Anti-Chavistas respond:
Mood:  d'oh
Now Playing: Ding Dong, the Caudillo's Dead?
Topic: Opposition Opinions
The title is paraphrasing the line in the great fantasy film, "The Wizard of Oz." But fantasy and reality are evidently hard to differentiate for opponents of Hugo Chavez. Like a group of Munchkins, characters in the film, they seemed to take an attitude akin to the Munchkins, who happily sang “Ding dong the wicked witch is dead!” Chavez wasn't the "Wicked Witch,” in this case, of Venezuela, despite being vilified by his reactionary opposition. But rather than protecting freedom and democracy, elitist anti-Chavistas are willing to continue to maintain Venezuela as a market satellite under the current U.S.-dominated world order of unequal relationships among nations, especially regarding the "Third World."

And Hugo Chavez came to realize that "Third World" conditions in Venezuela must stop, thus his government's social reforms to prioritize the interests/rights of the working class and poor, deservedly so since it is their labor that creates the capital elites/imperial interests, local, and foreign, profit heavily from in the relationship of capital over labor. (Without the latter, the former would never exist.)

It is also Chavez' support for Bolivarian independence, not just for Venezuela but for other Latin American/Caribbean nations, that can contribute to changing the balance of power in the region in a more indigenous-like manner that threatens profiteering. Anti-Chavistas also hate him for this.

But like it or not, Hugo Chavez will be an important and permanent symbol for protecting sovereignty and prioritizing a sustainable equality, not a bourgeois one.

Anti-Chavistas have celebrated the death of their working class enemy, belching out (without saying "excuse me") the usual freedom-loving facade covering imperial relations. Examples within the U.S. were par for the course, whether being patronizing, relieved or joyful. John Grant's piece published in CounterPunch (03/13/2013) called "Hugo Chavez and the Knuckleheads," revealed the enthusiasm of Sean Hannity and Michelle Malkin, both virtually getting off on Chavez' death using their "trademark" cheapshots. Grant also revealed more predictable anti-Chavism within the "mainstream U.S. media."

But it's the usual tiring theme: Chavez the "Tyrant, dictator, authoritarian, Commie," etc., Have they used the “Hitler” label yet?

Meanwhile there's a "fresh face" within the opposition posing as candidate for the Venezuelan presidency: Henrique Capriles. In an interview with Robert Giusti for El Universal (03/23/2013), Capriles echoed the holier-than-thou morality Chavez-haters are fond of, in this case calling his opponent, Chavez-picked Nicholas Maduro, a "fascist in his own right." This basically characterized his responses, which had a rather pretentious tone.

In Elizabeth Malimopoulos' article for Al Jazeera (03/11/2013) about Capriles, the latter portrays himself as a virtual champion of the working class and poor, citing his working class family background. But supporting neoliberal policies will threaten the working class and poor Venezuelans he claims to support. Chavez was and Maduro is working class also, only they tried to actually practice what they preach.

Capriles was, and probably still is, a candidate for the Roundtable of Democratic Unity (MUD, an appropriate acronym?), as reported by Rachel Booth in www.venazuelananylisis.com (08/23/2012). Booth revealed the creating of an economic plan by MUD before Venezuela's 2012 presidential election, of which Capriles ran in, and lost. "The plan includes the deregulation of the banks, opening up the economy to private investment and reduction of state funding for public services and communal projects. There also would be "cutbacks [in] food, housing and transport." This has already proven to be the slippery slope which is austerity, a 19th century-like economic policy. U.S. citizens themselves have experienced it, with the deregulation policies contributing to the 2008 Great Recession.

Booth quoted former governor of Anzoategui David de Lima about MUD's/Capriles' plan: "...there are two discourses, there's the economic discourse used to get votes, and the real one, that aims to place the economic policy of the country back in the hands of two or three sectors that always controlled it." The plan is compatible with Capriles' "upper-class family" owning "major stakes in newspapers, movie theaters and other businesses."

Another characteristic among Chavez-haters is colonial-style racism. Tariq Ali, in his piece, "Hugo Chavez and Me," published in CounterPunch (03/07/2013), asserts:

"Politicians like [Chavez] had become unacceptable. What [Chavez] loathed most was the contemptuous indifference of mainstream politicians in South America towards their own people. The Venezuelan elite is notoriously racist. They regarded the elected president as uncouth and uncivilized, a zambo of mixed African and indigenous blood who could not be trusted. His supporters were portrayed on private TV networks as monkeys. Colin Powell [probably still not learning his lesson about the U.S. GOP and its political nature] had to reprimand the U.S. embassy in Caracas for hosting a party where Chavez was portrayed as a “gorilla."

Chavez is obviously familiar with the racism: "I live here. I know them well."

A Capriles presidency could very well resemble that of Carlos Andres Perez, former president during the 1980s period of boom and bust economics. According to "Health and Liberalism: Venezuela and Cuba" by George Schulyer for the Policies Studies Organization, a government decision in 1983 to devalue Venezuela's currency-to focus on keeping up with the country's debt- fueled an already mismanaged, corrupt and failing economy. Poverty, crime and political instability erupted, inevitably leading to the 1989 food riots. Perez was later impeached.

Despite Capriles' blanket guarantees to reduce poverty, and emphasize education, employment and public assistance for the poor, the chance for neoliberal economics to return would show that his actions speak more truthfully than his words. Capriles is not a friend of the powerless. Perez condemned foreign debt as being responsible for the 1980s turmoil. Yet, he still allowed neoliberal economics to stay in place, which has fueled the debt along with further borrowing just to pay for debt, i.e., more debt paying off debt. Is Capriles like Perez in that regard?

