Troops Arrest Honduran President, page 3

Originally posted by Hastobemoretolife

Unfortunately, term limits for a president is one of those things that has to stay in place no matter what the people want.

Yes, as Marx said, "Democracy is the road to socialism."
And changing 'term limits' was a very effective way for
Chavez to bring socialism to Venezuela. The people
of Honduras know this very well, and those in power
are determined not to let it happen in their country.

Obama talks about Rule of Law, what does that mean?

The Rule of Law = The Constitution

If Obama says Honduras should up-hold the "rule of law"
then he is saying the Constitution should be followed. If
the Constitution allows term limits to be changed, that
would be one thing, but in this case both the Supreme
Court and the Congress ruled the referendum illegal.

That means they legally determined that changing the
term limits (as was done in Venezuelan) would be a
violation of Republica de Honduras Constitution.

I think that should settle the legal question, but now
consider the moral question. Official population figures
for 1996, reveal that Honduras is comprised of the
following ethnic fractions:

Mestizos - (mixed Indian and European) 90%

Indians - 7%

Blacks - 2%

Whites - 1%

Nearly all of the top Honduras officials are drawn from
the "white" 1% of the population. Such exceptions as
do infrequently occur, tend to be limited to Mestizos
who are well-placed in the military establishment.

That Honduras holds elections must be seen as more of
a public relations gesture than a defining element in
determining the type of government it has. In recent
years, however, the ruling clique has turned the election
process into an important tool for the protection of active
elected officials, as well as their family members and cronies.

Josef Stalin, arguably the most iron-fisted dictator in the
modern era, understood and appreciated the usefulness
of holding an election once in a while - even when there
was only one set of candidates on the ballot! Stalin called
elections "tranquilizers for the people." They still are.

In the case of Honduras, the election function has an
additional benefit in sustaining and strengthening the
corrupt political and economic status-quo.

Most Hondurans are unaware that the most notorious
criminals in Honduras can find immunity from the law
by just having their names placed on the ballot for an
upcoming election!

When a Honduras politician talks about "a nation of laws",
he's talking about laws for everybody except himself and
the rest of the politicians, all of whom are shielded from
legal liabilities of every kind, by virtue of being either
appointed officials, or candidates running for office.

A Honduras election is all sham, pretense, and elaborately
arranged window-trimming. Necessarily so, since the system
it represents is rotten to the core. It will take much more than
a quadrennial election charade to effect any lasting changes
in this poverty-stricken, socially abandoned, malnourished,
ill-educated and vastly exploited land.

Honduras is a serial-oligarchy.

It's "serial" because the reins of government regularly get
passed back and forth between the Nacionales and the
Liberales, (with an occasional "golpe" by the army, to keep
both of the "Red" and the "Blue" political parties reminded
of who is really in charge). It's an "oligarchy" because
Honduras meets the textbook definition of "Government
by a few, especially by a small faction of families."

A Honduras election is about power. Political control.
Illicit enrichment. Immunity for the privileged criminals
walking free among us. Perpetuation of private power
domains, at the cost of national stature and sovereign
honor. It's about the continuation of corrupt schemes
that enrich the political elite, while further impoverishing
the nation, itself, and the unfortunates that populate it.

Ask yourself, "Is America really so different?"