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September 2009There Is Much to Do: An Interview With Hugo ChavezPosted: Tuesday, September 29, 2009 By Greg Grandin September 27, 2009 Three years ago, Venezuelan president Hugo Chávez caused a stir when, in a speech to the United Nations General Assembly, he called then-US President George W. Bush a "devil." "I can still smell the sulfur," he said, standing at the same podium where, a day earlier, Bush had given his own address. Last week, Chávez once again followed a US president in the UN podium, but this time he caught a whiff of something different--"the smell of hope." In the following interview--conducted at Venezuela's mission to the United Nations in New York--Hugo Chávez talks about his relationship with Barack Obama and what his election could mean for the United States, as well as about the Honduran crisis, plans to extend the Pentagon's presence in Colombia, domestic successes and challenges, and the legacy of Brazilian president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Full Article : thenation.com Obama the impotent Posted: Friday, September 25, 2009 ¤ UN Security Council calls for nuclear weapons states to disarm ¤ G-20 opponents, police clash on Pittsburgh streets ¤ Ahmadinejad offers talks on nuclear program ¤ Venezuela's Chavez Invites U.S. Labor Unions to ALBA, Invites Obama to "Peace dialogue" During a meeting with U.S. labor union leaders in New York on Wednesday, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez invited the unionists to participate in the fair trade integration bloc known as the Bolivarian Alliance for the Americas (ALBA), and he invited U.S. President Barack Obama to hold a "peace dialogue." ¤ Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Speaks: An Interview With Katie Couric ¤ The Mystique of 'Free-Market Guy' Obama No matter what the facts are, some liberal activists and leaders persist in seeing President Obama as a principled progressive reformer who lives and breathes the campaign rhetoric about "change you can believe in." When he compromises, it's not Obama's fault - it's the opposition. Retreat is never a sell-out but a shrewd tactic, part of some secret long-range strategy for triumphant reform. He's been in the White House eight months. It's time for activists take a harder look at Obama. And a more assertive posture toward him. ¤ Clinton, Speak Clearly Now to Avoid a Massacre in Honduras This is an urgent plea to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton: Immediately condemn the violence unleashed against the Honduran people by the de facto regime and take every peaceful measure possible to avoid a bloodbath in that country. The coup [government] has deployed the police and Armed Forces to the Brazilian Embassy and launched a violent attack on the thousands of protesters gathered there to support President Manuel Zelaya. The repression has resulted in scores of citizens wounded and taken prisoners, and unconfirmed reports of two dead. ¤ Zelaya's Return: Salvaging Democracy in Honduras Will Be Tricky ¤ Venezuela's Chavez Calls on Honduras Coup Government to Peacefully Hand over Power to Manuel Zelaya ¤ Ousted president Zelaya returns to Honduras ¤ Zelaya's Return: Salvaging Democracy in Honduras Will Be Tricky ¤ Spoiling Manuel Zelaya's Homecoming ¤ Obama the impotent Much hope has been invested in Barack Obama's ability to strike a new course for the US following eight years of Bush administration unpopularity. Yet many in the US and abroad are impatient with the pace of progress under the Obama administration. The president made the rounds on five news talkshows on Sunday as he pressed his policies and vision, preparing for what is likely to be a difficult week. ¤ Saving the Obama Revolution ¤ Devaluing journalists who dig for truth in war zone ¤ The Drama and the Farce "An American President who wants to undertake such a role must formulate a clear and detailed peace plan, with a strict timetable, and be prepared to invest all his resources and all his political capital in its realization. Among other things, he must be ready to confront, face to face, the powerful pro-Israel lobby." ¤ A New Path of Palestinian Resistance Despite the continuing horrors visited upon Palestinians, their deep political divide, relentless Israeli settlement expansion and more, there are glimmers of hope in the Palestinian skies. What I am referring to here, are not external developments like ongoing U.S.