Interim president Nicholas Maduro accused the U.S. of plotting to assassinate Capriles and shift blame on the government. He also accused plotters of contributing to Chavez' death. While this sounds like tabloid gossip, past U.S. actions in other countries have produced similar results.

The United States denied the accusations as “absurd.” But that's been the same line for years, regardless. And the denials have usually been false.

If elected, expect Capriles to follow the old script of imperial and economic subjugation. With Maduro, as with Chavez, in implementing compatible policies, expect a further chance for common Venezuelans to benefit and continuing the Bolivarian objective of sovereignty.

Anti-Chavistas, foreign and domestic, will continue to be haters; but for the sake of their own private interests/monopolies.

Ace goes to Venezuela for the 2012 Election
Mood:  loud
Now Playing: An updated from US activist in Venezuela
Topic: CHAVEZ

REPORT BACK 2012

Hola Joe, I returned from an invigorating trip to Venezuela almost two weeks ago, and it's been a whirlwind of activity since then (most notably moving into a new apartment and working on B Media's 6th Variety Show, Electile Dysfunction)  As many of you know, I was able to raise all of the funds I needed, and wanted to give you a quick debrief. I was in Venezuela for 14 days, where I was able to reconnect with friends and work with journalists from popular movement fronts in Argentina and Spain providing independent coverage of the elections.  I was the only English translator in our group: in addition to the three articles I wrote previous to election day, I translated three updates throughout the day, added subtitles to videos, and maintained a live blog on In These Times, which included post-election analysis.  I feel so proud to have been able to be part of this process, and so incredibly indebted to all of you for empowering me to be there. Thank you, thank you, thank you. For those of you who were able to donate, I am just about ready to sit down with some tea in my new home and wrap up your perks. Here's a recap of everything I worked on for those who are interested: Real Time Updates from the Venezuelan Elections, (In These Times) Includes post-election analysis, some crazy videos, and a debunking of op-eds around the elections Link: http://www.inthesetimes.com/uprising/Real-Time_Updates_from_the_Venezuelan_Election Independent and Community Media Collectives Prepare for Venezuelan Elections (CommonDreams.org) Link: http://www.commondreams.org/view/2012/10/06-6 Ahead of Venezuela Election, Social Movements Affirm Bolivarian Revolution (CommonDreams.org) Link: http://www.commondreams.org/view/2012/10/05-3 The Party in Venezuelan Politics: Understanding the Context of the Upcoming Elections (TruthOut.org) Link: http://truth-out.org/speakout/item/11946-the-party-in-venezuelan-politics-understanding-the-context-of-the-upcoming-elections?tmpl=component&print=1 Love to each and every one of you always, x ace.

Out Of Touch - USA agenda is dis-concerning
Mood:  incredulous
Now Playing: US Policy Out of Touch with Latin America’s in 2012
Topic: USA IMPERIALISM

After Iran, will Venezuela be next for USA Impearlism?
Now Playing: 12 years of Chavez - envey and animosity from the USA

After Iran, Venezuela?

---

 

The War on Drugs and LAtin America
Mood:  not sure
Now Playing: The War on Drugs - Books - Links - Articles to share
Topic: Latin America Solidarity

Washington Office on Latin America

From the "Just the Facts" blog

Monday, January 2, 2012

Long-form readings about Latin America in 2011: a list from Adam

Over the course of 2011, I read or saved a large pile of articles that were:

Somehow related to security in Latin America and the Caribbean;
Available at no cost on the Internet;
At least 2,500 words in length; and
Not written by the three organizations participating in the “Just the
Facts” project. See the end of this post for a list of our own 2011
long-form writings about security in Latin America and the Caribbean.

After a lot of reading over the holiday break, here are links to my
favorite 2011 long-form articles about security in the Americas.

Congratulations and thanks to the authors of all of these very
informative pieces. Comments are open on this post, so feel free to
add anything that I may have missed — I was on the road a lot last
year.

---

Bruce Bagley, “El ‘efecto globo’ o por qué se está perdiendo la
‘Guerra contra las Drogas,’” Razón Pública (Colombia), January 31,
2011. A veteran scholar of the “war on drugs” gives a thorough
overview of this endeavor’s current state, its shortcomings and its
unintended consequences. (Part 1) (Part 2)

Rory Carroll, “Drugs, murder and redemption: the gangs of Caracas,”
The Guardian(UK), March 10, 2011. Carroll tells the stories of gang
members in El Cementerio, a neighborhood in El Consejo, a city west of
Caracas.

Jim Popkin, “Authorities in Awe of Drug Runners’ Jungle-Built,
Kevlar-Coated Supersubs,” Wired, March 29, 2011. Worth a read, if only
for the photos.

Perry Anderson, “Lula’s Brazil,” London Review of Books (UK), March
31, 2011. A fair and engrossing overview, from a political economy
perspective, of Luis Inacio Lula da Silva’s eight years in office.

David Grann, “A Murder Foretold,” The New Yorker, April 4, 2011. An
account of the bizarre conspiracy around the death of Guatemalan
Rodrigo Rosenberg, which threatened the presidency of Álvaro Colom
until investigators, especially the UN anti-impunity commission
(CICIG), solved the case.

