Chavez gave a speech last week, and I have to say what I've read of it so far is the most refreshing yet.

"...workers councils will come into being in the factories, in the workplaces, but they should reach out to the communities and be fused into other councils of popular power: community councils, students councils, etc... What for? To shout slogans? To go around shouting long live Chavez? No!... To change the relationships in the workplace, to plan production, to take over piece by piece the functions of the government and to finish up by destroying the bourgeois state."

"We are going to destroy the bourgeoisie".

Not using the word oligarchy as he normally does, referring to the worst of the capitalists, now he uses the term bourgeoisie, referring to all capitalists. He also suggests the reading of Marx, Engels and Lenin and Trotsky on how the workers themselves should organise and run society from the bottom up.

Like Castro, Chavez came to power on a platform not of revolution but social reform to ease the burden of the most down-trodden within society. But like Castro he is reaching the same conclusion the capitalists just won't let him carry out such a program without economic sabotage and attempted coup d'états, why? Because they're unwilling to let their profits be "wasted" on helping the workers, despite the obvious fact that its the workers who make those profits in the first place.

It only took a few healthcare reforms, like opening free clinics for the capitalists of Venezuela to want the guy out. Now he sees the only way to safeguard the gains that have been made is to empower the working class themselves to build their own state to replace the bourgeois and bureaucratic state that Chavez inherited, so they can start to learn how to run society themselves and close the door on the power of big business.

From Venezuelanalysis.com:

The Venezuelan government made the agreement with London Mayor Ken Livingstone last February after Venezuelan President Chavez suggested the idea during a visit to London in 2006. The deal will provide London buses with a 20% discount on fuel from Venezuela. At the same time, London will open an office in Caracas to provide Venezuela with advice and technical expertise on tourism, public transport, urban-planning, and the protection of the environment, fields in which London is a world leader.

The discount will reduce the city's annual fuel bill of about £65 million ($138.4 million) by up to £14 million ($29.8 million), said a spokesman for the mayor. Those to benefit from the lower bus-fares will be single parents, long-term sick, disabled and others on income support.

"We want to target the very poorest Londoners," said Livingston to reporters. "From today, all Londoners on Income Support are eligible for half price travel on London buses. This will make it cheaper and easier for people to go about their lives and get the most out of London."

The mayor said that the reduced fares would offer savings of as much as £280 ($596) a year per person. And Livingston assured that Venezuela will benefit from the deal as well.

This is of course great news; Venezuela is the leading example of the people taking power into their own hands in the world today. Building connections with the workers throughout the rest of the world is essential.