Venezuela gov't says foes seek to slam it at Oscars

[brooklynite]

Source: Reuters

(Reuters) - Venezuela's government said "right-wing extremists" were lobbying in Hollywood for movie stars to denounce President Nicolas Maduro's socialist administration from the stage at Sunday's Academy Awards.

Venezuela has been rocked by its worst unrest in a decade, with at least 17 people killed in violence around opposition demonstrations and clashes between hooded protesters, security forces, and pro-government militants.

Maduro's critics are demanding he quit and accuse him of repression, while the president says "fascists" working with U.S. financiers want to engineer a coup like the one in 2002 that briefly toppled his predecessor, Hugo Chavez.

"Right-wing extremists are lobbying in Hollywood, looking for pronouncements against Venezuela at the Oscars!" Information Minister Delcy Rodriguez said on her Twitter account @DrodriguezMinci on Saturday.

Read more: http://in.reuters.com/article/2014/03/02/venezuela-protests-oscars-idINL1N0LZ00G20140302

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Um, okay, if you say so...

[Iliyah]

1. What?

[flamingdem]

2. Which airhead would take on the challenge?

It would have to be Maria Conchita Alonso, but she isn't nominated.. who else even knows who Maduro is or cares?

[zeemike]

3. Nah...right wingers would never do anything like that.

They are lovely people really...And would never even think of manipulating the media.

[brooklynite]

4. But Hollywood is full of liberals...

[zeemike]

5. Really?...you could not prove it by me

Every other movie that comes out is full of violence and war...I guess that is a liberal value then.
But then I could not name one actor that is up for an Oscar this year, that is just how little I pay attention to it.
If I watch a movie it is probably independent...the last Hollywood movie I remember watching had so much yelling and screaming and explosions in it I did not even get to the end.

[brooklynite]

6. Here's a clue...it's called "acting"

The role an actor takes doesn't generally have much to do with their political views.

[zeemike]

7. Of course you are right.

And they do it for the money...and they don't decide what movies to make.
But the ones that do may not be so liberal.
And money can trump politics.

[Dr Hobbitstein]

19. I'm liberal and a pacifist...

I like violent movies, movies about war, violent video games, dark, violent books...

It's called entertainment. You can both be liberal, and enjoy watching violent/war movies.
You can also be liberal and make/act in violent/war movies.

The duality of man, I suppose...

&noredirect=1

[zeemike]

20. Well I am progressive and not a pacifist.

And I hate the glorification of violence and war...and I am not entertained by it at all...and the hero worship that comes from it...there is nothing heroic about killing people no matter what the reason.

[Dr Hobbitstein]

25. Most actors don't get killed in movies...

Aside from Vic Morrow and Brandon Lee. It's, once again, called acting. I don't watch a violent film and worship a hero. But I did enjoy the hell out of First Blood. The other day, AMC played back to back Demolition Man and Roadhouse. Both violent films. Both great films. If you don't like them, that's great. But I do. Actors pick rolls based on their tastes for the story. Politics is not everyone's personal motivation in life. Sometimes, we like to have fun.

[zeemike]

27. Well I guess it is all in your point of view.

I don't think violence is fun...even if it is pretend or just imagining it.
To me a great film is Dr. Strangelove, Catch 22, Slaughterhouse 5, Citizen Cain, The Day The Earth Stood Still...and on and on...there are many I would rather watch than Rambo movies.

[Dr Hobbitstein]

30. You listed some other great films...

My film interests are varied. I grew up in the 1980s. Action and horror flicks were all the rage, so they're part of my interests. I'm also a huge Trek fan. And Star Wars (original trilogy). Logan's Run, Reality Bites, Mulholland Drive, et al.

As I said before, I am a pacifist. I don't like actual violence. However, I can tell the difference between acting and real violence. Saving Private Ryan was a FANTASTIC film. Very story driven. Also, incredibly violent. Spielberg is a liberal. He directed the hell out of that film. Does that make him a hypocrite?

BTW - MOST Rambo movies suck. First Blood and John Rambo were excellent, however (OK, I guess that means HALF of the Rambo movies suck).

[zeemike]

31. Well I grew up in the 50s.

And the most violences you saw then was the white hat cowboy shoot the gun out of the hand of the black hat cowboy,
And the first SI FI film I saw was "The Day The Earth Stood Still"...which was about violence too but as a negative not a postiive...so I guess it shaped my view.
I also loved Star Trek but before it morphed into Star Wars...which conflicted with my view that space people are not full of violence and war...just as any civilization based on violence destroys itself, and all the more so when weapons are developed to destroy whole worlds...if Rome had developed the bomb we would not be hear today, and they too developed a love of violence as entertainment...and I don't think it matters whether it is real or not.
Just like money, it is the love of violence that is the problem...IMO
And it may not have effected you, but it does many who may well be less enlightened than you are.

[Blue_Tires]

8. I didn't even know Venezuela cared about the Academy Awards

I must be the only person in the world who hasn't watched or cared in years...

[Zorra]

22. They are upset about the constant flow of RW propaganda by the US MSM. nt

[Archae]

9. Maduro and his cronies are hitting the bottom of the barrel.

They know damn well they are up to their ass in trouble.

And they have no clue as to how to stop digging.

[cprise]

10. The minority with the most violent protests wins. n/t

[MADem]

12. The ones initiating the violence are working for the government. nt

[cprise]

13. Often that's only what the corporate media suggests.

There are videos of Ukrainian militants firebombing police that go back at least to early December:

&noredirect=1&oref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DN9wkwwWKSzc%26noredirect%3D1&has_verified=1


US officials (one of them was handing out cookies to these 'protesters' after they started attacking like this!) were caught negotiating with the coup plotters at least a month ago to direct just who would be replacing the sitting president.