Patricio Zamorano, “Honduras: an urgent need for a new social pact,”
Center for Democracy in the Americas, May 2011. The author observes
the country’s peaceful “resistance” movement and determines that, in
an atmosphere of extreme polarization, achieving reconciliation in
post-coup Honduras will be a very complex task.

Sergio Arauz, Óscar Martínez, and Efren Lemus, “El Cártel de Texis,”
El Faro (El Salvador), May 16, 2011. A remarkable investigative piece
reveals a macabre alliance between narcotraffickers, gangs, police and
politicians in northwestern El Salvador.

Karl Penhaul, “Inside the FARC: Colombia’s guerilla fighters,” Al
Jazeera, May 30, 2011. The veteran war reporter, the first in several
years to find a way to embed with Colombia’s FARC, finds a guerrilla
group that remains deadly, but on the run and badly hurt by the
Colombian military’s air superiority.

Kevin Casas-Zamora, “The Travails of Development and Democratic
Governance in Central America,” The Brookings Institution, June 2011.
While exploring Central America’s grave institutional, political and
security shortcomings, Casas determines that Central America has still
made important progress since the 1980s.

Max Chafkin, “A Constant Feeling of Crisis,” Inc., June 2011. Based on
interviews with some of the country’s wealthy entrepreneurs, the
author finds that despite its booming economy, Argentina is a
difficult place to do business.

Eduardo Guerrero Gutiérrez, “La raíz de la violencia,” Nexos (Mexico),
June 1, 2011. An exhaustive but clear look at violence trends in
Mexico. The author concludes that “Mexico now needs to focus its
efforts on reducing violence, even if this means directing less
resources to fighting international drug trafficking.”

Nik Steinberg, “The Monster and Monterrey: The Politics and Cartels of
Mexico’s Drug War,” The Nation, June 13, 2011. A Human Rights Watch
researcher looks at the rapidly deteriorating security situation in
Mexico’s principal industrial city.

“La telaraña de los ‘paras’ en Urabá,” Verdad Abierta (Colombia), June
14, 2011. The results of an investigation of how paramilitary groups
in northwestern Colombia became big landholders, allied themselves
with politicians, and even set up foundations that received
international aid — while simultaneously massacring and displacing
populations and trafficking drugs.

Daniel Wilkinson, “Death and Drugs in Colombia,” The New York Review
of Books, June 23, 2011. A Human Rights Watch researcher’s review of a
book by Claudia López offers one of the best overviews in English of
paramilitary power and Álvaro Uribe’s presidency in Colombia.

Damien Cave, “Better Lives for Mexicans Cut Allure of Going North,”
The New York Times, July 6, 2011. A look at demographic, economic and
security reasons why Mexican migration to the United States has
dropped sharply. I like the scrolling interactive feature in the left
column.

“Para que los hechos no se repitan,” Truth and Reconciliation
Commission of Honduras, July 8, 2011. While finding fault on all
sides, the commission’s worthwhile report finds that an illegal
military coup did take place on June 28, 2009, and that an alarming
number of human rights abuses have followed.

Richard Marosi, “Inside the Cartel,” The Los Angeles Times, July
24-28, 2011. A four-part look, based on DEA investigations, of how
Mexico’s Sinaloa Cartel “moves drugs into Southern California and
across the United States.” (Part 1) (Part 2) (Part 3) (Part 4)

“Violence and Politics in Venezuela,” International Crisis Group,
August 17, 2011. The report raises concerns about what worsening
organized crime, proliferating small arms, deteriorating justice
institutions and a polarizing political climate bode for Venezuela’s
future.

Vanda Felbab-Brown, “Calderón’s Caldron,” The Brookings Institution,
September 2011. Focusing on three zones, the author evaluates the
Mexican government’s frustrated attempts to deal with organized crime,
and suggests some strategic shifts.

María Teresa Ronderos, “La fiebre minera se apoderó de Colombia,”
Semana(Colombia), September 6, 2011. Mining companies have requested
22,000 exploration and exploitation titles, covering one-fifth of
Colombia’s territory. In eight years, the Álvaro Uribe government
granted 9,000 of them. (Though it’s not 2,500 words, see also this
June report on illegal mining in Madre de Dios, Peru, by Frank Bajak
of the Associated Press.)

“Keeping Haiti Safe: Police Reform,” International Crisis Group,
September 8, 2011. A diagnosis of Haiti’s National Police, which is
undergoing a slow, halting reform amid official calls to restore the
army that was abolished in the mid-1990s.

Xavier Albó, “El Alto in Flux,” Revista: Harvard Review of Latin
America, Fall 2011. A look at life and politics in the sprawling
majority-Aymara city that overlooks — and is now larger than — La Paz,
Bolivia.

“A Culture of Cruelty: Abuse and Impunity in Short-Term U.S. Border
Patrol Custody,” No More Deaths, September 21, 2011. A disturbing
report based on interviews of thousands of migrants deported from the
Border Patrol’s Arizona sector (PDF).

“Neither Rights Nor Security,” Human Rights Watch, November 9, 2011.
An indictment of the Mexican government’s security policies, which
have so far brought few improvements in security or the rule of law. A
useful guide to Mexico’s security and justice institutions, which in
HRW’s view are not reforming quickly enough.

Alma Guillermoprieto, “In the New Gangland of El Salvador,” The New
York Review of Books, November 10, 2011. The veteran reporter tries to
explain the country’s vexing maras phenomenon.

