Next Stop: Venezuela.
Amid record gas prices, instability in Iraq, and Bush threatening Iran with the use of force, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is threatening to cut off oil exports to the United States.
In response to a US decision to revoke the visas of six Venezuelan officials based in Washington, Chavez withdrew the diplomatic immunity of US agents working in Venezuela for the Drug Enforcement Administration, claiming the agents were spying on his government.
At a youth festival in Caracas Chavez said that Venezuelan oil “instead of going to the United States, could go elsewhere.”
The US has threatened Chavez numerous times, including staging a failed coup, while Venezuela exports about 1.3 million barrels of oil a day to the United States. Venezuela is the 5th largest exporter of oil in the world, and one of the few oil exporters that have a democratic government.
In response to a US decision to revoke the visas of six Venezuelan officials based in Washington, Chavez withdrew the diplomatic immunity of US agents working in Venezuela for the Drug Enforcement Administration, claiming the agents were spying on his government.
At a youth festival in Caracas Chavez said that Venezuelan oil “instead of going to the United States, could go elsewhere.”
The US has threatened Chavez numerous times, including staging a failed coup, while Venezuela exports about 1.3 million barrels of oil a day to the United States. Venezuela is the 5th largest exporter of oil in the world, and one of the few oil exporters that have a democratic government.
posted by Alva Goldbook at 4:30 AM
10 Comments:
Boy, Alva, you seem to have attracted a lot of trolls.
Jb--why do you suppose the USA has not yet "taken out" Castro? There's no USSR to support him, no shadowy cabal of European or other foreign powers to protect him?
Say what you will against Castro, he has legitimacy in Cuba. We have tried assination, repeatedly. It doesn't work. We can't invade, because the Cubans will fight for their freedom from Yankee rule. And there is a real possibility that despite the poverty that American-demanded embargoes against the island imposes, American soldiers would be subverted by these people, so close to us in culture, into rethinking their own allegiances and political priorities. Cuba is "infected" with socialism and very possibly contagious. American soldiers would not identify with Vietnamese or Iraqis or Iranians (especially because the latter are not progressive, nation-building socialists) but Cubans generally know English, are fond of Americana (baseball, classic cars--all their automobiles are from before 1960 and lovingly maintained). They are cheerful, fun-loving people who have maintained a socialist regime in defiance of the greatest superpower in the world right over their shores, for two generations now, surviving the loss of the support of the other rival superpower when it collapsed, and this despite (or perhaps in part because of) a relentless, ruthless campaign of isolation and sabotage (including murderous terrorism) we conducted all that time. And as you indicate, still intend to.
If Cuba is so bad and we are so good, and there is nothing right about Cuba, why else do _you_ think the place is still run by Castro?
As for Chavez--funny thing, if he is like Castro, apparently maybe the Cubans _would_ vote Fidel in in a truly free and fair election, because Chavez has won in such contests many times, despite our attempts to rig it otherwise. Maybe you would like to rethink the comparison to Castro. Chavez's power is clearly popular in basis and freely supported by the people, perhaps _because_ he is defying the USA. So sending troops to remove him would again be costly and perhaps terribly counterproductive, as these troops might see and hear things that give them dangerous ideas about how to do things back home. Again we have assasination and terroristic sabotage, which we have tried and are not working. Chavez might well stay right where he is as long as Castro has been in Havana.
Perhaps you think we might nuke the places. There is no telling how low our rulers will go. But there would be terrible repercussions of such drastic measures and I hope we don't find them out in practice.
And in the long run, perhaps _because_ they are commies, they might lead to taking out you. Invading Venezuela now would be a particularly dumb move, with the war in the Middle East bleeding us and dissent rising in the ranks of the military. But it is GW Bush who will make the decision and you never know just how fast he will get even stupider than he has been up till now.
As the War Nerd says, if you want to predict W's actions, figure out what the very worst thing someone can do for the USA would be, and that's what he'll do. This theory seems to work very well.
i couldn't have said it better myself Mark. Chavez is the head of a democratic government, and he has been democratically elected dispite that the US attempted 4 seperate coups.