-led efforts to rekindle Israeli-Palestinian peace talks or growing European impatience with Israeli occupation policies. ¤ Our war-loving Foreign Policy Community hasn't gone anywhere ¤ Tehran dumps dollar for euro Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has ordered the replacement of the US dollar by the euro in calculating the value of the country's Oil Stabilisation Fund (OSF). ¤ Obama Administration Shields CIA Torturers Toxic shame: Thousands injured in African city Posted: Saturday, September 19, 2009 ¤ Toxic shame: Thousands injured in African city A British oil trading giant has agreed to a multimillion-pound payout to settle a huge damages claim from thousands of Africans who fell ill from tonnes of toxic waste dumped illegally in one of the worst pollution incidents in decades. ¤ How UK oil company Trafigura tried to cover up African pollution disaster The Guardian can reveal evidence today of a massive cover-up by the British oil trader Trafigura, in one of the worst pollution disasters in recent history. Internal emails show that Trafigura, which yesterday suddenly announced an offer to pay compensation to 31,000 west African victims, was fully aware that its waste dumped in Ivory Coast was so toxic that it was banned in Europe. ¤ Mosquito-borne African virus a new threat to West ¤ Obama blamed for Taliban impasse Peace talks with the Taliban were severely undermined by the US president Barack Obama’s decision to send more troops to Afghanistan, an official involved in the discussions has warned. Arsalan Rahmani, a senator in the upper house of parliament in Kabul, said there had been progress until the new US administration started deploying an extra 21,000 soldiers earlier this year. ¤ 'I told the US to talk to the Taliban. They jailed me' ¤ Carter Claims There Is "Racist" Tone Against Obama ¤ Obama: Health care anger not motivated by his race ¤ Israelis Say "No" to Obama--What Next? ¤ Quietly Building the Totalitarian State in America ¤ Stop Begging Obama to Be Obama and Get Mad ¤ How Low Will Israel Stoop in Its Propaganda War? ¤ The News Media Scam ¤ Death Squads, Disappearances and Torture in Pakistan As the Obama administration prepares a major escalation of the so-called AfPak war, reports from Pakistan’s Swat Valley, near Afghanistan’s eastern border, provide a gruesome indication of the kind of war that the Pentagon and its local allies are waging. ¤ Let Us Not Become the Evil We Deplore On Sept. 14, 2001, the U.S. House of Representatives considered House Joint Resolution 64, "To authorize the use of United States Armed Forces against those responsible for the recent attacks launched against the United States." The wounds of 9/11 were raw, and the lust for vengeance seemed universal. ¤ Carter Claims There Is "Racist" Tone Against Obama ¤ Iranian Officials Pleased US Accepts Offer to Hold Talks ¤ US insists Iran talks will include nuclear issue ¤ IAEA Conceals Evidence Iran Nuke Docs Were Forged The International Atomic Energy Agency says its present objective regarding Iran is to try to determine whether the intelligence documents purportedly showing a covert Iranian nuclear weapons programme from 2001 to 2003 are authentic or not. The problem, according to its reports, is that Iran refuses to help clarify the issue. ¤ Iran Proposes Control System Aimed at Eliminating Nuclear Weapons Iran is not prepared to discuss halting its uranium enrichment program in response to Western demands but is proposing instead a worldwide control system aimed at eliminating nuclear weapons, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's top political aide said in an interview Thursday. ¤ Lehman Died So TARP and AIG Might Live ¤ My Flower to Bush, the Occupier ¤ raqi Shoe Thrower: 'I am Free Again, but My Homeland Is Still a Prison." ¤ How US Tax Breaks Fund Israeli Settlers ¤ Mexico Loses Its History Venezuela says signs new $16 billion China oil deal Posted: Wednesday, September 16, 2009 President Hugo Chavez said on Wednesday Venezuela signed a $16 billion investment deal with China over three years to raise oil output by several hundred thousand barrels per day in the OPEC member's Orinoco belt. Full Article : insing.com Militarizing Latin America Posted: Wednesday, September 16, 2009 By Noam Chomsky The United States was founded as an "infant empire," in the words of George Washington. The conquest of the national territory was a grand imperial venture. From the earliest days, control over the hemisphere was a critical goal. Latin America has retained its primacy in U.S. global planning. If the United States cannot control Latin America, it cannot expect "to achieve a successful order elsewhere in the world," observed President Richard M. Nixon’s National Security Council in 1971, when Washington was considering the overthrow of Salvador Allende’s government in Chile. Recently the hemisphere problem has intensified. South America has moved toward integration, a prerequisite for