why they have to be paranoid.

[–] rockSlayer@lemmy.world -1 points 9 months ago (2 children)

I don't think a democratic process should be limited to only banning people that broke the law. Someone that intentionally wants to harm people through excessive austerity like Machado and Milei shouldn't be able to run.

Remember, Hitler was elected. If a democratic process can't stop a person like that from running, then the democratic process is failed.

[–] NOT_RICK@lemmy.world 6 points 9 months ago (1 children)

This all sounds nice until you realize that a system like this would be easily abused. “I’m sorry, but the one candidate that actually stands a chance against me is banned because the courts full of judges I appointed has determined that their policies are harmful.”

Who gets to be the arbiter of what policies are acceptable and what are not? Let the voters decide for themselves.

[–] rockSlayer@lemmy.world 4 points 9 months ago (1 children)

The system can be made robust though. Implementation is also important, and I'm just one person so I'm not going create that framework for an Internet discussion. The question that the framework should rely on power: is the candidate advocating for a distribution of power, or a centralization of power? Privatization seeks to centralize power, for example.

[–] NOT_RICK@lemmy.world 0 points 9 months ago (1 children)

State capitalism also centralizes power. It’s just centralized with the government instead of a monied class. I don’t think that’s necessarily a problem if there is a robust electoral system and a low level of corruption but I feel based upon everything I’ve read about Venezuela that they’re lacking in both.

[–] rockSlayer@lemmy.world 3 points 9 months ago

The conversation drifted to theory rather than current conditions, so I chose to go in the direction of my idealized version of what this framework would look like. You're right, as an ML nation there is still a centralization of power in Venezuela. I don't have the answers for Venezuela, only the people of Venezuela do. However, I think the court made the right decision on behalf of the people, even if I disagree with the undemocratic nature of their courts.

[–] gedaliyah@lemmy.world 0 points 9 months ago (1 children)

Okay, so you don't believe in democracy.

[–] rockSlayer@lemmy.world 2 points 9 months ago

I can make reductionist arguments too:

Okay, so you believe it was a good thing that Hitler was elected.