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[Chilidawgz]

Raising his right hand, Chavez said: "Fatherland. Socialism or death — I swear it."

CARACAS, Venezuela — President Hugo Chavez was sworn in for a new six-year term Wednesday, beginning what he calls a stronger push to remake Venezuela as a socialist state.

Chavez took the oath of office at the National Assembly five week after a sweeping re-election win that has given him free reign to pursue more radical changes, including plans to nationalize "strategic" power and telecommunications companies

Raising his right hand, Chavez said: "Fatherland. Socialism or death — I swear it."

Chavez attended a flower-laying ceremony earlier Wednesday at the tomb of Simon Bolivar, the South American independence hero who is the inspiration of Chavez's "Bolivarian Revolution" movement.

He then rode in an open car, blowing kisses and waving to supporters who tossed rose petals, before arriving at the National Assembly, where he was to be sworn in for a third term that runs until 2013.

Chavez, an admirer of Fidel Castro, has said he is crafting a new sort of "21st Century Socialism." Critics say it is starting to look like old-fashioned totalitarianism by a leader obsessed with power.

On Monday, Chavez pledged to nationalize "strategic" power and telecommunications companies and said that he will ask the National Assembly for special powers allowing him to enact a series of laws by decree. Among those moves, he said, "all of that which was privatized, let it be nationalized."

During the election campaign, Chavez said he would seek constitutional reforms including scrapping presidential term limits, which bar him from running again in 2012. This week, he also called for a constitutional amendment to strip the Central Bank of its autonomy.

First elected in 1998, Chavez has cemented his popularity by using a bonanza in oil profits to set up state-funded cooperatives and fund social programs from subsidized grocery stores to free universities.

An Associated Press-Ipsos poll conducted three weeks before Chavez was re-elected on Dec. 3 found 62 percent of those asked supported nationalizing companies when in the national interest — a result that paralleled Chavez's victory with nearly 63 percent of the votes.

But that support also has its limits. The poll found 84 percent said they oppose adopting a political system like Cuba's, despite Chavez's reverence for Castro.

The nationalization moves seem to be a throwback to past efforts that were complete failures, opposition politician Teodoro Petkoff said. What is really on display, he said, is the "autocratic power" of a president who can act without checks and balances.

http://www.foxnews.c...,242780,00.html

[TTHQ Staff]

Raising his right hand, Chavez said: "Fatherland. Socialism or death — I swear it."

I particularly like this part:

Chavez said he would seek constitutional reforms including scrapping presidential term limits, which bar him from running again in 2012

But this is the part that needs attention:

This week, he also called for a constitutional amendment to strip the Central Bank of its autonomy.

From Yahoo:

A drop in oil to its lowest level in 18 months clipped energy stocks in Brazil and Argentina and sent Mexico's peso (MEX01) (MXN=) to a five-week low of 11.025 per dollar.

A 2.34 percent drop in energy giant Petrobras (Sao Paolo:PETR4.SA) helped pull Brazil's Bovespa stock index (Sao Paolo:^BVSP - News) down 1.97 percent.

Falling copper prices added to a sell-off of more than 12 percent in the metal so far this year, prompting equity investors to take money off the table in resource-rich Latin America.

"It's a general reduction in risk, starting with commodities and spilling over into emerging markets. It's oil and metals," said one equities salesman in New York.

Chile's Madeco (Santiago:MAD.SN), which produces copper cable, was down 1.08 percent, contributing to a 0.3 percent drop in the country's IPSA (^IPSA - News) stock market measure.

Plans announced on Monday by Chavez to nationalize Venezuela's largest telecom firm CANTV (Caracas:TDVD.CR ) and unspecified power companies also plagued stock prices in the region.

New York-traded shares of CANTV, which is almost 30 percent owned by U.S. telephone giant Verizon (NYSE:VZ), plummeted 34 percent.

In Caracas, the IBC (^IBC) benchmark stock index suffered a 19 percent nose-dive as investors bolted for the door.

[colours]

If you would like a preview of where the economy in Venezuela is going and how life will be after Chavez completes its transformation , look at the country of Zimbabwe and the reign of Robert Mugabe . The poor people of Venezuela are decending into dante's hell .

[OEXCHAOS]

yup. Instead of "Socialism or Death" he should have said, "Socialism AND Death"! Tin-pot demagogue. In five years, he'll be lucky if he's not hanging from a gibbet. Of course, that won't help the millions who'll be in dire straights.

[dasein]

If he does so, it should give a boost to selected global competitors. And when it looks like the tide is turning, like it did in Libya, it will be the time to look for those who will profit from getting back in. In the meantime, since it will be a long time - maybe Mark can turn off this thread before it gets real political. <G>