Chavez condemns Libya airstrikes, warns Obama: ‘Don’t even think about it’ in Venezuela

[onehandle]

Source: Washington Post

CARACAS, Venezuela — Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez condemned what he called “indiscriminate bombing” by the U.S. and its allies in Libya, saying Sunday that the assault is unjustified and will only unleash more bloodshed.

Cuba’s government also criticized the attacks and called for the conflict to be resolved through negotiation.

Chavez said the U.S. is after Libya’s oil, and warned President Barack Obama not to try any similar intervention in the South American country. “With Venezuela, don’t even think about it, Mr. Obama,” he said.

Chavez, who has long-standing ties to Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, demanded the airstrikes be halted and echoed claims of civilian casualties by Libya’s government, which said 48 people were killed.

Read more: http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/chavez_condemns_libya_airstrikes_warns_obama_dont_even_think_about_it_in_venezuela/2011/03/20/ABjyju1_story.html?wprss=rss_world

---

Chavez makes everything about himself.

[jefferson_dem]

1. Chavez?

What a goofball. Who the fuck cares about what he thinks?

[No Elephants]

47. Venezuelans? Maybe even all folk in this part of the globe, south of the U.S.?

[Unvanguard]

2. What silly posturing. Chavez knows there's not a chance in hell Venezuela will be attacked. n/t

[Fool Count]

14. And how does he know that? Certainly not from the long

US history of military non-intervention in other countries' affairs. In fact, any curious student of recent history must conclude
that Venezuela is virtually destined to get bombed by the US at some point. It is an oil producing country whose leader is not
entirely friendly to the US. Those two factors alone seem to correlate with becoming a target for US bombing almost perfectly.
Come to think about it, now Russia and Iran are the only such countries to have avoided US bombings so far. We know that
Iran's is already in the works. And, of course, Russia has nuclear weapons, so let me restate - any oil producing country with
an unfriendly leader lacking nuclear weapons will be bombed by the US. Now it is just the law of nature with no known exceptions.
And I am not so sure about the nuclear weapons condition - Iran may get bombed after they acquire the atomic bomb and Russia
may still get her bombing too. So the simple lesson is - the only hope of avoiding a US bombing may (possibly) be a possession
of nuclear weapons. Naively getting rid of nuclear weapons program and becoming friendly with the US is obviously no guarantee,
as Gaddafi just found out. I am sure both Chavez and Ahmadinejad will take that lesson onboard.

[Unvanguard]

17. The US has not actually invaded a Latin American country since Panama in 1989.

My post did not refer to other, subtler forms of intervention, which the US has undoubtedly used in Venezuela and probably is still using right now. But it has not even resorted to milder expressions of hostility than war, like sanctions; the US simply is not as concerned about Chavez as Chavez suggests it is. There would be no political support for an invasion and there is no indication that any influential members of the US government are inclined towards one.

[pam4water]

24. GWB did give him an involuntary escort out of his own country, in a coup GWB

if not help than approved off. It was in response Chavez raise taxes on the oil corporations.

[EFerrari]

39. More recently, Obama's administration facilitate a coup in Honduras

and there was an abortive US funded coup attempt against Morales in 2008 iirc, as well as against Rafael Correa in Ecuador last year, led by a thoroughly infiltrated police force and military. And of course, Aristide just returned home after 7 years of exile courtesy of our government. Obama called South Africa himself in an effort to prevent that return.

The US spends millions on the media war against Chavez (with the sort of spin we see in this article) as well as on funding his opposition. Between that and the Pentagon re-militarizing Latin America with new bases in Honduras, Panama, Colombia, Chavez's assessment is likely spot on.

The responses to this thread really show how out of touch most people are with what their government is doing in this hemisphere.

[Bacchus39]

46. you're next Hugo, Obama is coming for you

lol

[Spider Jerusalem]

58. Where is the spin?

I just looked at an article from a Venezuelan news site, in Spanish; Chavez says everything the Washington Post article claims and more besides. Allowing for the vagaries of translation it's pretty much word for word.