Juanita León, “Santos les está dando a los militares lo que Uribe
nunca se atrevió a concederles,” La Silla Vacía (Colombia), November
16, 2011. Discussing several legislative initiatives that would make
it harder to hold the military accountable for human rights abuses,
León paints a portrait of troubled civil-military relations in
Colombia under President Juan Manuel Santos.

Gustavo Gorriti and Romina Mella, “Entrevista a ‘Artemio’ en el
Huallaga,” IDL Reporteros (Peru), December 6, 2011. Reporters
interview a founding member of Peru’s Shining Path insurgency, who
still leads a small guerrilla column deep in the jungle. “Artemio”
admits his faction’s defeat and says he is willing to negotiate a
truce.

Mattathias Schwartz, “A Massacre in Jamaica,” The New Yorker, December
12, 2011. A narrative of the U.S.-supported May 2010 offensive against
Kingston drug trafficker Christopher “Dudus” Coke, in which Jamaican
security forces killed and abused civilians.

Here are some 2011 long-form articles by organizations participating
in the Just the Facts project.

Adam Isacson,”Rio de Janeiro’s Pacification Program,” WOLA, Just the
Facts blog, January 5, 2011.
Adam Isacson, “Six months in, Colombia’s Santos faces a murky security
situation,” WOLA, Just the Facts blog, February 8, 2011.
Elizabeth Newhouse, “The United States Should Take Immediate Steps to
Improve Relations with Cuba,” CIP, February 14, 2011.
Tom Barry, “Securing Arizona: What Americans Can Learn From Their
Rogue State,” CIP, Boston Review, March-April 2011.
Abigail Poe and Adam Isacson, “Stabilization and Development: Lessons
of Colombia’s “Consolidation” Model,” CIP, April 2011.
“No Relief in Sight: Report from Caribbean Coast of Colombia,”
LAWGEF-Lutheran World Relief, May 2011 (PDF).
Coletta Youngers, “The Obama Administration’s drug control policy on
auto-pilot,” WOLA-International Drug Policy Consortium, May 6, 2011
(PDF).
Adam Isacson, “In troubled Tumaco, little progress,”
CIP-WOLA-MINGA-INDEPAZ, Just the Facts blog, May 24, 2011.
Karelia Villa Mar, Adriana Beltrán, and Pablo González, “Mapeo de las
intervenciones de Seguridad Ciudadana en Centroamérica financiadas por
la cooperación internacional,” WOLA-IDB, June 2011 (PDF).
“Tackling Urban Violence in Latin America: Reversing Exclusion through
Smart Policing and Social Investment,” WOLA, June 2011 (PDF).
Tom Barry, “Policy on the Edge: Failures of Border Security and New
Directions for Border Control,” CIP, June 1, 2011.
Elizabeth Newhouse, “Contending with Natural Disasters: Cubans and US
Gulf Coast Emergency Managers Continue Conversation,” CIP, June 1,
2011.
Merecedes B. Arce Rodríguez, “The Human Cost: Cubans and Cuban
Americans Talk about Their Lives and the Embargo,” LAWGEF-WOLA, June
7, 2011 (PDF).
Adam Isacson, “In La Macarena, a program on ‘autopilot’,”
CIP-WOLA-MINGA-INDEPAZ, Just the Facts blog, June 9, 2011.
Laura Carlsen, “Development and Migration,” CIP, CounterPunch, June 27, 2011.
Tom Barry, “Aiding Insecurity: Four Years of Mexico’s Drug War,” CIP,
TruthOut.org, July 16, 2011.
Gimena Sanchez, “Against All Odds: Experiences of IDP Self-Protection
Measures in Colombia,” WOLA, August 16, 2011 (PDF).
Tom Barry, “U.S. Drug War Turns to Transnational Combat,” CIP,
September 1, 2011.
Gimena Sanchez and Kelly Nicholls, “Buenaventura, Colombia: Where Free
Trade Meets Mass Graves,” WOLA-U.S. Office on Colombia, NACLA Report
on the Americas, September 7, 2011.
Tom Barry, “Border Security After 9/11: Ten Years of Waste, Immigrant
Crackdowns and New Drug Wars,” CIP, Truthout.org, September 11, 2011.
Adam Isacson, “Human Rights During the Juan Manuel Santos
Administration’s First Year in Office,” WOLA-U.S. Office on Colombia,
September 29, 2011 (PDF).
Adam Isacson, “Land restitution and the “Black Hand”: Sunday’s local
elections in Colombia,” Just the Facts blog, October 27, 2011.
“A Cautionary Tale: Plan Colombia’s Lessons for U.S. Policy Toward
Mexico and Beyond”, CIP-LAWGEF-WOLA, November 2011 (PDF) (PDF en
español)
Maureen Meyer, “Elections in Nicaragua,” WOLA, November 1, 2011.
Adam Isacson, “A human rights counteroffensive in Colombia,” Just the
Facts blog, December 1, 2011.
Adam Isacson, “An Uneasy Coexistence: Security and Migration Along the
El Paso-Ciudad Juárez Border,” WOLA, December 20, 2011.

Posted on 03 January 2012 by Zari Sundiata "Afro- Venezuela" film strating -up
Mood:  chatty
Now Playing: Support POCO’s Afro-Venezuelan Film Project!
Topic: Venezuela Solidarity

^{_{http://www.peopleofcolororganize.com/featured/afro-venezuelan-film-project/}}

 ^{Posted on 03 January 2012 by Zari Sundiata}

 

Support POCO’s Afro-Venezuelan Film Project!

