Venezuela: So This is What Self-Determination Looks Like

[struggle4progress]

Monday, Jul 26, 2004
By: Rootsie - AfricaSpeaks.com

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It is easy to read between the lines and see why President Hugo Chavez represents the worst nightmare of the United States and the global corporate imperialists. A 'developing nation' taking control of its own resources? Ending sweetheart deals with multinational giants? Plowing profits back into infrastructure and 'social revolution,' in effect using American and European oil investment dollars to bring prosperity to Venezuelans? Soliciting cooperation from multinationals on its own terms? A majority partner in deals with Chevron and such? No more bowing and scraping before anybody who knocks at the door?
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Despite the best efforts and the limitless resources of the most powerful country in the world to cause maximum mischief, Chavez is the man who just will not die, literally or figuratively. The media has condemned Venezuela for its anti-democratic attempts to deal with the 'opposition,' a US-backed movement of disgruntled rich people who are furious that their gravy-train has derailed. This is a glaring example of how the US uses the terms 'human rights' and 'democracy' as a bludgeon. Chavez is expected to stand by and grant unlimited license to what amounts to a US invasion force. We really have to redefine what we mean by foreign incursions. Why shouldn't sovereign governments have the right to resist by any means necessary bald-faced attempts to overthrow their elected governments? The 2002 coup and the US-orchestrated 'general strike' were not enough? This 'kinder gentler' face of US interventionism isn't fooling anybody in South America.

Now that it looks like Chavez is going to survive this attempt too, and considering Venezuela is sitting on an oil field probably bigger than Saudi Arabia's, people have apparently resigned themselves to making nice until they figure out another way to get rid of him. It was so much easier back in the Allende days to just kill the trouble-maker. The fact that they haven't been able to do anything this simple up to now indicates the broad base of support for Hugo Chavez.
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http://www.venezuelanalysis.com/articles.php?artno=1225