independence; has broadened international ties; and has addressed internal disorders–foremost, the traditional rule of a rich Europeanized minority over a sea of misery and suffering. Full Article : inthesetimes.com US worried about Venezuelan arms buildup Posted: Monday, September 14, 2009 A U.S. official said Monday that Venezuelan arms acquisitions could spark an arms race in Latin America and he also expressed misgivings about the country's possible nuclear ambitions. Full Article : news.yahoo.com Morales: U.S. planning coups in Latin America Posted: Monday, September 14, 2009 Press TV September 14, 2009 The Bolivian president has accused the United States of planning coups in Latin America after Washington reached an agreement with Colombia over military bases. "In Latin America, where there is a US military base there are military coups," Evo Morales told Bolivian immigrants living in Spain on Sunday. Morales along with his allies in South America have repeatedly criticized the deal between Colombia and the US that would give the US military access to seven Colombian bases for a 10 year period. "To the social movements of Europe and the world: Help us put an end to military bases in Latin American," he said, citing the Bolivian constitution that bans foreign bases on its soil. Full Article : dprogram.net Venezuela to Develop Nuclear Energy With Russian Help Posted: Monday, September 14, 2009 Venezuela President Hugo Chavez said the South American country plans to develop a nuclear energy program with Russia and doesn't want to build an atomic bomb. Chavez said that the country's oil and gas reserves won't last forever and the government will seek alternative energy sources. Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin agreed to help Venezuela's nuclear energy program during a meeting in Moscow last week, Chavez said. Full Article : bloomberg.com US State Department Bankrolls Young Venezuelans to Slander Chávez in the USA Posted: Friday, September 11, 2009 In the midst of an international campaign launched against President Chávez, carried out by the extreme Right from Colombia and supported by Washington, the US State Department has organized and financed the trip of eight young Venezuelan politicians to the USA in order to denounce the Venezuelan government and to strengthen the links between young US Republicans and the Venezuelan Right. The eight young Venezuelan men and women have been selected by the US State Department as part of the program “Democracy for young political leaders”. It is a project of the interchange program “International Visitor Leaders - Venezuela”, which is being used by the Washington administration to recruit and train political actors who would later on promote the North American agenda in Venezuela. Full Article : axisoflogic.com Spanish firm tells Chavez of Venezuela gas find Posted: Friday, September 11, 2009 Spanish energy company Repsol announced Friday a large natural gas find off the coast of Venezuela and visiting Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez was immediately informed, a Repsol spokesman told CNN. "We've just found this out," said the spokesman, Kristian Rix, in a phone call with CNN. Repsol believes the discovery might amount to 7 or 8 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, which would be the equivalent of up to 1.44 billion barrels of oil, Rix said. But he cautioned, "we are still carrying out the final tests. We are still a couple of weeks away from full confirmation." Full Article : edition.cnn.com The More Things Change... Posted: Friday, September 11, 2009 ¤ Iraqi shoe thrower gets hero treatment The Iraqi TV journalist who threw his shoes at then-president George W. Bush will be showered with gifts including a four-bedroom house — and at least one potential bride — upon his imminent release from jail. Muntadhar al-Zeidi, 30, is scheduled to be freed Monday after spending nine months in prison for assault, according to Dhiya al-Saadi, his lawyer. ¤ China alarmed by US money printing The US Federal Reserve's policy of printing money to buy Treasury debt threatens to set off a serious decline of the dollar and compel China to redesign its foreign reserve policy, according to a top member of the Communist hierarchy. ¤ The More Things Change A presidential candidate opposed to the Iraq War is elected and enters the Oval Office. Yet six months later, there are still essentially the same number of troops in Iraq as were there when his predecessor left, the same number, in fact, used in the original invasion of Iraq in March 2003. Moreover, the new president remains on the "withdrawal" schedule the previous administration laid out for him with the same caveats being issued about