 

People of Color Organize! is sending a contingent of our editors to Venezuela to produce a film highlighting the history of Africans in Venezuela.

Click here to donate in support of this project.

At a time when the North Atlantic empires are on the decline, it is an exciting and hopeful time in Latin America!  Now, for the first time, millions of Venezuelans have access to education, job training, housing, land, clean water, and health care.

Africans in Venezuela, Indigenous peoples, and women are gaining power and rights, while a high-profile land reform campaign is sweeping the nation, giving poor farmers access to land and opportunities. However, despite their overwhelming contribution to the everyday life and culture of Venezuela, African communities in Venezuela continue to face racial and economic divisions that prevail from the days of colonization.

Racism against Africans in Venezuela continues to perpetuate historically rooted class divisions and contributes to a lack of political participation in decisions that mostly affect them. Despite a legacy of centuries of colonialism, Africans in Venezuela are conquering new political spaces in government institutions while communities organize themselves from the bottom up to make sure guarantees are met.

The film will highlight:

• The history of slavery, racism, and economic inequality in Venezuela.
• The 3-day San Juan Festival to celebrate African heritage in the coastal area of Curiepe, Barlovento.
• Insiders view of government-sponsored health, education, and literacy programs aimed towards eradicating poverty in coastal communities.
• Venezuelan hip-hop groups which are intersecting with social justice to create new voices of youth leadership in barrios in Caracas and elsewhere.
• A comparison of conventional cacao plantations with organic agricultural cooperatives that are creating endogenous (“from within and below”) development in African communities in Venezuela.
• Talks with government representatives about the economic, social, and political integration of Venezuela, the rest of Latin America, and countries of the African continent.

Click here to contribute to this project.

Your contributions to this endeavor will provide the necessary equipment to produce a high quality, grass-roots documentary that will be available to the people for free.  These items include:

• Camera and equipment
• Video editing software
• Travel and lodging expenses
• Donor premiums

The following is a list of reward levels for our contributors:

• $10:  ex-producer credit and DVD copy with bonus features
• $25:  ex-producer credit, access to daily journal (blog), autographed script (from all of us of course), and DVD copy with bonus features
• $50:  ex-producer credit, access to daily journal (blog), autographed script (from all of us course), DVD copy with bonus features, and Special Gift from Venezuela.

Contributions will be accepted through May 31, 2012.

This documentary will destroy the popular myths that revolution is not possible.  It will proffer real self-determination and democracy aided by the government, not dominated by the government. The struggles of Africans in Venezuela and their resistance links African and oppressed people all over the world.  It provides a clear example of how elevating all segments of society can be the harbinger of a more just world.

This is YOUR movie and YOUR project, so let’s make it happen.

Donate now.

Similar Posts:

• The Latin American Revolution!
• Friends of Venezuela: Reject U.S. Sanctions Against Venezuela
• For U.S. Officials in Venezuela, Ideology Trumps Competent Analysis
• What The World Needs To Know About Haiti!
• DON’T FORGET: Black Political Imprisonment Symposium

Videos I have relating to South America
Mood:  chatty
Now Playing: Joe Anybodyy - Videos - Caracas Venezuela - Solidarity -PCASC
Topic: Venezuela Solidarity

I have a PCASC - Latin America Solidarity VIDEO PAGE

http://zebra3report.tripod.com/id25.html

"All these videos I have filmed, and all these videos relate to Venezuela or South America."

 In Soidarity with peace & media efforts for social justice.

There are hundreds of video if you look through all the links I have posted (Over 5o are from my trip to Caracas in 2009) _~joe

 

2 PCASC Activists head to Caracas Venezuela May 29 2011
Mood:  bright
Now Playing: USA activist head to Caracas - speaking against the US sanctions
Topic: Venezuela Solidarity

Two of my fellow Central America Solidarity co-activists from Portland [PCASC] are flying to Caracas as I write this on Sunday.

They are to be on the stage in Caracas by the palace, for a big demonstration against the US sanctions being imposed, due to Venezuela providing oil to Iran against the US telling them not to.

 

(Question: Ha?! were do we get off telling other countries what to do?) (Answerer: - "we don't and in this case Hugo laughs in our face")

 

They flew out w/ a days notice w/ an interpreter, as US delegates, to speak about this serious ugly stuff, they will be back in a few days.

 

Chavez uses the countries oil and the money to help social causes and the imperialist / capitalist cant stand it.

 

More than 250,000 US citizens in 25 states have benefited to date from the Venezuelan government’s subsidized heating oil program.
That not only means free heating oil to poor US families, but he taxes and then directs oil profits to his own country and the peoples programs.

Hugo Chavez has used Venezuela's oil wealth to invest heavily in improving the wellbeing of its people.

Currently, more than 60% of oil industry profits are directed toward social programs in Venezuela, including free healthcare, education, job training, community media, grassroots organizations and subsidized food and housing.

 

None of this will be mentioned in US mainstream press. Not on CNN, ABC, KGW, FOUX, or any of the corporate stations that are parroting for the US war machine.

 

Just for the heck of it here is the link to Eva Golinger who spoke in Portland a few weeks a go, our PCASC group brought her to the US to share her wealth of information.

I find her information regarding US intervention to be really fascinating to listen to.

http://www.archive.org/details/EvaGolinger-May62011-InPortlandOregon (114 min video)

 

 

A few years ago our PCASC group sponsored the ambassador to Venezuela from the consulate in SF to speak in Portland.