[EFerrari]

77. The spin is in presenting Chavez's viewpoint as extraordinary

when it isn't.

And that's how he is usually presented in our media, completely out of context.

[bitchkitty]

105. What EFerrari said - the spin is in all over the media.

Including political message boards. Including this one. There's always a Chavez hit piece to be found here, a hatchet job around which the usual suspects gather for their I-hate-Hugo circle jerks.

It would be tedious and boring if it didn't bring out the most eloquent and reasoned posts from some of my favorite posters.

[Spider Jerusalem]

107. There's no spin. Chavez' remarks are presented as uttered.

I checked against a report from a Venezuelan news site. The translated comments agree with the original comments as quoted in the Venezuelan press.

[Judi Lynn]

110. And you appear to be unaware the Venezuelan media are intensely anti-Chavez. Sad. n/t

[Spider Jerusalem]

111. I doubt they're making up his comments.

Pro-Chavez or anti-Chavez they're not going to report he said something if he didn't actually say it.

[Judi Lynn]

112. That wouldn't happen, would it?

http://venezuelanalysis.com.nyud.net:8090/images/2003/sep/tal_cual_pistola_fotomontaje.jpg

Sep. 25 cover of Caracas newspaper Tal Cual
showing doctored photo of Chavez "at gunpoint".
The logo of the event was deleted from the picture.

http://venezuelanalysis.com.nyud.net:8090/images/2003/sep/tal_cual_pistola_original.jpg

Original photo taken by a presidential palace
photographer, showing Chavez holding a rose
given to him by the audience.

Caracas, Chavez at gunpoint
By Lucila Gallino and Ralph Niemeyer, September 29th 2003

An episode worthy a Venezuelan soap opera, like the one that happened last week in the Venezuelan media, can explain once again the passions and the hatred that President Hugo Chávez and his government generate not only in Venezuela but also in the rest of the world. Would it be why Chavez is -for many- the Latin American “black sheep”?

Many things happen in Caracas every day. In this city where the violence is tolerated, the media are the daily protagonists of a mediatic explosion that shakes the nation.

On Friday September 26, the newspaper “Tal Cual” ("As such"), opponent of the Government, was sent to the streets with an issue that became the scandal of the week. On the cover of the paper, President Chávez is shown holding a 9mm caliber gun on the left hand. The publication of this high impact photo is the full responsibility of the Editor of the paper, who will have to appear before the Law for falsification of information.

The "little retouch" that was done to the original photo is not as simple as changing an image for another one. In this case, a gun was digitally put in place of a red rose that had been given to the President during the First Women World Forum underway in Caracas. Chavez gave a speech at the Forum in which 190 women from 27 countries participated in support of Venezuela’s revolutionary process.

More:
http://venezuelanalysis.com/analysis/130

[Spider Jerusalem]

113. Considering that my source is the Venezuelan government's official news agency? No, it wouldn't.

http://www.avn.info.ve/node/49086

[No Elephants]

49. THAT long since the last overt US invasion of a a Latin American country, huh? Wowza!

Not to mention our somewhat more covert measures, which never cease.

How long since we invaded a nation for oil or other natural resources?

And just for giggles, how long since a South American nation--or any nation--invaded the U.S.?

[boppers]

101. 1814?

When someone invaded and burned Washington?

I assume you're not counting smaller scale efforts, or the Spanish-American war, or the war with Mexico.

[24601]

108. If Bush isn't going to pile on when Chavez faced a coup, then

Obama sure ain't gonna do anything. Might mess up his chance for another Nobel.

[Union Scribe]

74. A month ago who thought Libya would be attacked?

[JackRiddler]

109. Except for that pesky time Venezuela was attacked. (Probably not the only one.)

[aquart]

3. Ever see a movie called "Missing"?

It's not like we don't act on our insane fantasies.

[psychopomp]

59. I saw it only two days ago. It's based on a true story

I understand that they never did recover Charles Horman's body, contrary to the claims of the Chilean government under Pinochet.