whether it can even be met. ¤ Israeli Government Ads Warn Against Marrying Non-Jews ¤ Chavez accuses Israel of genocide in Gaza Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has described Israel's deadly offensive on the Gaza Strip as an attempt to exterminate the Palestinians. Describing the offensive as an unprovoked attack on Wednesday, the Venezuelan President accused the Israeli government of trying to hide the genocidal nature of its assault behind the pretext for stopping rocket fires from the beleaguered strip. ¤ Stone says Chavez film may struggle to get U.S. play ¤ Venezuela's Chavez draws closer to Moscow ¤ Venezuela to export gasoline to Iran Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez sealed an agreement to export 20,000 barrels per day of gasoline to Iran, state TV reported Monday. The deal would give Tehran a cushion if the West carries out threats of fuel sanctions over Iran's nuclear program. The two countries signed the agreement late Sunday during a visit by Chavez, who pledged to deepen ties with Iran and stand together against what he called the imperialist powers of the world. ¤ British diplomat found dead in Jamaica ¤ Caster Semenya, forced to take gender test, is a woman ... and a man ¤ To save power, Bangladesh bans suits and ties ¤ A Tour of the World's Most Toxic Nuclear Site ¤ Portrait of an Afghan Firefight ¤ Obama's Imperative in Afghanistan Mr. President, you cannot continue this wretched, dishonest, disastrous war. If you do, your legacy will be poisoned by its obscene history. George W. Bush was planning and mobilizing his attack on Afghanistan as early as March of 2001, some six months prior to the horrors of 9/11. The Afghan war, consequently, has nothing remotely to do with counter-terrorism. It is not an act even of preemptive self defense, but one of utterly unprovoked military aggression. Expressly prohibited by the charter of the United Nations, George Bush’s incursion into Afghanistan is an international crime. ¤ US actually increasing personnel in Iraq US forces are not withdrawing from Iraq. Well, its soldiers are. But not civilian contractors. Despite President Barack Obama's pledge to withdraw US troops from the war-torn country, the US is planning to award contracts to protect US installations at a cost to taxpayers that could near $1 billion. ¤ Marred Afghan Vote Leaves U.S. in a Delicate Spot ¤ Censorship American Style: Hide the US War Dead from the American People The Obama administration's freak out, as expressed by Defense Secretary Robert Gates, over the Associated Press Agency's belated circulation of a photograph of a dying US soldier in Afghanistan, Lance Cpl. Joshua Bernard, is the latest of example of the hypocrisy of US authorities who claim to be concerned about the feelings of American military families, while really simply desiring to censor the war's horrors from the eyes of the American people. ¤ Questions About Reporter's Rescue in Afghanistan ¤ Congressman who heckled Obama now seeks campaign cash ¤ Treason, Betrayal and Deceit: 9/11 and Beyond ¤ Historic Errors Made In 9/11 Aftermath ¤ NATO intensifies its Carnage and Deployments following the Afghan "Election" After NATO pledged 5,000 more troops for the war in Afghanistan at its sixtieth anniversary summit In Strasbourg, France and Kehl, Germany this April, U.S. President Barack Obama hailed the commitment as representing "a strong down payment on the future of our mission in Afghanistan and on the future of NATO." Venezuela's Chavez draws closer to Moscow Posted: Thursday, September 10, 2009 Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez cemented a closer alliance with Russia on Thursday, recognizing two pro-Russian rebel regions of Georgia as independent and securing arms supplies and loans in return. Full Article : news.yahoo.com Chavez accuses Israel of genocide in Gaza Posted: Wednesday, September 9, 2009 Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has described Israel's deadly offensive on the Gaza Strip as an attempt to exterminate the Palestinians. Describing the offensive as an unprovoked attack on Wednesday, the Venezuelan President accused the Israeli government of trying to hide the genocidal nature of its assault behind the pretext for stopping rocket fires from the beleaguered strip. Full Article : presstv.ir Oliver Stone: 'The Truth about Hugo Chávez' Posted: Tuesday, September 8, 2009 South of the Border is Oscar-winning director Oliver Stone's record of a trip to Venezuela to meet the president, Hugo Chávez. Ahead of the film's premiere at the Venice film festival on Monday, Stone writes about his hopes for the film, and the future of US foreign policy in the region. As is often the case, the