Apparently to conservatives being a south american "commie" is when a political leader addresses the needs of his people, instead of the needs of American industry.
I've always been amazed that any Cuban could stand the US government, after the terrible things they did to Cuba before and after 1898. Trying to sabotage their fight for independence from Spain. Then, just when Cuba was about to win that battle, the US goes in, destroys what's left of their economy, and essentially steals the land, and the natural resources.
This is the modus operandi of the US. Always has been, always will be. Now, they're doing it again to Iraq, and there's no telling where they will go next. They need to leave Venezuela, and the rest of Latin America, alone.
It's no wonder so many people, in so many countries, hate the US. Death and destruction is an evil foreign policy.
-charmaine-
fearful miamimiami says:
"so how long have you been a student of Che?"
So, fearful miamimiami, how long have you been a student of Bushco, and the dangerous imperialist intentions of the neocons, who tell him his every move, and give him his every talking point?
The US is the most murderous and destructive government in the history of this planet. Chavez, Castro and Che, all three put together, could never, and will never, match the evils. They never even wanted to.
Someone needs to study real, and untarnished, history.
-charmaine-
-charmaine-says:
I wonder why fearful miamimiami would add my name to the bottom of his comments.
Probably because he's so ashamed of the things he says, he is hoping others will think I wrote them.
fearful miamimiami said: "Most people do not live their lives based on what happened over 200 years ago."
When you enroll in that reading comprehension course, perhaps you should think about adding a basic math course to your curriculum. Again, I'm not criticizing, just trying to be helpful.
Don't forget that history course, as well. You remember the one, don't you? True history, that hasn't been tainted by propaganda.
Until you have successfully completed these courses, I will not get involved in discussions with you that involve your versions of fact. I'm sure anyone could see why.
-charmaine-
-charmaine-says:
miamimiami said: "...how Cubans were supposedly treated by the US 200 years ago."
How is "1898" 200 years ago?
And, there is no "supposedly" about what the US did to Cuba around that time. It's a matter you might want to do some research on. That way, you'll know something about what is being discussed. The study of history is a very enlightening experience. Try it sometime.
-charmaine-
-charmaine-says:
miamimiami said: "Ok you got me lib, it was only 107 years ago, as if makes a difference...."
Yes, it does make a difference. A difference of 93 years, to be exact.
See why enrolling in that basic math course might be a good idea?
-charmaine-
-charmaine-says:
My point should be fairly easy to understand. The situation for Cuba today is directly related to the covert acts of terror that the US government perpetrated on that country around the turn of the century, and continued after the Revolution.
The study of TRUE history is a tool, an aid in understanding what methods a person, or group of persons, might employ now, or in the future.
As George Santayana wrote:
"Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it."
Hugo Chavez, and his people, are quite aware of the atrocities the US has unleashed in the past (and the present) on Latin American nations, and in the Caribbean. They undoubtedly know the lesson of Santayana in that statement. As does Castro, and many, many Cubans.
By the way, when are you leaving for Iraq?
-charmaine-
-charmaine-says:
As far as "lines to escape" from the US goes, people leave the US every day to take up residence in other countries. Sometimes they keep duel citizenship, sometimes they give up their US citizenship.
That's something else you would know, if you would avert your eyes from Fox Snooze once in a while, and pick up a good book. Of course, you would also need to read that book.
Try looking for one without the colorful pictures on every page. That might help you to, in Alva's words, stop pulling facts out of your ass.
I'm sure you know that even if the military doesn't want you, you could always sign on with Haliburton. I've been reading lately that they are losing more and more people every day, and are getting desperate.
So, be sure to let us know when you will be going to Iraq.
Good luck.
-charmaine-
-charmaine-says:
gung ho miamimiami said: "Luck is for those who don't have skills."
If your reading comprehension, math, history, and Bible study skills are any indication, you are in need of luck.
Good luck with getting to Iraq, so you can do your part for the so-called extension of the so-called war on terror.
And, good luck when you get there. You are going to need it.
-charmaine-
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