[A friend at work forwarded a report on one of Hugo Chavez's strange pronouncements.]
Clearly one of the greatest minds of this age.
"I have always said, heard, that it would not be strange that there had been civilization on Mars, but maybe capitalism arrived there, imperialism arrived and finished off the planet," Chavez said in speech to mark World Water Day.
[My response.]
That’s great! However, socialism is just religion. And religion gets to say these strange things because it has beliefs but not tests.
I have a particularly religious friend who’s fascinated by all the crazy things Chavez says. I find that funny because honestly I can’t see the difference between “Capitalism killed civilization on Mars.” and “Moses parted the Red Sea.” I guess the difference is it’s OK to say crazy things as long as we all say it together.
[Final thoughts]
I know I'm an asshole, but I'm not amused by one insular group (the religious) laughing at the strange beliefs of another insular group (socialists). See my earlier essay on Believing Many Things A Priori.