man I met was not the man I'd read and heard about in the US media. I was able to return in January 2009 to interview President Chávez in more depth. Was Hugo Chávez really the anti-American force we've been told he is? Once we began our journey, we found ourselves going beyond Venezuela to several other countries, and interviewing seven presidents in the region, telling a larger and even more compelling story, which has now become South of the Border. Leader after leader seemed to be saying the same thing. They wanted to control their own resources, strengthen regional ties, be treated as equals with the US, and become financially independent of the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Full Article : venezuelanalysis.com Venezuela's Chavez says hopes can work with Obama Posted: Tuesday, September 8, 2009 Chavez was in Venice for the world premiere of "South of the Border", director Oliver Stone's sympathetic portrait of a leader he says has championed the poor and who has been unfairly demonised by the U.S. media. "I have no reason to call him (Obama) the devil, and I hope that I am right," Chavez told reporters in Venice. Full Article : thestar.com.my US's 'arc of instability' just gets bigger Posted: Monday, September 7, 2009 ¤ Barak Approves Construction of 455 West Bank Homes Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak approved the building of 455 housing units in the West Bank, defying U.S. demands for a freeze on settlement construction. ¤ US fury as Israel defies settlement freeze call ¤ Why Not Sanctions for Israel? ¤ Ahmadinejad Rules Out Nuclear Concessions, Urges Obama Debate ¤ Lockerbie: Megrahi was framed In his latest column for the New Statesman, John Pilger describes the suppression of facts behind the furore over the "compassionate" release of the so-called Lockerbie bomber, Libyan Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi. He writes that Megrahi was "in effect blackmailed by the governments of Scotland and England" so that it would not be revealed in his appeal that he had been framed for a crime he did not commit. ¤ Stench of death hangs over Afghan riverbank ¤ Death of a Marine in Afghanistan Defense Secretary Robert Gates has condemned the Associated Press decision to release a photograph of a US Marine wounded during a battle in the Helmand province of southern Afghanistan. The Marine, Lance Cpl. Joshua M. Bernard of New Portland, Maine, was struck by a rocket-propelled grenade in a Taliban ambush on Aug. 14. He later died of his wounds. ¤ Ah yes, 'the civilized community of nations' If there's anyone out there who is not already thoroughly cynical about those on the board of directors of the planet, the latest chapter in the saga of the bombing of PanAm 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland might just be enough to push them over the edge. Abdel Basset Ali al-Megrahi, the only person ever convicted for the December 21, 1988 bombing, was released from his Scottish imprisonment August 21 supposedly because of his terminal cancer and sent home to Libya, where he received a hero's welcome. ¤ US's 'arc of instability' just gets bigger ¤ Colin Powell and Lessons of My Lai ¤ "An Existential Threat": The US, Israel And Iran ¤ US Hypocrisy Astonishes the World Americans have lost their ability for introspection, thereby revealing their astounding hypocrisy to the world. US War Secretary Robert Gates has condemned the Associated Press and a reporter, Julie Jacobson, embedded with US troops in Afghanistan, for taking and releasing a photo of a US Marine who was wounded in action and died from his injury. ¤ What is the CIA Still Hiding about Interrogations? ¤ Chavez backs Iran nuclear strategy Hugo Chavez, the Venezuelan president, has given his backing to Iran's nuclear programme, which world powers suspect of having non-peaceful aims. Chavez, who was visiting the Iranian capital Tehran on Saturday, said that Iran had the right to use atomic energy for peaceful purposes. ¤ Stone film says U.S. demonises Chavez ¤ Will not surrender nuclear rights: Iran Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has announced that Tehran's "undeniable" nuclear rights are non-negotiable and nuclear talks with global powers in the future would be narrowed down to "cooperation on peaceful use of atomic energy" and "non-proliferation". "In our view the nuclear question is finished. We will not negotiate over Iran's undeniable rights," Mr. Ahmadinejad said on Monday at a press conference in Tehran. ¤ US Ambassador In Pakistan Forces A Newspaper To Censor A Known US Critic ¤ Despite Slump, U.S. Role as Top Arms Supplier Grows Despite a recession that knocked down global arms sales last year, the United States expanded