It was a good movie, if the production values look a bit dated; I'm a big Jack Lemmon fan so I enjoyed it enough and learned a bit in the process.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0084335/trivia?tr=tr0638536

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

4. Sorry, Hugo. Nobody is thinking about invading Venezuela.

I know it would make you feel really important if Obama were thinking about invading Venezuela, but he's not. Maybe your self-esteem would benefit if you got yourself some really bling-infested military uniforms and weird hats like Khadafi?

[Vinee]

6. not until the oil in the middle east runs out at least. nt

[DeadEyeDyck]

19. been in my mind lately

[pam4water]

26. GWB kicked him out of his country once. After he raise the taxes on oil companies.

Nothing to say Obama wouldn't back another coup.

[cstanleytech]

32. Oh its possible obama might back a coup sure,

but then its also possible I could hit the powerball next week and discover a serum for immortality, not likely of course but its possible.

[Judi Lynn]

34. No reason in the world to assume it couldn't happen,now that we've seen how he's positioning himself

We heard the Latin America Presidents express dismay after they'd seen enough, that he wasn't moving an inch from _{George W. Bush.}

Here's useful information from an informed author:

Obama’s Continuance of Bush Policies in Latin America is a Serious Mistake
Mark Weisbrot
New York Times Online, August 11, 2009
International Herald Tribune, August 11, 2009

There were great hopes in Latin America when President Obama was elected. U.S. standing in the region had reached a low point under George W. Bush, and all of the hemisphere’s left-leaning governments expressed optimism that Obama would go in a different direction. These hopes have been dashed. President Obama has continued the Bush policies and in some cases has done worse.

The military overthrow of democratically elected President Mel Zelaya of Honduras on June 28 has become a clear example of Obama’s failure in the hemisphere. There were signs that something was amiss in Washington from the beginning, when the first statement from the White House failed to even criticize, much less condemn, the coup. It was the only such statement from a government to take a neutral position. The General Assembly of the United Nations and the Organization of American States voted unanimously for “the immediate and unconditional return” of President Zelaya.

Conflicting statements from the White House and State Department emerged over the ensuing days, but last Friday the State Department made clear its “neutrality” as between the dictatorship and the democratically elected president of Honduras. In a letter to Senator Richard Lugar, the State Department said that “our policy and strategy for engagement is not based on supporting any particular politician or individual,” and appeared to blame President Zelaya for the coup: “President Zelaya's insistence on undertaking provocative actions contributed to the polarization of Honduran society and led to a confrontation that unleashed the events that led to his removal.”

This letter was all over the Honduran media, which is controlled by the coup government and its supporters, and it once again strengthened them politically. Congressional Republicans who have supported the coup immediately claimed victory.

More:
http://www.cepr.net/index.php/op-eds-&-columns/op-eds-&-columns/obamas-continuance-of-bush-policies-in-latin-america-is-a-serious-mistake

[cstanleytech]

37. "Obama’s failure in the hemisphere"

Well Judi, you gotta grant the media does show some constituency atleast in claiming its failure on the part of the US president for what happens or doesnt happen in another hemisphere regardless of who is the current president in office.

:rofl:

[EFerrari]

38. Mark Weisbrot is one of the two or three top Latin America analysts in the US. n/t

[Bacchus39]

41. no he's not, he's a Chavista n/t

s

[EFerrari]

43. Your frame of reference is very limited. n/t

[Judi Lynn]

98. He's a very well-educated, accomplished "Chavista," then, isn't he? Tiny biography:

Mark Weisbrot is co-director of the Center for Economic and Policy Research, in Washington, D.C. He received his Ph.D. in economics from the University of Michigan. He has written numerous research papers on economic policy, especially on Latin America and international economic policy. He is also co-author, with Dean Baker, of Social Security: The Phony Crisis (University of Chicago Press, 2000).

