Tests Show Chavez Is Cancer-Free

The picture above shows Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and his daughter after returning to his country from Cuba, where he had undergone medical tests. The tests were to determine whether there was any cancer left in his body. He had undergone surgery and four cycles of chemotherapy a few months ago for cancer in a Cuban medical facility.

According to the Venezuelan president, he is now cancer-free. He told reporters, "Everything went perfectly. I got top marks. 20 out of 20." This is great news for those of us who believe in a fair deal for the poor, the workers, and the indigenous peoples of Latin America. President Chavez has not only created more economic and social justice in Venezuela, but has helped to spread it into many other Latin American countries (and has used Venezuela's vast oil riches to help other countries avoid the economic blackmail of the United States and other Western nations).

That will probably surprise many in the United States, since U.S. government and corporate propaganda has tried to brand Chavez as evil. They have even tried to label him as a dictator -- in spite of the fact that he was elected with larger margins than any recent American president. This is because American power-brokers are unhappy that Chavez won't let the Western nations steal Venezuela's oil and other natural resources. He has forced the Western corporations to pay a fair price for those resources -- and he has seen that the wealth is more evenly spread throughout his country.

Some in this country point to a supposed censorship that was imposed on a TV station in Venezuela as proof of his "dictatorial" powers. That, of course, is an outrageous lie. The fact is that TV station, during an attempted coup attempt by the wealthy (and backed by the United States), went on the air and actively encouraged the Venezuelan people to overthrow their government with a violent uprising. The coup failed, and when the TV stations license later came up for renewal the Venezuelan government refused to issue their renewal.

Chavez actually acted with restraint. If a TV station in the United States was actively involved in a plot to violently overthrow the government, the owners and management of that station would not just lose their license -- they would be charged with treason and sentenced to long prison sentences. That kind of action is not free speech -- it is criminal behavior.

As a free person who believes in economic and social justice, I rejoice in the good news of President Chavez's recovery from his serious illness. Chavez says he will run for re-election next year now that he is healthy. I expect the good people of Venezuela will once again give him a resounding victory.