Some Chile History

A little commie trivia for you.  Possibly a timely history lesson too.

Salvador Allende was an elected Marxist.  His policies sucked, and the nation of Chile rose up against him with the helping hand of the Christians In Action (CIA).  Above is the last photo of Allende before his death - reportedly a suicide, but in question.  Augusto Pinochet took over and reversed Allende's policies, thus ... waaaaait for it ... restoring prosperity.

From Salvador's Wiki page:

Salvador Guillermo Allende Gossens, 26 June 1908 – 11 September 1973, was a Chilean physician and politician, known as the first Marxist to become president of a Latin American country through open elections. 

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As president, Allende adopted a policy of nationalization of industries and collectivization; due to these and other factors, increasingly strained relations between him and the legislative and judicial branches of the Chilean government – who did not share his enthusiasm for socialization – culminated in a declaration of a "constitutional breakdown" by the congress. A centre-right majority including the Christian Democrats, whose support had enabled Allende's election, denounced his rule as unconstitutional and called for his overthrow by force. On 11 September 1973 the military moved to oust Allende in a CIA-sponsored coup d'état. As troops surrounded La Moneda Palace, Allende gave his last speech vowing not to resign. He died later that day in uncertain and controversial circumstances.

From Pinochet’s Wiki page:

In 1973, the Chilean economy was deeply hurt for several reasons, including the expropriation of 600 businesses by the Allende government, a tiered exchange rate that distorted markets, protectionism, and the economic sanctions imposed by the Nixon administration, inflation was 1000%, the country had no foreign reserves, and GDP was falling rapidly.  By mid-1975, the government set forth an economic policy of free-market reforms that attempted to stop inflation and collapse. Pinochet declared that he wanted "to make Chile not a nation of proletarians, but a nation of proprietors."

Dig deeper and you'll find the Chile story isn't a pure black & white, good vs. evil story.

But you'll be hard-pressed to find a single benefit to electing a Marxist.

And don't you just find these "last" photos fascinating?

December 25, 1989

March 1953

January 1924

September 1976

March 2013

2011

Why not end with a photo of a healthy person?  This is New York nightclub owner Jack L. Hickman on a leisurely walk through Times Square on April 26, 1965 (Source).