its role as the world's leading weapons supplier, increasing its share to more than two-thirds of all foreign armaments deals, according to a new Congressional study. ¤ Myth v. Fact: Afghanistan ¤ S Africa Backs Action in US on Firms Linked to Apartheid ¤ The Missing Link in Israeli Organ Theft? ¤ Brazil Flexes Its Muscles ¤ Rift widens between US and Germany over botched Afghanistan air strike Chavez walks Venice red carpet with Oliver Stone Posted: Monday, September 7, 2009 Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez received a movie star welcome Monday at the Venice Film Festival, where he walked the red carpet with director Oliver Stone for the premiere of the documentary "South of the Border." Full Article : breitbart.com Stone film says U.S. demonises Chavez Director Oliver Stone says the U.S. media and government have demonised Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and other leftist South American leaders, and argues in a new film that they were right to stand up to Washington. Global Marches For and Against Venezuelan President See Mixed Turnout Posted: Monday, September 7, 2009 By Tamara Pearson September 7th 2009 - Venezuelanalysis.com In response to a "global" protest promoted over Facebook.com against Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez, there were marches and rallies across Venezuela and in various other countries on Friday and Saturday to both support Chavez and to reject the new US run military bases in Colombia. Participants report that around 50,000 Chavez supporters marched on Saturday in Caracas, beginning at various points around the city and finishing outside the Venezuelan Foreign Ministry. Chavez spoke to the protest by phone from Iran, where he was visiting as part of a week long diplomatic tour. He said, "I congratulate everyone for continuing to defeat the plot against this country and the revolution...from here, from far away, I send you all my revolutionary heart and my promise that I won't rest [in the struggle] for freedom and the country." There was also a large rally in Caracas on Friday in the main plaza, and smaller rallies in the main plazas of the other states on both Friday and Saturday. In Merida, an opposition leaning state, there were small concentrations on Friday and Saturday, and no opposition protests. International Rallies in Support of Chavez and Against US Bases Latin American alternative TV station TeleSUR reported rallies in front of Venezuelan embassies to protest the US bases in Colombia and in support of Chavez in over 50 countries of South America and Europe, including a "large demonstration" in Ecuador, with speakers calling for the truth to be told about what is happening in Latin America. In Buenos Aires on Friday there was a protest with the theme of ‘Colombian Yankee military bases out'. Participants read out a statement titled, ‘With Chavez and against the bases' and the Venezuelan ambassador in Argentina, Arvelo Mendez, spoke to the crowd. TeleSUR reports that in Colombia students, intellectuals and university lecturers rallied in the capital, Bogata, to reject the war policies and rights violations of their government. In El Salvador marchers showed their solidarity with Chavez to the "rhythm of drums". In Madrid, Spain there was a large participation in a conference against the bases and in solidarity with Chavez, which was called by the Spanish Bolivarian Assembly. In Holland, following a small rally, there was also a public meeting in the Venezuelan embassy there, and Venezuelan legislator Edgar Lucena spoke, as well as ambassadors from Bolivia, Cuba, and Nicaragua. The Bolivarian Committee in Switzerland called a meeting in Geneva, in which various left wing party and movement representatives attended. The Venezuelan ambassador to the country also spoke there. Legislator to the Venezuelan National Assembly, Augusto Montiel, reported that social and political organisations in Belgium mobilised in support of Chavez and against the bases. He also said that united European left parties and environment parties expressed their support for Chavez in the European parliament. Opposition protests in Venezuela According to news agency EFE and aerial footage, around 5,000 people marched in the opposition protest in Caracas on Saturday, finishing outside the Attorney General's office. The march was peaceful and there were no incidents. Opposition spokespeople said they were asking for the "end of persecution against those who think differently" and were rejecting the "threat against marching freely" in reference to the comments by the attorney general that people who disturb the peace "to destabilize the government, or attack the democratic system," will be charged. Two