[MADem]

17. Well, you're going to have to name those US officials you're accusing, and maybe cough

up a believable pic.

But most importantly, December is not March, and the problem in the Ukraine right now is that Russia is invading the country. Let's stick to the issue at hand, and not try to distract with unsupported accusations and context-free protests that have nothing to do with Putin sending his military OVER the border.

If you didn't like it when Porgie did it, you shouldn't be liking it when Pootie does it. And that's the bottom line.

But why bring the Ukraine into a thread about Venezuela?

[cprise]

32. It does show how hollow US claims are

This is as much about US imperialism as anything else.

If a country is not lined-up with Wall St. and US military interests, then violent demonstrators are an excuse to call for regime change. That sounds more like a recipe for supporting international fascism to me.

Assistant Secretary of State Victoria Nuland and the US Ambassador to Ukraine, Geoffrey Pyatt are the US officials who plotted with the Ukraine opposition to replace the sitting, elected president of a foreign country sitting on Russia's border.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-26079957

Note that the BBC timeline turns a blind eye to the "protesters" firebombing the police, throwing bricks at them and driving bulldozers into them, but they do note when the first "protesters" were shot in late January. This from a country (UK) that blocks off social media during its own riots.

[MADem]

35. I invite your attention to the most recent comments of the Secretary of State.

And I'll leave it at that.

You can't force a popular leader out.

[cprise]

37. Force doesn't prove un/popularity

Even a popular movement can still lack the numbers for a ruling majority. The opposition was highly motivated, however, and willing to engage in violent brinkmanship.

Don't be too surprised when the behavior you're trying to excuse shows up in your region as thuggish mob rule.

[MADem]

38. Oh, please!

There's just nothing to say to you, save

Your last sentence takes the cake. My region is more worried about the next snowstorm, but thanks for your concern.

Say hey to Vlad, now!

[cprise]

39. Many fellow DUers would disagree

with your cavalier attitude. They are coping with the realities of a crooked corporate-run police state.

If food and energy prices continue to rise here, you are going to see a different side to American society and pretty quickly, too.

[MADem]

40. And many would not. That's what happens on discussion boards.

I'm not going to hold my breath waiting for your doomsday scenarios.

I doubt most people will.

[freshwest]

28. That's some freaking nasty stuff there. But it's not Venezuela. n/t

[EmilyAnne]

34. And the Berkut were committing violent acts against citizens since August. nt

[Judi Lynn]

14. What would anyone connected to the government have to gain, anyway?

Anyone sentient should be able to grasp the fact ONLY the opposition gains from this chaos.

[MADem]

16. Why don't you ask Anonymous VZ that question?

They're supporting the people in the streets, who are complaining about basic things, like security/crime, food shortages, inflation...you know, bread and butter issues. How dare they expect to not wait in line for hours for flour, and fear being robbed or killed going to and from the grocer?

The shootings with bullets, bean bags and pellets are happening because the government wants the protests to STOP. Maduro gave everyone a week off and told them to go to the beach--no one went, in fact, they are mocking him by setting up "beach" protests on the streets. They were banging pots and pans again last night at three in the morning.

Don't believe me...believe your eyes:

WARNING GRAPHIC IMAGES

https://twitter.com/AnonymousVene10/status/440005647636381696/photo/1
https://twitter.com/lizaneda/status/439800943538733056/photo/1/large
https://twitter.com/AboulhosnRamzy/status/439882288869150720/photo/1/large

And if only the "opposition" gains, why are people from the slums joining the protests? Your excuse-making is just not supportable by the facts on the ground.

[MADem]

11. Bingo--he just tried to give the country a "week off" to "go to the beach."

He's trying to stop people from demonstrating. It's not working.

This is my favorite picture that ANONYMOUS VZ posted today--it's not the biggest demo by a long shot (and there were some beauties), it is not violent (and a few people got gravely wounded today), it's not dramatic, but it certainly resonates on a very particular level...I gotcher beach right heah, Maduro...:



And of course, the Maduro crew is trying to pretend that everyone is taking his advice and going to the beach, and they're even posting proof ... proof which was easily debunked. You'd think they'd join the 21st Century--this is pretty pathetic:

[Behind the Aegis]

15. And the award goes to...

[tanyev]

18. First, a right-winger will have to win an Oscar.

[Pterodactyl]

21. Maduro is an ass.

He'd be laughable if livelihoods - and lives - didn't depend on his actions.

[Bacchus4.0]

23. Sean Penn won't let that happen n/t

[joshcryer]

24. Haha, holy shit, it kinda, sorta, happend:

To all the dreamers out there around the world watching this tonight in places like Ukraine and Venezuela, I want to to say we are here, and as you struggle to make your dreams happen and live the impossible, we are thinking of you tonight.

Read more: Oscars 2014: Watch Jared Leto's Amazing Acceptance Speech: VIDEO | TIME.com http://entertainment.time.com/2014/03/02/oscars-2014-jared-letos-amazing-acceptance-speech-for-supporting-actor/#ixzz2us1yOTRI

[freshwest]

29. I think Maduro flopped trying to get attentiont this way. And why care about the Oscars? n/t

[MADem]

36. Kevin Spacey sent out a tweet in support too... nt

[hrmjustin]

26. Oh Lord!

Someone in the goverment actually said this outloud. Seems like the goverment has a chip on it's sholder.

[Adrahil]

33. 12 Years a Slave is a OBVIOUSLY right wing propaganda!!! NT