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NEWS AND VIEWS THAT IMPACT LIMITED CONSTITUTIONAL GOVERNMENT

"There is danger from all men. The only maxim of a free government ought to be to trust no man living with
power to endanger the public liberty." - - - - John Adams

Saturday, August 27, 2016

Socialist official beaten to death by miners


Independent miners clash with the police as they run from clouds of tear gas during
protests in Panduro, Bolivia, Thursday, Aug. 25, 2016.  (AP Photo/Juan Karita)

Socialists Oppress Labor Unions

  • Leftists have no more interest in your right to form a union than Oligarch super rich capitalists. Both ends of the spectrum want to live the good life and demand that you shut up and work until you die.

(Forbes)  -  Around here we usually make fun of Bolivarian socialism by reference to the idiocies which Nicolas Maduro has been imposing upon the people of Venezuela. They do, after all, call their system “Bolivarian socialism.” Across the continent, in Bolivia, we also have a closely related Bolivian socialism. Evo Morales has often said that he takes inspiration from Hugo Chavez, and that the system he is using in Bolivia is similar. So, Bolivarian socialism in Bolivia then. Umm, perhaps both Bolivian and Bolivarian socialism?
This incident is not one to make fun of - Rodolfo Illanes, government minister, has been beaten to death by striking miners. That’s not something to joke about. And yet it’s worth pointing out what the miners are actually striking against: socialism. They want the right to work with capitalist companies, the one and very thing which the government is determined they should not be allowed to do. 
Miners block a main highway during an anti-government protest

There is of course a simple solution here which is that there should be a free market. No, not just the free market in who may buy and sell what, but a free market in which forms of organisation should be used to do what. This is something which we already allow – people can set up an organisation upon whatever lines they like. We do rule out slavery, child labor and so on, but other than that you can set up a socialist organisation, a cooperative, one owned by the workers, the customers, whatever you wish, as well as the more capitalist idea of a limited company with outside shareholders.
Those striking Bolivian miners are doing so for the freedom which we already possess. And why shouldn’t they also have said freedom?
These protests have been going on for some time. From earlier in the month:
Bolivian cooperative mineworkers are threatening to radicalize their protests against legislative changes after the government arrested 11 miners during clashes with police.
Mining cooperative federations Fencomin and Fedecomin, which erected roadblocks around the country last week to protest against alleged changes to the country’s general cooperative law, gave the government a 48-hour ultimatum to release their members before occupying government buildings.
The background to this is that Evo Morales nationalised the mines (and all of the country’s mineral resources) soon after being elected in 2006. The cooperatives are able to gain a licence to mine such deposits. 

Read More . . . .

Striking Miners

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