weeks ago there were also pro- and anti-government protests in Caracas, in which the opposition protest ended with some violence after the opposition broke through police barriers in an effort to defer from their approved route. International protests against Chavez Organisers in Colombia used social networking sites Facebook and Twitter to call "No more Chavez" demonstrations for Friday 4 September. Organisers hoped for a large global turn out, but only Venezuela, Colombia and Honduras had sizeable marches. CNN quoted organisers saying the turnout was lower than expected. "We are not interested in quantity but quality," Marcela Garzon told the El Heraldo newspaper in Honduras, reported CNN. However, many major international media channels such as ABC and SBS in Australia only covered the anti-Chavez protests, and other channels such as CNN and BBC covered both anti and pro protests, but highlighted the anti-Chavez protests in their headlines and content. CNN reported, "Critics of Hugo Chavez marched in cities across the globe Friday, calling the Venezuelan president a dictator and violator of human rights." The US cable news network said, "In Colombia... marchers in Bogota blew whistles and held up signs saying ‘Get out of Colombia'" and explained that Colombians accuse Chavez of supporting the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). The BBC estimated 5,000 participants in the Bogota protest in Colombia and other agencies report another 3,500 protestors in Cali, Colombia. There was a sizeable march in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, lead by coup president Roberto Micheletti and organised by the Civic Democratic Union. Protestors were dressed in white and agencies report attendance of between 2-5,000 people to "reject the interventionalism of Chavez". They also report that 200 people rallied in New York City, outside the United Nations headquarters. Other protests were small or didn't happen. According to Venezuelan daily Diario Vea, in Australia there were less than 20 people, in Madrid there were less than 100, and Paris and Berlin also called protests but with no or little attendance. TeleSUR reports that no one turned up to the advertised rally points in Sao Paulo, Brazil, in Asuncion, Paraguay or in Montevideo, Uruguay and that 12 people rallied in Brussels. El Universal (Mexico) reported that "dozens" protested against Chavez in Chile and EFE reported around 100 in a protest in Panama. Nevertheless, Venezuelan daily El Universal carried the headline that, "144 cities in the world shouted ‘No more Chavez!'" Alejandro Gutierrez, one of the main organisers of the protests, told the press, "The world is tired of the tyrannical attitudes of president Hugo Chavez, and his intention to export his crazy revolution." The Venezuelan ambassador in Colombia, Gustavo Marquez, said the protests against the Venezuelan government are part of a US lead strategy against the Latin American region and its progressive governments. Source: Venezuelanalysis.com Oliver Stone's Hugo Chavez Film Makes Venice Premiere Posted: Monday, September 7, 2009 Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez received a movie star welcome Monday at the Venice Film Festival, where he walked the red carpet with director Oliver Stone for the premiere of the documentary "South of the Border." Hundreds of admirers, some chanting "president, president," gathered outside of the Casino for the leader's arrival. A few held up Venezuelan flags and a banner in Spanish that read "Welcome, president." Chavez threw a flower into the crowd and touched his heart, and at one point took a photographer's camera to snap a picture himself. Security outside the Casino was tightened in advance of his arrival with military police checking bags. Chavez praised Stone's work for depicting what he said were improvements made across Latin America. Full Article : huffingtonpost.com Chavez Opposition and Supporters March Again Peacefully in Venezuela Posted: Sunday, September 6, 2009 Thousands in opposition and in support of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez marched peacefully again Saturday through two districts of Caracas to express their repudiation and backing, respectively, for the Bolivarian "revolution" established in Venezuela a decade ago. The opposition march "for freedom and democracy" began in the Chacaito district on the capital's east side, and ended downtown without incident at the doors of the Attorney General's Office. Full Article : laht.com Venezuelan President Strengthens Relations with Libya, Algeria, and Syria on Tour Posted: Saturday, September 5, 2009 By James Suggett September 5th 2009 - Venezuelanalysis.com On a diplomatic tour through