Chavez to rule Venezuela by decree?

This is precisely what happened in Germany when the Weimar Republic began to unravel. Read The Burden of Guilt: A Short History of Germany, 1914-1945 by Hannah Vogt to learn about what happens when a president (or chancellor) becomes a dictator.

From The Houston Chronicle:

CARACAS, Venezuela — Venezuela's National Assembly gave initial approval Thursday to a measure that would let President Hugo Chavez enact laws by decree for 1 1/2 years, a key step in what the leftist calls an accelerating march toward socialism.

The law is expected to easily win final approval next week by a legislature filled with Chavez allies. Among the laws planned by Chavez are moves to nationalize Venezuela's main telecommunications company and the electricity and natural gas sectors.

"This process is unstoppable," lawmaker Juan Montenegro Nunez told the National Assembly. "This process is a historic necessity."