Venezuela's Chavez considering arming one million people

[AGENDA21]

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said Saturday that he was considering the purchase of enough rifles to arm one million Venezuelans ready to repel a possible U.S. invasion.

During a speech warning his supporters that Washington was considering an invasion of Venezuela, Chavez said that 100,000 Russian-built Kalashnikov assault rifles would not be enough to defend the country.

"We still need a higher number of rifles. The 100,000 Russian rifles are not enough, Venezuela needs to have one million well-equipped and well-armed men and women," he said.

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/english/doc/2006-02/05/content_517190.htm

[no_hypocrisy]

1. He can save his money. American military is stretched to the

limit. He can expect a potential air raid or two though.

[corporate_mike]

20. Why is he doing it?

Venezuelans live in poverty as is

[TallahasseeGrannie]

2. I think

he is grandstanding, appealing to his base. Hopefully they aren't a violent people because they could do a lot of damage to one another with those rifles!

[MoJoWorkin]

5. I have read where the Venezuelans are heavily armed anyway----

He is keeping this in the public eye, so as to thwart such an invasion/interference by the US, I believe. He is no dummy--unlike what we have occupying our White House.

[TallahasseeGrannie]

6. You know

I know nothing about the guy, but I am reading so much about him here, I'm going to have to find a book or something.

Anybody have any suggestions?

[MoJoWorkin]

16. Here is a wealth of info from a previous DU discussion-----

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=364&topic_id=311462


I have just read The Battle Of Venezuela by Michael McCaughan, and I recommend it. I plan to read some of the other suggestions as well.

[Guy Whitey Corngood]

22. About 1 in 4 Venezuelans are already packing. n/t

[cali]

3. Rhetoric.

Populist rhetoric. That's all it is.

[rman]

8. Chavez has a track record of putting his money were his mouth is

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

4. Hell, our own arms industry will sell him what he needs.

"Patriotism" is easily trumped by $$$$.

[Mika]

12. How would selling Venezuela arms be unpatriotic? n/t

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

18. If you will notice "patriotic" is in quotation marks.

"Patriotism is the egg from which wars are born." - de Maupassant

I was referring to the capitalists who will sell anything, to anyone, to make a buck and then trumpet their alleged love of country.

[ugarte]

7. Just like Switzerland, which issues an automatic weapon to every male

on his 20th birthday. It's required for service in the self-defense forces which is universal.

[slaveplanet]

21. there are conditions that come

with those issued weapons. He would be wise to follow the Swiss model, but the issuance of arms is not enough.

He needs to build his own munitions factories to assure a constant supply in the case of invasion.

He would also need to build underground, well provisioned facilities for its citizens, like the Swiss. If he is invaded it will be by bombs first.

I see the globalists willing to go mini-Nuke or Neutron to make sure they have control of VZ oil taps.
The best option was the coup, but that failed. The globalists will do anything to make sure they can control the shut off of the tap. They can't afford anybody not under their control with the ability to flood the market at an inopportune moment. That would really screw up their whole world plan.

[Benhurst]

9. Obviously grandstanding. The United States would

never intervene militarily in a nation in its own hemisphere. Why, such an action would be anti-democratic and make the Monroe Doctrine look self-serving and hypocritical.

[Missy M]

10. Instead we do it covertly.

[TabulaRasa]

13. You're being sarcastic, right? nt

[Benhurst]

14. Bingo!

[King Coal]

19. LOL!

[Jon8503]

11. He was elected by his people in a democratic election. Another

election that did not go the way Bushy wanted it to go. He has provided oil to people in the US by selling at a lower cost where they can afford it. No American oil company would do it when asked by some democratic legislators.

He owns all of the Citco stations in the US and some others.

He provides a pecentage of our oil to this country.

He has nationalized a lot of the wealthy landowners properties in Venezuela and is taking a leadership position in Latin America.

He is a real thorn in the side of Bush.

The people love him.

The rich hate him.

[JanMichael]

15. Didn't Orwell say something about a rifle in every home being the...

...emancipator or defender of democracy or something like that?

[The Backlash Cometh]

17. Depends on who he gives them to.

I don't think Venezuelans will fight, even with rifles. He's got to organize them and teach them military tactics and even then, they'll probably run like the Iraqis did.

What I think is horrible, is that he's expecting an invasion. He's got to know, that if America comes, they'll just kill the head, and are happy to leave the country in chaos. Even Panamanians who were in favor of the removal of Noriega learned this. The US just left them after the invasion and there was chaos in the streets for a while. Restaurants were kept open only if there were armed body guards outside.

One of my friends told me that they went to a local restaurant and were held up. Everybody was asked to strip down to their underwear. So the joke was that it didn't matter what you wore when you went out, but be sure you wore your best underwear.