He writes a weekly column for The Guardian Unlimited (U.K.), and a regular column on economic and policy issues that is distributed to over 550 newspapers by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. He also writes a column for Brazil’s largest newspaper, Folha de Sao Paulo. His opinion pieces have appeared in the New York Times, Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, and almost every major U.S. newspaper. He appears regularly on national and local television and radio programs. He is also president of Just Foreign Policy.

http://www.cepr.net/index.php/biographies/mark-weisbrot/

http://2.bp.blogspot.com.nyud.net:8090/_P86w3jiXpHU/TN4Xv2bDPQI/AAAAAAAAMqc/wLl96VxhZ1E/s1600/troll+2.jpg

Where DO they come from?

[bengalherder]

5. Dear Hugo,

As long as you do not fire anti-aircraft missles at peaceful protesters of your regime, you really got nothin to worry your pretty little head about.

However, if you were to do that thing, you'd deserve everything you got.

[Drale]

7. It always seems to me that Chavez is trying to get the US to attack him

I don't know why he would do that, but thats how his comments always come off to me.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

9. I think it makes him feel important.

[Duende azul]

29. Evidentially he is important. Or can you see a reason for the ongoing US media campaign against him?

[EFerrari]

15. That's on purpose. He's framed that way in the American media.

There's a clip in "South of the Border" where the progressive presidents have a chuckle over how bad they are made to look in our media. The president of Ecuador says, "Frankly, I'd worry if they said good things about me".

lol

[christx30]

30. Easiest way of

solidifying popular support. Get an outside enemy to attack. Or threaten to attack. Or you make up threats against your country. Like the annoying little yappy dog that barked at me last weekend while I was doing yard work in my back yard. I had no intention of going in the . I didn't care. But that didn't stop the little bastard from making himself hoarse in the 4 hours I was back there.
That dog is Chavez. Barking to make himself seem threatening and solidify popular support that might be flagging for other reasons. If I was Obama, it would be like "I'm sorry. Were you saying something? I wasn't paying attention. I was dealing with this stuff on other side of the planet."

[COLGATE4]

55. K&R X 1000. You have really hit the nail on the head. Chavez

cannot stand the thought that he is essentially irrelevant on today's political stage. His 'Bolivarian Revolution' has raised havoc with Venezuela's economy and his popularity is slipping. He has now lost one of his 'brothers in arms' Ghadaffi, so his universe is ever dwindling. He now can only count with Fidel (for how long?), Evo and Ortega. No wonder he struts and preens and shakes his fist at the Yanqui Imperialists - he's a one-trick pony and the trick is getting pretty long in the tooth.

[tcaudilllg]

35. Wait till elections next year.

If the opposition manages to start something, there'll be cruise missiles on the way.

Obama is apparently haunted by contact with these people. It's inflated his sense of responsibility.

[treestar]

8. Is he expecting his citizens to rise up in protest against him?

And when that happens, he plans to attack them?

[WatsonT]

10. I wonder, if there were a significant armed resistance to Chavez

how many would support US military intervention as they currently are supporting in Libya?

[roamer65]

13. I really like Hugo.

But if he goes the Qadhafi "route" and start slaughtering Venezuelans, I would support UN intervention in Venezuela.

[Duende azul]

28. And where was your support for the people of Honduras, when the coup happened?

Not to speak of the genocides in Guatemala.

Oh, how could I forget, they were US friends.

[Freddie Stubbs]

72. The Honduran military wasn't bombing anyone

[Duende azul]

87. They killed civilians. Peaceful civilians.

And they are not the legitimate government.

Had the Venezuelan Government killed that many people, you would cry for an embargo or bombs.

Disgusting.
Some of you seem never to get over that elected President Chavez compared your unelected President to the devil. And earned a lot of applause worldwide. To much to handle?

[Judi Lynn]

89. They've been murdering, torturing, suppressing the population constantly

since the first days of the coup, focusing on all the same kinds of people the old right-wing barbarians of the Reagan area slaughtered, and terrorized. They even brought back the head of Battalion 3-16, the infamous death squad, Billy Joya, to head their security.

Yet everything is A-OK concerning these cocky, racist monsters. Couldn't be better!

[Duende azul]

92. Important that you point out the racist background of these regimes.

And accordingly you find the same tone among their US cheerleaders, even on DU.
It isn't just coincidence, that the most vilified Latin American leaders are those with indigenous backgrounds.
To wit: this thread.
Ask anyone of these if they can come up with the first name of Uribe or Micheletti. Most of them will have to consult wikipedia.
But Chavez is treated on a first name basis.
What more does one need to know where these people come from?

