Post #1390

The anti-politics, anti-party, anti-state, and anti-power ideas had become hegemonic within the left by the last decade of the 20th century and converged with the neoliberal premise that argues that a smaller state and a weaker government are better for the economy. Hugo Chávez came to power in that context, marking the beginning of the Pink Tide. It’s incredible that so many progressive governments that are center-left or left are still in power – some in and out and in again like Lula, and some more steady. This is a unique phenomenon in the world, and it’s important to analyze and learn from these experiences. Some academics demonize the progressive governments: a few will say that Rafael Correa of Ecuador was a sellout, but Evo Morales of Bolivia was better, while others will say that both Evo and Chávez were sellouts. These currents focus on issues such as the environment or the relationship between the left in power and social movements. In many cases, they have some interesting points, but the problem is that they end up bunching together progressive movements with neoliberal ones. https://venezuelanalysis.com/interviews/venezuelas-critical-conjunctures-a-conversation-with-steve-ellner/