Re: [Marxism] Ven. govt. stymied HRW effort to spur liberal capitalist opposition

["Fred Feldman" <ffeldman@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

I wrote:
I think the Venezuelan government should be congratulated and supported for
the way they handled the HRW operation.

Walter comments:
It's not necessary to endorse every step taken by peoples,
leaders or governments in foreign countries, even if we're
in broad and general solidarity with them. They take the
measures they feel they must take in order to defend their
countries and projects, but then, they also have to accept
the various consequences which flow from those decisions.

Fred responds:
Walter was right to single out the sentence he quoted. It was inadequately
formulated. I should have written, "I congratulate and support the way the
Venezuelan government handled the HRW operation." That would have eliminated
the problem of seeming to suggest or demand that everyone take this
position. Of course, I certainly have every right to do  so, just as anyone
who disagrees or chooses to hold their tongue has a right to do that..

However, Walter implicitly misrepresents me a bit when he writes about how
it is not "necessary" to support every measure the Venezuelan government or
other government takes in a conflict with imperialism. He knows as do other
list members that I don't do that, not about Venezuela, not about Cuba, not
about Bolivia and sure as hell not about Iran or North Korea and so on.

This is the second round of discussion on the list about the HRW activities
there. In the first I said nothing, because I had no opinion. I only became
convinced that the government had handled it correctly when I read the HRW's
presentation of its own activities in New York Review of Books.
And since I was convinced, I said so. I don't think I was under any
obligation to keep quiet.

But I certainly did not intend to deny anyone the right to disagree with me,
including Walter. I firmly believe that the first amendment to the US
constitution still has a lot of relevance and usefulness in US politics and
culture -- even though it was written way back when, 220 years ago.  Some
might assume that age alone would be enough to make the First Amendment old
hat.

But not me. I'm old fashioned.
Fred Feldman


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