[Judi Lynn]

97. They do assume great familiarity with him, don't they? Deeply pitiful. n/t

[Freddie Stubbs]

104. How would establishing a no-fly zone have helped? They weren't bombing civilians

[ronnie624]

63. Do you support intervention against the U.S.

When its government murders a million or so people in another country?

[Proletariatprincess]

23. I believe that any armed resistance to Hugo Chavez would be

the result of US covert operations and yes, the USA would glady use force to "liberate" the Venezuelan people..and their oil.
I don't believe the situation is the same in Libya, but anywhere there is oil the US and its allies will intervene at any opportunity.

[WatsonT]

60. There is oil in Libya

do you oppose the attacks?

[Proletariatprincess]

62. yes. I oppose the attacks in Libya.

I don't think we know the real story about the uprising in that counry. It could be a grass roots rebellion or it could be inspired by covert operations.
Either way, our military should have stayed out of it. Naive, I know, given that the USA has wanted Kadafi's head and to control that country's oil for years now.

[WatsonT]

66. I agree

we should have stayed out of it.

[pam4water]

27. He was elected in elections that are fair than the ones we have here. He has popular support

The US MSM just doesn't cover the pro Chavez rallies they way they don't cover the anti-war and the pro-labor rallies here. He is hated mostly by the top 1% earner in his country. He is going crazy bat shit from the South American versions of Rupert Murdoch and Koch brothers, but they went after him because he was effectually redistributing wealth, not because they gave a shit about democracy.

[No Elephants]

50. Not everyone supports US military intervention in Libya, as is evident from reading in LBN alone.

Even the "left of the left" is divided on that one. But why deal in messy reality?

[WatsonT]

61. I never said that everyone did support it

re-read.

[Corruption Winz]

11. Yeah, Chavez...

Because if we decided to do anything, this tough guy posturing on your part would set us straight.

Usually, presidents determine the nations they will or won't attack based on the warnings of said nations leader.

[WatsonT]

67. Maybe if he puffed up and looks big

that would scare away predators.

Although Qaddafi has been wearing bright colors and patterns that in the animal kingdom would serve as a clear warning: danger, do not touch, I am likely poisonous. But that didn't work.

[Corruption Winz]

68. Obviously Chavez needs to somehow store poisonous ink....

inside of himself so that when Obaam gets near, he can spray him before running off. Or perhaps, some porcupine-like needles attached to a tough guy leather jacket. This way, the leather makes him look cool and scary, and the needles can thwart any predators.

[Blandocyte]

78. In his case bright colors might signal estrus

Just saying.

:+

[WatsonT]

81. As in:

He's about to get screwed?

[roamer65]

12. You know, Hugo...I really like you...I actually really do.

Just don't hang around in the presidency for 40 years and start slaughtering Venezuelans and you will be just fine.

[ronnie624]

64. You really should acquaint yourself with the history of U.S. interventionism. n/t

[Proletariatprincess]

16. Chavez is right to raise this issue.

I'm clearly at odds with most posters here tonight, but the USA doesn't need a real reason to attack a small country...especially if there is oil.
It isn't lost on Chavez that the US Southern Fleet has amassed off the shore of South America and that US has covert operations trying to undermine his leadership in his own country. He isn't a fool. I think he may have taken this opportunity to remind Obama that the US has lost a lot of power and prestige in Latin America.
But then, this article is from the Washington Post which has always ranted against Chavez and has no credibility on anything South of the Border. The whole story could be made up entirely.
If I lived in a small Latin American country that had oil reserves, I would be afraid of the USA too...and for good reason.

[No Elephants]

54. Shh.. No one wants facts like "the US Southern Fleet has amassed off the shore of South America and

that US has covert operations trying to undermine his leadership in his own country."

Obama does not do anything like that. Now, please go away quietly.