I recorded that talk and have it here for extra information on Venezuela if anyone is curious.

http://www.archive.org/details/VenezuelaConsulateMartinSanchez5.31.09Pdx (119 min video)

 

If anyone gets a chance to see "South of the Border" by Oliver Stone, its a pretty good new "hollywood" movie recently released on Hugo and the USA, exposing that whole "Chavez is a dictator thing" http://youtu.be/KHQrqDcecXw (3 min video I made in Caracas)

Eva Golinger, reports on US santions regarding oil to Iran from Venezuela
Mood:  energetic
Now Playing: Venezuela rejects US sanctions, evaluates oil supply to US
Topic: USA IMPERIALISM

“Sanctions against the homelandof Bolivar? Imposed bythe US imperialist government”,declared Venezuelan PresidentHugo Chavez on Twitter this Tuesday(@chavezcandanga), “Bring iton, Mr. Obama. Do not forget thatwe are the children of Bolivar”, heexclaimed, reminding his morethan one and a half million followerson the social network that“the true impact of this latest USaggression is the strengthening ofour nationalistic and patriotic moralein Venezuela!”On Tuesday morning, the USState Department, announced itwas imposing unilateral sanctionsagainst seven internationalcompanies, including Petroleosde Venezuela, S.A. (PDVSA). Thisdecision marks the first time theUS government has taken directhostile action against the Venezuelanstate-owned oil company,which is one of the largest oilcompanies in the world.According to State Departmentreleases, the sanctions fall underthe Iran Sanctions Act (ISA) of1996, as amended by the ComprehensiveIran Sanctions, Accountabilityand Divestment Act(CISADA) of 2010, for alleged “activitiesin support of Iran’s energysector”. In the case of Venezuela,the State Department claims PDVSA“violated” the US legislationby “selling at least two cargoesof reformate to Iran between December2010 and March 2011”.Reformate is a blending componentthat improves the quality ofgasoline, which somehow, the USgovernment alleges, can help enableIran to make nuclear bombs.The State Department clarifiedthat in the case of PDVSA, the sanctions“prohibit the company fromcompeting for US government procurementcontracts, from securingfinancing from the Export-ImportBank of the United States, andfrom obtaining US export licenses”.The US sanctions do not affectVenezuela’s supply of oil to theUnited States, as clearly the Obamaadministration would not wantto directly affect its own interests.Nor do the sanctions apply to PDVSAsubsidiaries, such as CITGO, aUS corporation owned by PDVSAwhich has seven oil refineries andover 10,000 gas stations throughoutthe United States.BRING IT ONThe Venezuelan governmentreacted firmly to the unilaterallyimposed sanctions, clearly statingit will no adhere to any decisionmade by the US governmentregarding its oil business, nor willit accept any US interference in itsrelations with other nations. Duringa joint press conference lateTuesday afternoon, Venezuela’sForeign Minister, Nicolas Maduro,and PDVSA President and OilMinister, Rafael Ramirez, labeledthe US sanctions as a “hostile actof aggression” against the SouthAmerican nation. They also announcedthat Venezuela is “thoroughlyevaluating its response”and whether the US decision will“affect the supply of 1.2 millionbarrels of oil daily to the US”.On Wednesday, thousands ofworkers at PDVSA’s installationsthroughout Venezuela protested theUS sanctions and stated they would“defend their oil sovereignty” in theface of “US aggression and interference”.“PDVSA is a sovereign,dignified company that no longerbows down to US agenda”, workersdeclared, rallying at the company’sheadquarters in Caracas.President Chavez, who is recoveringfrom a knee injury andhas been forced to limit his publicappearances, tweeted throughoutthe day. “We don’t just have thelargest oil reserves in the world.We also have the most revolutionaryoil company in the world!”In another tweet, he exclaimed,“So, they wanted to see and feelthe flame of the people of Bolivardefending the independence ofthe Venezuelan homeland? Well,there you have it!”Venezuela’s legislative body alsoissued a firm declaration on Tuesdayrejecting the US-imposed sanctionsand warning the US to ceasethe hostilities against the SouthAmerican country or Venezuelacould stop its oil supply northward.The 40% opposition, anti-Chavez coalition in the Venezuelanparliament refused to adhere to thedeclaration, instead expressing approvalfor the US sanctions. ManyVenezuelans saw this as a posturebetraying their own sovereigntyand national security.INCREASING AGGRESSIONThe US government, which supporteda briefly successful coupd’etat against President Chavezin 2002 and has since been heavilyfunding anti-Chavez groupswith millions of dollars in orderto build an opposition movementin Venezuela, has been increasingits aggressive policies towardsthe Chavez administration duringthe past few years. In 2006,the State Department imposed itsfirst sanction against Venezuelafor allegedly “not fully cooperatingwith the war on terrorism”,and prohibited the sale of militaryequipment to the South Americancountry from the US or any companyin the world that uses UStechnology. In a clear attempt toleave Venezuela defenseless, thissanction has been renewed eachyear to the present date, thoughthe Chavez government hasfound other suppliers of defensematerials not subject to US pressures,such as Russia and China.In 2008, the Bush administrationevaluated placing Venezuelaon its unilateral “state sponorsof terrorism” list, but concludedit wasn’t possible, due to US dependenceon Venezuelan oil. Thisyear, calls from ultra-conservativemembers of Congress, includingIleana Ros-Lehtinen and ConnieMack, both Florida Republicanswho run the House Foreign RelationsCommittee, have vowed totake “direct actions against HugoChavez”. These latest sanctionsare a clear result of their pressure,and that of the still influential anti-Castro Cuban-American lobby,on the Obama administration.In addition to the multi-milliondollar US funding of anti-Chavezgroups in Venezuela, which feedsan ongoing internal conflict andclimate of destabilization, the USgovernment has also been waginga severe demonization campaignagainst the Chavez governmentin international media. In2010, the US Directorate of NationalIntelligence (DNI), labeledPresident Chavez as the regional“Anti-US Leader” in its annual“Worldwide Threat AssessmentReport”. The Venezuelan Presidentis also regularly referred toas authoritarian, dictatorial andanti-democratic in US media, despitehis overwhelming victoriesin several elections and his oversightof Venezuela’s most vibrantdemocratic process in history.Ros-Lehtinen and Mack haveagain requested the White Houseplace Venezuela on the list ofstate sponsors of terrorism thisyear. Though this is a far-fetchedobjective, this week’s sanctionspave the road towards an evenmore aggressive policy towardsVenezuela, the country with theworld’s largest oil reserves.Chavez faces reelection in 2012,and opposition candidates arebickering over who could unifytheir parties to challenge theoverly-popular head of state. Sofar, Washington’s hostility is notaiding the opposition, but is actuallyunifying Venezuelans againstforeign interference. Some fearthe Obama administration couldattempt a “Libya-esque” planagainst Venezuela: demonizingthe President, funding and supportingthe opposition, buildingup military presence in the regionand sanctioning the government,all with the goal of provoking regimechange “by any means”.Meanwhile, Venezuelans standstrong against US efforts to underminetheir democratic process. Written By:T/ Eva GolingerP/ Agencieshttp://www.chavezcode.com/  

