Property rights in Venezuela

Readers may be interested in the recently created Wikipedia article (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franklin_Brito) and the discussion in its talk page. Interestingly, there are some other news sources which dispute facts reported in TE article, such as the farm size.

Fariñas had to die in Cuba for its government to release dozens of conscience prisoners in the island. They have been sent to Spain, remember? So to those that say it's not wise to hunger-strike, I say that these heroes had to die to lift the blindfold from so many eyes that left-wing revolutions are good for the people.

If you are truly concerned about Government over-reaching, you ought to study property rights more carefully.

If you are just a partisan, political hack trying smear Obama, well then you are entitled to make your case as you see it.

But, ask any attorney, well studied in property rights, and I think you will find at least some level of agreement with what I am saying about the Kelo Decision, for which, in my opinion, we have noone to thank but George W. Bush and his family.

@ Out To Lunch ...

There is a growing list of aggrieved homeowners, under assault by private property developers who have been emboldened by Souter's Constitutional Treachory, which was driven - in my opinion - by George W. Bush's desire for profit.

For a scholarly, supposedly conservative, Supreme Court Justice to violate principle, as Souter did, was a greater treason against free-market capitalism and private property rights than anything the Obama Administration has done, BAR NONE.

That Supreme Court precedent is a greater threat to individual Liberty than even Saddam Hussein or Kim Jung IL, as far as I am concerned. ... And, I mean that literally.

The problem in Europe is usually the same as with the elitist pseudo-intellectuals in Washington DC and the U.S. Mainstream media. Plagued with liberals they can't accept when cowards and criminals such as Chavez, Correa, Morales, Ortega and the Castro brothers keep violating the will of the people and confiscating private property at the same time they trample on freedom of speech and individual liberties. As usual they keep on blaming the oligarcs, private enterprise, and like we say in Spanish "El pinto y la paloma" but never themselves in their quest to perpetuate their stay in power while the country crumbles. Pepito de Cuba

Bradders74 - It's actually very simple to explain because the dictator is charge has a simple mind: if you are with him and his cronies then you're ok. But, if you dare to disagree with him or his cronies then you are an enemy that must be destroyed - and I don't mean that metaphorically. Since there's no separation of powers, there's no one to protect your rights when Chavez or his cronies wake up on the wrong side of the bed. You're on your own. Chavez helped create this climate by instigating social unrest with his communist rhetoric. Anyone who does not embrace "the process" (euphemism for the wholehearted adoption of his brand of totalitarian regime) is immediately demonized as "a homeland-less traitor,a bourgeois, an oligarch, a puppet of the Empire". Chavez encourages hatred by telling people they should go out and take away from others. With this backdrop what can you expect?

Franklin Brito was a farmer, like thousands of others struggling to make ends meet. As soon as he stood up against the bully, he stopped being part of "el pueblo", that faceless target of communist demagoguery. Brito became a "terrateniente", a villain that had to be destroyed.

jlgnorthtexas That was quite a reach; you must not have read the "please stay on topic" request. Like Bush or not, he's certainly no Chavez.

This is what happens when Constitutionally blind leaders, like George W. Bush, violate property rights. In his Texas Rangers deal, George W. Bush, used Government powers to seize citizens' property, so that he could get rich on the Texas Rangers deal in Arlington, TX.

And, he was aided and abetted by Bush appointee, David Souter, who supported Bush's encroachments on property rights, with his "Kelo Decision".

We should be thankful that we have a Constitutional scholar like Barack Obama, rather than a Constitutional scofflaw, like George W. Bush, in the White House!

strongly agree with "juanpeace"!

i realy disagree with you, this is just the top of the iceberg in all the chaos in which Venezuela is immersed, is not only the expropiation of the lands of this man, who fought to the end to defend what rightfully belongs to him and his family,he worked very hard for those lands; Is more that this! is the nationalization of industry, the growing insecurity (more deads than Iraq!), is the hyperinflation (17.7% so far) we expected to reach 30% by the end of this year!!... It's the totaly absence of a true democracy.... You must come and see it by your own eyes, you must live it to make an opinion about it!

Bradders74:

Are you aware of what is going on in Venezuela? Do you claim to know more about what is going in Venezuela than The Economist? If you don't, then I don't recommend saying that this site should get more information before posting an article.

Yes there is a lot more to this short article, it's much worse. People have less and less ways to protest and speak against the government. The concept of private property is slowly but surely disappearing from Venezuela. A lot of people don't see it because they just see Caracas, but if you go into the rural areas you will see more of this problem. It is also happening in Caracas but in a different scale.

The man is not going on a hunger strike for personal greedy gain, he was doing this to defend what he thought was right. He had lands taken away from him, and he is not the only one, and it is very unjust. This man was placed in a mental facility without any real justification so that he could not talk to the press. This is a violation of human rights and freedom of speech.

The president and the current government is destroying the beautiful nation of Venezuela. There is more hate and violence than ever before and it is directly related to the current government. There is so many cover ups, fraud, lies and violations that it is very scary. The president is an outright liar and there is evidence to prove this, he has contradicted himself over and over again. This government is harboring and assisting guerrillas from Colombia!

The way a government handles conflicts and people opposed to its position indicates the level of democracy and dignity. Everyone can deduct from this yet another story what that tells us about Chavez, his rule, his government, his attitude etc etc etc.

Mr Chavez was elected and has the popular vote. This isn’t always a good thing however: the world is watching to see how he manages the huge natural resources mineral and human that he now commands. He is very unpopular with the wealthy and the well-off who make up a tiny percentage of the overall population. And who are usually very keen on dictators who seem in South America esp to murder torture on a huge scale. Again. This is part of a larger conflict and China looms large as this is where Mr Chavez is looking for remuneration. If the world was a more adaptive he probably wouldn’t have to go so far to provide the monies needed to reform the lives of so many.

Since when has a British or US or Western European government ever given in to the demands of a hunger striker? It's not wise to do so as it would encourage many others to hunger strike in order to get whatever they want. I suspect there is much more to this story than is being reported, and I would expect The Economist to work harder next time to deliver the full story.

Another innocent person dies at the hands of the Dictator of Venezuela, Hugo Chavez, while Obama reports the American people to the U.N. as human rights violators for supporting the AZ immigration law. The left wing Elites in both Venezuela and the U.S. are brutal and arrogant!!!!