[ronnie624]

65. And don't forget the Pentagon's stated desire for "full spectrum dominance" in South America. n/t

[FLPanhandle]

18. LOL

This way Chavez can claim that the US hasn't attacked Venezuela because he "warned Obama". :rofl:

Nice way to frame himself as "the protector" when he's just a piss ant little dictator.

[Proletariatprincess]

20. Chavez may be a lot of things....

but he is not a dictator. He has been elected by overwhelming numbers many times and his people....the working people, not the elite,...love him. He has done great things to raise the quality of life and health of that small country and he is an anti Imperialist. The USA hates that most about him. But, guess what, most americans are anti imperialists too, they just don't always recognize it. Just like you don't understand the term dictator in this instance.

[cliffordu]

22. Or, maybe, in this and most other instances, he is, wellllll

FUCKING IRRELEVANT.

:shrug:

[Travelman]

83. Yes, he's done great things to improve the quality of life there

Things like requiring the government's permission to leave the country. That's the taste of freedom, baby!

And yes, he has won elections by landslides. Just like Saddam Hussein won elections by landslides.



Sorry to burst your bubble, but Chavez is an iron-fisted, maniacal dictator who has show elections to convince people that he's somehow popularly elected.

[Judi Lynn]

86. Please share a link to Chavez' requirement for permission to leave Venezuela.

Show elections? The most heavily monitored elections in the hemisphere, overseen by monitors from everywhere, including Jimmy Carter, who has declared the elections absolutely clean?

What do you have against learning something about the subject FIRST before sharing your opinion? Most people feel obligated to have knowledge first about the subject they attempt to discuss.

[Travelman]

91. Well, I can't really link you to my personal conversation with my friend living in Valencia.

I can only tell you what he told me, which was that he had to get an exit visa in order to depart Venezuela to go visit his father in Florida. Perhaps he was not telling me the truth, but his father seemed to confirm this to me at the time, so I'm inclined to believe him.

As for the elections, it is my friend's personal belief that his mother has been intimidated into voting for Chavez, as well as many others. And frankly, the elections don't pass the smell test: free and fair democratic elections very seldom result in the kinds of lopsided results as the last several in Venezuela, and they certainly don't happen over and over. I don't care how many people you have "monitoring" the elections, when you have that kind of result every time, something is very, very wrong.

[Catherina]

94. Sounds like a foreigner with temporary residency status. That's the case in all Latin America n/t

[Judi Lynn]

99. Like the referendum in which Chavez's party lost by a hair? I see.

Why not take a moment and share a link or more to this information you have on "lopsided" elections?

We at D.U. are very familiar with the one election after the overturned coup, when the opposition opted to refuse to run candidates, or to vote. It's really not that hard to grasp why the OTHER side, then, won a great deal.

Then the clowns started bitching that Hugo Chavez had stolen the election. They must assume the rest of the world is as stupid as they are.

Please do us the honor of providing sources for your claims Hugo Chavez can manage to get around all the international election montiors, and steal elections.

You would be doing everyone a favor, "Travelman".

[ronnie624]

103. There were observers from the OAS, the EU and the Carter Center.

Hundreds of observers from all over the world were closely involved in the process from beginning to end. A Colombian delegate characterized the Venezuelan electoral process as a "pioneer in the world". A Greek legislator said the elections represent a "commitment to social and political inclusion". a Hungarian journalist said the government "went to great pains to educate the voting population about how to work the voting machines". A U.S. observer said, "by having election day on the weekend, Venezuela facilitated working class suffrage".

Can you understand how the words of a 'friend', related by an anonymous poster on the internet, carry little or no credibility?

[cliffordu]

21. Translation:

I'M CRAZY AS A SHITHOUSE RAT!!!!!!!!

:bounce:

[EFerrari]

40. He's not crazy at all and he's also not alone in his assessment.

Obama had to cancel an outdoor speech in Brazil this week because of the planned protests.