Eva Golinger speaks in Portland Oregon USA
Mood:  lyrical
Now Playing: From Caracas Venezuela to Portland Oregon USA - Eva Golinger
Topic: Venezuela News

Eva Golinger - WikiLeaks Analysis and more - May 6 in Portland - From Caracas to Cascadia
Mood:  lyrical
Now Playing: Eva Golinger is coming to Portland "Get Your Tickets"
Topic: Organizing-Activism-Info

 

 

 

OAS - manipulates and instigates - hunger strikers and USA Impearlism
Mood:  loud
Now Playing: Venezuela's allies tell OAS chief not to meddle
Topic: USA IMPERIALISM

THE POINT TO UNDERSTAND AND SEE IS THAT THE US HAS A HAND IN THIS AND THE DOCUMENTED OAS IS BEING TOLD TO STAY OUT:

Nations belonging to a left-leaning bloc led by Venezuela and Cuba accused OAS chief Jose Miguel Insulza of being a pawn of the U.S. government, which has urged Chavez's administration to allow an international investigation into alleged human rights abuses.

 

ORIGINAL ARTICLE WAS FOUND HERE

http://www.miamiherald.com/2011/02/19/2075992/venezuelas-allies-tell-oas-chief.html

Workers in Colombia - KRAFT shuts their factory down (Union Busting)
Now Playing: KRAFT in Colombia - palying dirty pool with human lives / Union Busting
Topic: Colombia Solidarity

Take Over - And being used productively
Mood:  chatty
Now Playing: Chavez orders takeover of 2 construction suppliers
Topic: CHAVEZ

PART III Seven Years After and the Portland HOLA activists
Mood:  energetic
Now Playing: Open Veins - Open Hearts - This is what we do - HOLA PDX
Topic: Latin America Solidarity

 HOLA discussion Sunday at the Waypost Inn

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http://portland.indymedia.org/en/2010/12/404180.shtml

Portland Indymedia link of the 18-page article being discussed

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In Portland Oregon there is a group of activist friends of mine, that meet bi-weekly at the minimum, and at leats every month at the Waypost Inn, in solidarity with Latin America struggles for justice and peace.

This group is part of the bigger (mother) group in Portland that has been in this kind of human rights / solidarity activism for around 25 years (or more?)  and their name is PCASC www.pcasc.org . 

The sub group is the one I am mentioning here today: HOLA which stands for Hands Off Latin America, has planned for the monthly meeting at The Waypost Inn (Google map- http://tiny.cc/kecfh ) and it is located in North Portland.

(Sunday 12/5/10 - 12:30 pm meeting time this month) We meet to discuss a follow up discussion recently written by the author of the book "Open Veins in Latin America" by Eduardo Galeano

As an example of what this discussion is going to be on I have copied 1- 1/2 pages from our 18-page reading discussion that we have lined up for today.

This article discuss basically what our HOLA group is involved in, it reflects some of our tradition concerns and issues that we as a solidarity group  "get involved in"

So here is the authors follow up from "Open Veins of Latin America"  (out-take)  and our HOLA discussion page / teaser below...

Want more information or to read the whole 18 page discussion? Please contact me iam@joe-anybody.com   

Look PCASC up on their website to get involved more in solidarity.

