[Prospero]

To anyone familiar with Solzhenitsyn's The Gulag Archipelego the significance of receiving a possible "tenner," a nearly automatic ten year sentence "for eating with the wrong fork," can't escape the irony of this possible sentence, in the context of a repressive Communist regime.

The picture is of López as he surrendered, after speaking to a huge crowd of supporters in Caracas, Tuesday. He was immediately singled out by the Maduro-Castro regime from among the Opposition leaders as the man responsible for the protests resulting in the death of a student in Caracas earlier this week.

López was no more responsible than any of the other demoralized opposition leaders and their movements. The assassination of an out-of-control Collectivo leader, on orders from the regime, after these well-armed bully gangs and defenders of Chavez were called out to harass student demonstrators on Monday, resulted also in the death of a student attending his first protest.

The present, still-ongoing "insurrection" seems to have actually begun in San Cristobol after protests erupted when police failed to deal with a gang-related rape, repeated home invasions and the general rise in violent lawlessness in that city, on February 2.

The regime has reacted, probably under pressure from Castro's 30,000 "advisers" reported to be on the ground in Venezuela, and the revolt has spread, fed also by food and material shortages throughout the country.

The revolt continues, despite a news and Internet crackdown.

[VRW Conspirator]

The prosecutor is accusing López, among other charges, of criminal association, an offense penalized by the Organic Law Against Organized Crime and the Financing of Terrorism with 10 years of prison.

To anyone familiar with Solzhenitsyn's The Gulag Archipelago...

Article 58...counter-revolutionary activities: can mean anything the court decides it means, including "eating with the wrong fork".

[DJ MacWoW]

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[Biggirl]

Look Venezula to become a hot, civil war sitiuation.

[Biggirl]

This internet service be truly the downfall of dictatorships:

http://www.nationaljournal.com/tech/coming-soon-free-internet-from-space-20140220

[GeronL]

Everyone knows that government-backed Collectivos did the killings and continues in their violence (San Cristobol anyone?)

This is what is called a ‘dirty war’

I hope the people of Venezuela don’t resign themselves to living this way any longer

[Biggirl]

This is like a pimple ready to break open.

[ScottinVA]

He probably won’t even last the 45 days. A successful “suicide” of Mr. López is very likely being arranged at this moment.

BTW, the American “media” have kept a tighter lid on this more than any similar unrest. They, like their masters in the White House, truly detest the idea of “Chavismo” reaching an end.

[Recovering Ex-hippie]

I SENT MY FRIEND WHO HAS LIVED IN VENEZUELA AND NOW IS A PROUD AMERICAN CITIZEN THIS THREAD AND HERE IS WHAT SHE RESPONDED:

I am sorry, but the majority of the comments are made by probably well intentioned folks out there who don’t know a thing about Latin America, Venezuela, the history of the Latin American countries and the relationship of the US with L.A. They have never been to Venezuela, nor have they ever witnessed what a real student protest looks like in this country.

Most of us in the comforts of our recliners have never seen military forces bomb or really beat the crap out of students, women, nuns, priests or innocent bystanders. Most of us have never witnessed what an “arrest” by 17 year old soldiers carrying sub-machine guns in the streets, schools, and buses look like. I have. Right smack in the middle of Caracas.

Slums? Our slums in the US look like country clubs compared to those surrounding the mountains of Caracas. This is a nation that once had Europeans immigrating TO Venezuela in the 40’s, 50’s and 60’s. During the petroleum boom years Venezuela was a prosperous country. The Bolivar money was stable for many years at 25 Bolivars to the dollar. Education for the youth is held in very high esteem. When the country nationalized the petroleum wells and took control from Standard Oil the nation began having serious economic and political problems.

The US took the oil buying business to the Middle East and we all know what happened over there since then. Inflation began to take a tight grip on this once prosperous and amazing nation. I had to help my family change their money from the Bolivar to the dollar in order for them to remain in the then shrinking middle class.

The illustrious Mr. Chavez arrived on the scene became a dictator for many years. Because of him inflation rose higher. He introduced the communist thugs from Cuba and vomited his daily schpiel on the benefits of socialism while he lived in absolute luxury. He completely allowed his country to disintegrate into an ecological mess. He GAVE AWAY oil to the paramilitary troops in Colombia (who were responsible for continuing their cocaine and crack trade into the US).

These are drugs that infest our people, our youth, our future. He allowed the once pristine Lake Maracaibo to become a veritable cesspool. He was a terrible, terrible man. Yet, we welcomed him in our country to give a speech in the UN. I don’t get this. So, as long as a Latin American nation is in our pocket and does what we tell it to we give them our hearts and pocketbooks. But once they buck we turn our backs and allow, sometimes enable and give money to criminals like Chavez.

Now what? Chavez is dead and Venezuela continues to disintegrate. Any Venezuelan with money long ago immigrated to the US. There is a neighborhood in south Florida called Weston. There are so many Venezuelans there that it is now called Weston-zuela. Lucky for us these people have education and money to contribute to our country.

The one comment about Venezuelans not resigning themselves to living like this any longer. You have no idea what people’s daily lives are like there. Resignation? Try protesting the lack of potable water, the slums, the lack of human dignity. It takes so much energy just to carry your drinkable water up a muddy, slippery, hill to the hovel that you call home. Try that several times a day and tell a Venezuelan about resignation.

I don’t mean to sound mean or like a know it all, but honestly I am astounded with how little traveling Americans do and how little they know about other countries.

[Nextrush]

When I heard ten year sentence I immediately thought of the Gulag.

The dictator Maduro is “showing his stripes” which look like a hammer and sickle to me.

[Mat_Helm]

Time to send some arms down to Venezuela’s citizens Fast and Furious........Maybe there are some spare weapons in Benghazi???????..........Maybe Homeland Security can spare some bullets???????? NO.....??? Que Pasa Obama?

[paristexas]

Anyone deeply committed to justice and freedom and the rule of law is in danger of imprisonment or death no matter where he lives in the world. He is inherently at odds with the powers that be.

[Impala64ssa]

Maduro, that's a nice full-flavored cigar. So a former bus driver is now the head honcho in Venezuela. If I lived in Venezuela and they had elections I'd vote for this bus driver hands down!

Hey Ralphie boy!! Hummina Hummina Hummina