[Bacchus39]

42. there were nearly 400 people at the Rio protest, I hope Obama escaped unharmed n/t

s

[EFerrari]

44. The day before he landed, the police used tear gas and rubber bullets

to break up the crowd in Brasilia



http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1367871/Obamas-Brazil-visit-Violent-welcome-rubber-bullets-tear-gas-riots-US.html

[Bacchus39]

45. 300 demonstrators, thanks for corroborating

But the day before he landed Brazilian military police fired on 300 demonstrators who had gathered outside the U.S. Consulate in Rio.

[EFerrari]

48. Protests today in Chile.

(03-18) 13:36 PDT SANTIAGO, Chile (AP) --

Chile and the U.S. signed a nuclear energy accord Friday even as fears of radiation spread in Japan after a devastating earthquake and tsunami severely damaged some of its nuclear reactors.

A day earlier, White House officials wouldn't even confirm the long-awaited signing, which was supposed to be a high-profile moment in President Barack Obama's visit with Chilean President Sebastian Pinera on Monday.

snip


Many Chileans are against nuclear power, and environmental groups plan to protest Obama's visit. Acknowledging the debate during the signing ceremony, Golborne denied that the accord is an inevitable step toward building reactors, and said any decision would be made after Pinera leaves office in 2014.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2011/03/18/international/i092218D75.DTL

[Bacchus39]

51. your link says nothing about protests, it says "Chile, US diplomats sign nuclear energy accord"

on the other hand, the communist party led a protest of "several hundred":

Chile protests seek Obama apology for CIA meddling

SANTIAGO, Chile – Several hundred people have protested in the Chilean capital ahead of Monday's visit by President Barack Obama.

Communist Party leader Guillermo Teillier says political, cultural and social representatives have signed a letter to Obama. It asks him to apologize for U.S. intervention that destabilized Salvador Allende's socialist government in Chile before the 1973 coup that began Gen. Augusto Pinochet's dictatorship.

Protesters are also criticizing a new nuclear energy accord between the U.S. and Chile that focuses on U.S. training of Chilean nuclear engineers.

Senate opposition leader Carolina Toha said Sunday that the deal makes no sense in light of Japan's ongoing nuclear crisis.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110321/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/lt_chile_obama_protests

[EFerrari]

76. Yes it does, it's in the third paragraph I posted.n/t

[dipsydoodle]

93. Regardless of the number

they were sufficient to have his speech moved to another location.

But then you were already aware of that.

Obama cancels public speech in Rio square: embassy
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=405x49923

[rayofreason]

25. I think Chavez is genuinely concerned...

...about his dear friend Moammar Gadhafi.

Touching, isn't it?

[Vidar]

31. But, but, but Venezuela already belongs to us. Isn't that what that dad-burned Monroe Doctrine

says?

Obviously, that isn't what the Monroe Doctrine really says, but our leaders have been acting as if it were for the last two hundred years. South and Central America are not our private fiefdom granted to us by Manifest Destiny, part II.

[Judi Lynn]

33. The land and its resource belong to US corporations, you'd think, along with the cheap labor

from the desperately poor people living under feudal governments keeping their small oligarchies in control of the vast majorities century after century, with the friendly support of the U.S. military, CIA, and U.S. politicians.

Any Latin American leader attempting to alter this system is putting himself in line for destruction, as testified to by various former CIA agents, and people like John Perkins, Confessions of an Economic Hitman", etc.

[ronnie624]

69. The Roosevelt Corollary

The Roosevelt Corollary was supposed to be an addition to the Monroe Doctrine, however, it could be seen as a departure. While the Monroe Doctrine said European countries should stay out of Latin America, the Roosevelt Corollary took this further to say that the United States had the right to exercise military force in Latin American countries in order to keep European countries out. Historian Walter LaFeber wrote

(Roosevelt) essentially turns the Monroe Doctrine on its head and says the Europeans should stay out, but the United States has the right, under the doctrine, to go in, in order to exercise police power to keep the Europeans out.

It was a very neat twist on the Monroe Doctrine, and, of course, it became very, very important because over the next 15 to 20 years as during this time the United States moved into Latin America about a dozen times with military force. This occured so frequently that United States Marines become known in the area as "State Department troops" because they were always moving in to protect State Department interests and State Department policy in the Caribbean. So what Roosevelt did by redefining the Monroe Doctrine became very historic as it lead the United States into a period of confrontation with peoples in the Caribbean and Central America, which was a really important part of American imperialism.

