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It would be wrong to suggest that the coup was all got up by the United States. Chavez, who himself tried to seize power in a coup in 1992, has made many mistakes and many enemies. But he still enjoys a hard core of support of at least a third of the country, in particular the dispossessed who voted for him. He appears now to be trying, maybe too late, to repair some broken bridges.
On May Day, Chavez faces another test when a rally organized by the country's largest confederation of workers will be held in the capital. The good news is that the Latin American nations upheld the democratic position and recognized that it is still a chilling sight to see on television a bunch of burly men in uniform talking a little too closely into the microphones and announcing to the people that their president has "resigned".
Viva democracia! has to be more than a slogan on a bus. Perhaps a translation should be sent to the Latin American section of the US state department for them to stick above their desks: "It's the democracy, stupid!"
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