Sean Penn: Journalists who call Hugo Chávez a dictator should be jailed

Originally posted at Desk of Brian.com http://sites.google.com/site/thedeskofbrian/state-of-the-nation/seanpennjournalistswhocallhugochavezadictatorshouldbejailed

Sean Penn on the media depiction of Hugo Chavez:

"Every day, this elected leader is called a dictator here, and we just accept it, and accept it. And this is mainstream media. There should be a bar by which one goes to prison for these kinds of lies." - Penn on Bill Maher's HBO show March 10, 2010

• The Organization of American States recently accused Chávez of intolerance and authoritarianism in a 300 page report.


• Spanish judge accused Venezuela of cosseting Farc and Eta terrorists


• "Dictator for Life" article (Penn says Chavez should be applauded for the free and open elections)

Jail them all for their lies. The reports are widespread so Washington Post, Telegraph and CNN reporters - you should be leery of spreading these biases...er...lies.

Well, BIASES is you read the reporting in South Carolina: WisTV

He (Penn) says that "there should be a bar for which one goes to prison for these kinds of biases."

Penn is already being misquoted. "LIES" have become "BIASES" - how dare they? Put them in prison, there must be a penalty!!!

"The devil came here yesterday and it smells of sulfur still today." - Hugo Chavez on President Bush at a UN General Assembly September 20, 2006

Chavez continued:

"As the spokesman of imperialism, he came to share his nostrums to try to preserve the current pattern of domination, exploitation and pillage of the peoples of the world. An Alfred Hitchcock movie could use it as a scenario. I would even propose a title: 'The Devil's Recipe.' "

Chavez held up a book by Noam Chomsky on imperialism and said it encapsulated his arguments: "The American empire is doing all it can to consolidate its hegemonistic system of domination, and we cannot allow him to do that. We cannot allow world dictatorship to be consolidated."

Can we jail Chavez for discussing our President in this manner? He made these comments on our soil at a UN meeting.

"George W. Bush is a dictator in all but name, surrounded by a coterie
of men and women as single-minded and devoted to their leader as the
Goerings and Himmlers of the Third Reich." - envio.org March 2003 (source here)

"He's the only one of those leaders who goes in there with a commanding
popularity among his own people, because he is perceived to be an
effective dictator. What we have in this country is a dictator who's
ineffective." - Newsweek's Eleanor Clift on the McLaughlin Group, July 2006

"Tony Blair is a dictator." - Dai Davies June 2006 reported by the Guardian (Read here)

So I guess it's not a manner of what you say, but what you believe. Penn's sentiments for Chavez has led him to believe we should limit free speech as long as it fits his perceived truth.

Chavez good...Bush and other conservatives bad.

I love the Hollywood left in America.

Read Sean Penn Quotes (6)

Read Hugo Chavez Quotes (4)

http://www.wistv.com/Global/story.asp?S=12125730

Organization of American States story:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/02/24/AR2010022401884.html

Spanish judge on Chavez: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/mar/01/hugo-chavez-venezuela-spain-eta

Dictator for Life:

http://sweetness-light.com/archive/vote-on-chavez-lifetime-rule-begins

Pic: http://newsbusters.org/blogs/tim-graham/2010/03/08/sean-penn-suggests-prison-time-journalists-who-call-hugo-chavez-dictator

Chavez and Venezuela face new challenges

Venezuela citizens flooded to stores to scoop up goods at the currency was devalued this week. President Chavez announced rolling blackouts to accomodate energy shortages and now soldiers were dispatched to force closure of stores that raised prices.

"There is no reason for anybody to be raising prices," Chávez said Sunday on his national television show.

The Washington Post reported that this is the "first devaluation of the bolivar since the introduction of currency controls in 2003 quickly spurred a shopping frenzy, as Venezuelans rushed out to buy televisions, computers and other goods that would hold their value."

"The typical Venezuelan is saying, 'My savings are going to be worthless,' " said Robert Bottome, editor of the business newsletter Veneconomia in Caracas, the capital. "The store shelves are pretty much empty right now."
The Venezuelan Institute for the Defense of People in Their Access to Goods and Services had inspected and closed dozens of stores -- those responding to the inflation and mob scenes for imported goods (e.g. electronics)

Chavez can now increase spending before Congressional elections as inflation may rise to 60% -- no, that is NOT a typo: 60%!

