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| More Terror May be Waiting Nearby in The Caribbean By David Schussler http://www.bloggernews.net/11994 Washington - AP- Katherine Shrader -”The government believes Fidel Castro’s health is deteriorating and that the Cuban dictator is unlikely to live through 2007.” This was posted in today’s news columns. The hatred for the U.S. may be endemic in the Caribbean today as well as in the other current theaters of strife and war. It’s very important that we do not become so distracted by the events in the Middle East and other “hot” spots that we neglect to pay attention to those nearby who, for years, have been waiting for an opportunity to hurt us. In the event of Castro’s death what will happen to the leadership of Cuba, and consequentially, the amalgamated haters of North American democracy in Central, South America, and the Caribbean? The recent public outbursts by Venezuela’s Hugo Chavez are reason enough to give us additional concern. As reported by Greg Morsbach in Caracas, Saturday March 04, 2006, in “The Guardian”, “Around 500,000 Venezuelans will start a four-month military training program today to turn them into members of the country’s territorial guard. They are the first group of a total of 2 million Venezuelan civilians who have so far signed up to become armed reservists.” ….”By the summer of 2007, Venezuela is likely to have the largest military reserve in the Americas, which is expected to be almost double the size of that in the United States.” Cuba’s active military which is already in the control of Raul Castro, numbers currently over fifty thousand, and, although not in the best of condition, they are still well equipped and maintain a readiness to expand their forces. Venezuela today provides over 2.5 billion dollars in various necessary subsidies to Cuba including military. In Bolivia, June 2005, the U.S. Department of State pulled nonessential personnel out of what was then a specter of civil war intended to change control of the government. The reason for the uprising was instigation by Fidel Castro, Hugo Chavez, and Colombia’s drug cartel. The United States slapped a full arms ban on Venezuela in mid May but in 2004 the U.S. alone had shipped $8 million in arms to Venezuela, and $51 million in the three years previous to that. Chavez has also bought planes from Brazil, ships from Spain, and helicopters and assault rifles from Russia. Some of these Venezuelan arms have turned up in the hands of Colombian based terrorists. In concert with Castro, Chavez has challenged the U.N.’s attempt to halt weapons of mass destruction and terrorism while courting the governments of Iran, Algeria, Libya, and China. All of these countries although trying to maintain their independence from each other with their desire for personal power, are actually becoming more and more interdependent on each other. It is assumed by most Caribbean analysts that Cuba will most likely become somewhat unraveled in the event of Castro’s death and although his brother Raul has been by his side since 1959, it is still undetermined how the public will accept him as the ultimate leader as they perhaps try for new freedoms. It is also unknown what kind of changes Raul will attempt to make. Raul is 75 years old and there is no successor in line to replace him due to the fact that he and Fidel felt that an announced successor in line would offer an opportunity for revolution. All of this lends towards an unstable set of circumstances in this area of the world with several leaders displaying real displeasure with the United States. Although it would be difficult for these leaders to unite due to their narcissistic natures, it is not unreasonable to think that they would use one another in concert for individual gain. It is therefore important that we do not let down our guard, or think that our only battles are against radical Islamic terrorists. We are also facing Marxist fascism, drug politics, oil for power brokers, thriving black marketeers, and other sponsors of terrorism in the Caribbean today. |
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| US Foreign Fallacy: Wars in the East, Coups in the South Por Carolina Cositore http://www.plenglish.com/article.asp?ID=%7...%7D&language=EN (PL) …it’s Bolivia ’s turn on the butcher board The half century of feral foreign policy during which US administrations predictably choose to intervene militarily against governments which it deems unacceptable in the Middle East and Asia, while quietly assassinating and fomenting coups in South America of similarly disapproved of governments, would be considered brutish diplomacy, had not this administration sunk it to the level of demoniac. We the people, Congress and the Judicial System seem unable to harness the military-industrial complex’s ravishing of the East in domino fashion unless and until the citizens of the invaded country and too many American deaths cause the administration to desist. This scenario may change with the strengthening of the 118 countries of the Non Aligned Movement so that such nations do not have to stand alone. European nations, for the most part, behave with Bush as they did with Hitler, licking up his scraps while hoping he will be satiated and quiet down. Latin America is a different story. There our unsavory interference has long taken the path of training and paying nationals to do the dirty for us, isolating a country to “take out” populist leaders in one way or another – populist leaders being those who work for and with the ordinary people. This is no longer working as well as it did in Guatemala , Panama , Chile , Nicaragua , and elsewhere, as the majorities become aware of who is the puppet-master, the people see their leader less as their boss and more as their spokesperson and the countries begin standing together. US intervention hasn’t worked in Cuba , it was tried and failed too in Venezuela , and it is being attempted again right now in Bolivia (although it hasn’t given up on Cuba and Venezuela ). With Latin American countries under attack we can be more immediately effective. We don’t need to go there ala the “Sandalistas”, but what we can do is make the general US public aware through publishing on Internet and demanding that the corporate media publish what their government is doing and the reality of what those countries are trying to accomplish; letter writing, e-mails and phone calls to government and corporate officials work too. In Cuba the US has literally tried everything for nearly 50 years; from direct invasion (Bay of Pigs), through a complete financial, commercial and economic blockade, the longest in world history, now tightening its screws on third country banks and corporations as well, biological warfare, countless assassination attempts, terrorist attacks on planes and hotels, bombarding with radio and TV propaganda there and feeding disinformation to the press at home, preventing US citizens from going to see for themselves or even buying a real bottle of rum, to paying saboteurs and “dissidents” – these often petted and feted by who else? -- our European allies. The Cuban revolution, to Washington’s chagrin, continues its process, with more than enough doctors per capita to send them healing all over the world, and becoming an advance guard and symbol along the way. Venezuela, which carries the Bolivarian unity pennant and learns from Cuba, has likewise suffered US sponsored provocations: border incursions by neighboring paramilitary, a coup attempt, foiled assassinations, media manipulation, foreign (our) meddling in its elections and continuing threats of violence. Venezuela is another vexation, improving the people’s quality of life and offering cheap oil to the poor of other nations –including the US-- , while its oil resources make it invulnerable to a financial siege. Bolivia is the new kid on the chopping block and thus most vulnerable to US not-so-covert machinations. What are we doing to Bolivia ? As tried in Venezuela , the US is encouraging destabilization, a possible coup attempt, assassination and a separatist movement, basically promoted by multinational hydrocarbon magnates, fronted by national wannabe magnets and fed by conservative xenophobia against indigenous peoples. Meanwhile, rewriting contracts continues under the nationalization of hydrocarbon legislation, hard won by the social mobilization of resistance, while the government is kept busy stymieing every transnational trick, legal and otherwise. In addition to the Constituent Assembly that will rewrite the Constitution and re-found the country, successfully blocking attempts to sideline it, indigenous people are also demanding that companies like Repsol pay compensation for the past decade of exploitation. Repsol, like others, has over-exploited, causing severe environmental damage, including to a national park, plus soil erosion, incessant noise, and contamination of rivers; while removing 13.4 trillion cubic feet of gas and several million barrels of petroleum, none of which benefited the Guarani people who’s environment they destroy. Yes, in the Middle East and Asia we must continue our struggles to bring the troops home and prevent them from leaving their blood and murdering others someplace new to enrich the coffers of arms dealers. But Latin America also needs our truth-telling and public outcries at intolerable blockades, undiplomatic interference and general failure to respect peoples´ sovereign right to make their own choices of government…something we can learn from them. |