 

 

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PART III Seven Years After

by Eduardo Galeano

The U.S. Congress resolved in 1976 and 1977 to suspend economic andmilitary aid to various Countries. But most U.S. external aid doesn't gothroughthe congressional filter. So despite pronouncements, resolutions, andprotestsGeneral Pinochet's regime got $290 million of direct U.S. aid in 1976 withoutcongressional authorization. When General Videla's dictatorship in Argentinawas a year old it had received $500 million from private U.S. banks and $415million from two institutions (World Bank and Bank for InternationalDevelopment) in which the United States has decisive influence. Argentina'sspecial rights for International Monetary Fund loans, $64 million in 1975, hadrisen to $700 million two years later.President Carter's concern about the butchery in some Latin Americancountries seems healthy, but the present dictators are not self-taught: theyhavelearned the techniques of repression and the arts of government atacademiesrun by the Pentagon in the United States and the Panama Canal Zone.

These courses are still being given today, and no change is known to have beenmadein their content. The Latin American military men who are now causing ascandal in the United States have been good pupils. A few years ago when hewas defense secretary, Robert McNamara, now president of the World Bank,spelled it out: "They are the new leaders. I don't need to expatiate on thevalueof having in leadership positions men who have previously become closelyacquainted with how we Americans think and do things. Making friends withthose men is beyond price."7One wonders if those who made us paralytic might offer us a wheelchair?The bishops of France speak about another sort of responsibility, deeper andless visible: "We, who belong to nations purporting to be the world's mostadvanced, form a part of those who benefit fromexploitation of the developing countries.

We do not see the sufferings thatthisinflicts on the flesh and spirit of entire peoples. We help to reinforce thedivision of the present world in which the domination of poor by rich, of weakby strong, is conspicuous. Do we know that our squandering of resources andraw materials would not be possible without the control of internationalexchange by the Western countries? Do we not see who profits from the arms traffic, of which our country has provided sad examples? Do we perhaps understand that the militarization of poor countries' regimes is one of the consequences of economic and cultural domination by the industrialized countries, where life is ruled by the lust for profits and the power of money?

"8Dictators, torturers, inquisitors: the terror has its officials, just as it haspost offices and banks, and they apply it because it is necessary. It isn't acaseof a plot by the perverse. General Pinochet may look like a figure in Goya's"black art," a prize specimen for psychoanalysts, or the inheritor of a savagetradition from the banana republics. But the clinical or folkloric roots of this orthat dictator, which provide seasoning for history, are not history. Who woulddare maintain today that World War I broke out because of the complexes ofKaiser Wilhelm, who had one arm shorter than the other? As Bertolt Brechtwrote at the end of 1940 in his working diary: "In democratic ountries theviolent character inherent in the economy doesn't show itself; in authoritariancountries the same holds true for the economic character of violence."In Latin America's southern lands the centurions have taken over power asa function of the needs of the system: the terrorism of the state is put intoaction when the dominant classes can pursue their business by no othermeans.Torture wouldn't exist in our countries if it weren't effective, formaldemocracywould continue if it could be guaranteed not to get out of the hands that holdpower. In difficult times democracy becomes a crime against nationalsecurity--that is, against the security of internal privilege and foreign investment. Ourdevices for mincing human flesh are part of an international machinery.

The whole society is militarized, the state of exception is made permanent, andtherepressive apparatus is endowed with hegemony by the turn of a screw in thecenters of the imperial system. When crisis begins to throw its shadow, thepillage of poor countries must be intensified to guarantee full employment,public liberties, and high rates of development in the rich countries.

The sinister dialectic of victim-hangman relations: a structure of successive humiliationsthat starts in international markets and financial centers and ends in everycitizen’s home.

Haiti is the poorest country in the Western hemisphere. It has morefootwashersthan shoe shiners: little boys who, for a penny, will wash the feet ofcustomers lacking shoes to shine. Haitians, on the average, live a bit morethanthirty years. Nine out of every ten can't read or write. For internalconsumptionthe barren mountain sides are cultivated. For export, the fertile valleys: thebestlands are given to coffee, sugar, cacao, and other products needed by theU.S.market. No one plays baseball in Haiti, but Haiti is the world's chief producerof baseballs. There is no shortage of workshops where children assemblecassettes and electronic parts for a dollar a day. These are naturally forexport;and naturally the profits are also exported, after the administrators of theterrorhave duly got theirs. The slightest breath of protest in Haiti means prison ordeath. Incredible as it sounds, Haitian workers' wages lost 25 percent of theirwretched real value between 1971 and 1975.9 Significantly, in that period anew flow of U.S. capital into the country began.

I recall an editorial in a Buenos Aires daily a couple of years ago. An oldconservative newspaper was bellowing with fury because some internationaldocument depicted Argentina as an underdeveloped country. How could acultured, European, prosperous, white society be measured by the sameyardstick as a poor black country such as Haiti?

Of course the differences are enormous, although they have little to do withthe analytical categories of Buenos Aires's arrogant oligarchy. But with all thediversities and contradictions one could mention, Argentina isn't outside thevicious circle that strangles the Latin American economy as a whole. Nointellectual exorcism can remove it from the reality that, to a greater orsmallerextent, the other countries of the region share with it.General Videla's massacres are, after all, no more civilized than those of"Papa Doc" Duvalier or his successor to the throne, although in Argentina thetechnological level of the repression is higher.

Essentially both dictatorships act at the service of the same objective: to supply cheap labor to aninternational market that demands cheap products. Fresh from taking power, the Videla dictatorship hastened to ban strikesand decree freedom of prices while putting wages behind bars.

Five monthsafter the coup d'état, the new foreign investment law put foreign and nationalenterprises on an equal footing. .......--> cont