A year ago inflation was reported at 25% (one of the highest in the world)
The rationing of electricity was to prevent water levels from the Guri Dam hydroelectric plant from being depleted as the country fights a massive drought. The UKPA released that "the government recently reduced the hours of electricity supply for shopping centres and required businesses and large residential complexes to cut energy use by 20% or face fines."

The tensions between America and Venezuela continue as these citizens struggle against an oppressive regime. A jet intercept was announced by Chavez as he claimed American jet violated their air space -- the White House denies such an incident.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/01/12/AR2010011203663.html?hpid=sec-world

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ukpress/article/ALeqM5gjQZURKLFNBzxgnZErDB1G7ikIJw

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE6080BB20100109?type=politicsNews: also source for picture (BBJ)










More on Chavez:

http://brandon7221.blogspot.com/2009/09/wizardry-of-dictatorship-chavez.html

Wizardry of Dictatorship: Chavez

While Oliver Stone's new "documentary" tours some film festival around the world, Hugo Chavez parades red carpets like a Hollywood celebrity. The film "South of the Border" seems to ignore the shortcomings of the Venezuelan dictator. Stone on Chavez: "He's open and warmhearted and big, and a fascinating character."

He seems very open, especially with the new Media Crimes bill that would give the Venezuelan government sweeping authority to jail journalists, media executives, and bloggers who report on anything that the government considers to be harmful to state interests.

Got that: "state interests"

There are concerns about recent shutdowns of radio stations in Venezuela and a proposed law in Argentina that would break up Clarin, one of Latin America's largest newspaper and cable TV companies. Globovision, the last "opposition aligned" TV channel on the open airwaves, is also the target of multiple investigations that authorities say could lead to the revocation of its broadcast license.

This 2007 article (http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1626151,00.html) reveals the longtime struggle in Venezuela for media outlets. Protests are widespread in this extremely polarized society.

Now back to Oliver Stone on Chavez's "dark side": "A dark side? There's a dark side to everything. Why do you seek out the dark side when the guy is doing good things?" He is a democrat and there is opposition to him, and he's not perfect. But he is doing tremendous things for Venezuela and the region."

So the Hollywood portrayal of Hugo Chavez will be a warm-hearted, fascinating character performing tremendous things. Interesting parallel to Sean Penn on David Letterman after a 2007 visit: "fascinating", "fascinating character" and "did incredible things for the 80% of the people that are very poor there" (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xh2Lm_F58Nc) -- all of this before Penn LIED about RCTV promoting killing Chavez daily.

There has been a surge in anti-Semitism fueled by the government, even circulating "Protocols of the Elders of Zion", an alleged worldwide Jewish conspiracy to seize control of the world. The independent Caracas newspaper, El Universal, has documented hundreds of instances of anti-Semitism in government media.

Chavez has a tight relationship with Iranian President Ahmadinejad, visiting Iran several times and voicing his support for an Iranian nuclear program. The Venezuelan Jews are leaving, migrating elsewhere.

The violence is also against women.

Venezuela added a law in 2007 proclaiming the violence against women as human rights crime. Amnesty international's statement:

"Thousands of women in Venezuela live in a constant state of fear of violence from their partners, fear for their lives and the safety of their children. When a safety net is not provided, many women feel that they have no choice but to stay with their abuser or to be homeless and unable to support themselves or their children." - March 2008.

From February 2009: "...almost two years on, there is still a wide gap between the law’s promised objectives and its implementation in practice. One significant obstacle to delivering the promised protection is the desperate shortage of shelters for women experiencing domestic violence." -- Amnesty International.

Hugo Chavez, though, insists that reports of 100,000 people being murdered in the country since 1999 are lies from private media, though he admits that the nation's crime problems are quite bad.

Chavez maybe joining the Cult of Personality Club with President Obama, thanks to Hollywood and this new Oliver Stone tour. According to TIME magazine, the film never questions the human rights violations, the oppression of the free press or the outbreak of attacks on Jews.

I find that incredible and fascinating.