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roosevelt_Corollary#Departure_from_Monroe_Doctrine>

[Vidar]

79. Thanks for the elaboration. I regard Teddy as one of our greatest

presidents, but he was clearly a man of his time--a Victorian era imperialist. They have their place, but presently those attitudes should be "consigned to the dustbin of history".

[Turbineguy]

36. Well, there's a note

President Obama can leave for the Palin Administration to ignore.

[Alamuti Lotus]

52. Chavez & Castro said US/NATO was going to attack Libya; they were called every bad name in the book

Not so "paranoid" (and whatever else they were called) now that the bombs and missiles are falling, eh? The naive and gullible may once again hurl invective, as they probably would anyway, but peek slightly behind the curtain and consider the reality of the powers being mentioned.

[Duende azul]

88. + 1

[Catherina]

95. Notice too how Chavez Peace Commission was shunted aside for the Tomahawk Commission

They know what they're dealing with. The entire world does.

The attack on Libya by the colonial powers who have done the MOST damage to the Middle East/North Africa is going to come back and bite us hard, a lot harder than just raised taxes to restock the Pentagon's missile stock.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

53. Is Chavez feeling ignored?

He's pretty good at playing that "victim card". Even when he's not being victimized.

[No Elephants]

56. Not that we admit to, anyway. And, if we do not spell it out, it's not happening.

Ergo, I'm 100% sure we're not doing anything to menace or undermine Chavez. What a relief.

[bitchkitty]

70. Nah. He's just jealous 'cause we're so good lookin'.

USA! USA! USA! USA!

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

73. In that area, he can feel secure

This bozo maybe looks a little like Chavez, but with wrinkles and gray hair. Que lastima.

:hi:

[No Elephants]

57. "the U.S. is after Libya’s oil..." Pshaw. We'd never admit to doing anything remotely like that

[Arkana]

71. What the hell is with Chavez and propping up dictators?

Oh, right...I forgot.

[UTUSN]

75. His attention whoredom: Was he a beauty contestant like Quitter & BACHMANN?!1 n/t

[Ter]

80. I can't wait for the anti-government protests to start in Venezuela

n/t

[RedCloud]

82. Chávez IS the anti government protest.

[ChangoLoa]

84. He IS the people

He's the government AND the anti-government protest.

He's the dual nature incarnated, descending from the alpha to the omega.

He's the crown and the kingdom, see his halo, it's made of stars.

Chávez IS the people.

[Bacchus39]

85. has Chavez condemned his buddy Gaddaffi butchering his own people?

I haven't seen that.

[Duende azul]

90. Has Obama condemned his buddies ( more so Bush`s buddies), the house of Saud? Or Maliki? Or Salih?

I haven't seen that.

That doesn't even take in account that for all practical matters with good reason you only can call those defending the US/international corporate empire buddies.

[Catherina]

96. Nope. We armed the Saudi Arabian and Pakistani mercenaries killing the Bahrainis and Yemenis. n/t

[joshcryer]

114. They haven't massacred as many as Gaddafi has, yet. We'll see what happens.

[Xenotime]

100. I remember when they were friends.

[killbotfactory]

102. If he doesn't create a humanitarian crisis AND disrupt the oil markets

Then Venezuela will probably be left alone by the UN.

[Uncle Joe]

106. I don't believe that Obama would attack Venezuela, but

if you don't want somebody to think about something don't mention it, "Don't think about the color blue."

Thanks for the thread, onehandle.

[treestar]

115. I thought the people in Venezuela supported him?

so why would the same thing happen?

[joshcryer]

116. Plan Avalia 2.0.

[Lars77]

117. Chavez is a disgrace to the world left

A cartoon caracter of a politician so populist he makes Berlusconi look like a serious statesman.

Sorry, im just so dissapointed in what he has become. I actually believed he showed promise in the beginning.