Africa, the Middle East, and Eastern Europe, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez visited Libya, Algeria, and Syria this week to concretize bilateral economic and political accords and strengthen relationships among countries of the Global South. After commemorating the 40th anniversary of the Libyan revolution alongside the leader of the revolution, Muammar al-Gaddafi, Chavez expressed his support for unity and anti-imperialism on the African continent in a speech before a special summit of the African Union in Tripoli, Libya."Africa should never again allow countries to come from across the seas to impose certain political, economic, and social systems. Africa should be of the Africans, and only by way of unity will Africa be free and great," said Chávez. Chavez also met with the presidents of Niger, Mauritania, and Mali during the summit. He compared the African Union's disapproval of the U.S.'s military operations on the African continent through AFRICOM to the rejection of the increased U.S. military presence in Colombia by the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR) during a summit in Argentina last weekend. In Algeria, Chavez and Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika drew up what they called a "work map" for bilateral cooperation. Chavez invited Algeria, which is a member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries along with Venezuela and Libya, to form a mixed enterprise with the Venezuelan state oil company PDVSA to exploit Venezuela's vast Orinoco Oil Belt. "The oil in the [Orinoco Oil Belt] is heavy, and Algeria's is light. There we have potential to produce mixtures and improve our oil," said Chavez, adding that cooperation in the production of natural gas, petrochemicals, the fishing industry, and tourism were also on the agenda. On his tour, Chavez also promoted the South America-Africa Summit, which is scheduled to take place on September 25 to 27 on the Venezuelan resort Margarita Island. So far, fifty-four African heads of state have confirmed their attendance. In the week leading up to the summit, Venezuela's ministries of education, culture, women and gender equality, and foreign relations will host thousands of diplomats, university students and professors, politicians and cultural workers from the African continent at the III Cultural Festival of the Peoples of Africa. The festival's purpose is for the peoples of both continents "to recognize themselves as part of the same origin, the same struggle for life, liberty, and self-determination," according to the event organizers. Syria Chavez was greeted by a large crowd upon his arrival in the Syrian province of Swaida. The Syrian government named a street after Venezuela in honor of Chavez's visit. In a speech before the crowd, Chavez referred to the people of Syria as "architects of resistance" to imperialism, and reiterated the need for Global South countries to unite. "We should fight to create consciousness that is free from imperialist doctrine... fight to defeat backwardness, poverty, misery... to convert our countries into true powers through the consciousness of the people," said the Venezuelan president. Chavez also strongly criticized Israel's military occupation of Palestinian territories. This policy, and most recently Venezuela's severance of diplomatic ties with Israel to protest Israel's bombing of Gaza earlier this year, has garnered strong support for Venezuela among many countries in the Middle East. Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad met with Chavez, who was accompanied by Foreign Relations Minister Nicolas Maduro and Commerce Minister Eduardo Saman, to lay out plans for a joint oil refinery that is to be completed in 2013, as well as a mixed enterprise to produce canned olives and olive oil. In addition, Chavez proposed the installment of a branch of the Caracas-based Latin American news network Telesur in Syria, "so they can watch the news from the Latin American world." He offered the support of Venezuela's national telecommunications company CANTV to improve Syria's telecommunications services. The Venezuelan leader will now head to Iran, Belarus, and Russia, countries with which Venezuela has already signed an array of energy cooperation accords, and finish off his tour in Spain, where he will meet with Spanish President Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero. Source: Venezuelanalysis.com Ahmadinejad, Chavez back 'revolutionary' nations Posted: Saturday, September 5, 2009 Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadineajd and his Venezuelan counterpart Hugo Chavez vowed on Saturday to back revolutionary nations and form anti-imperialist fronts, the official IRNA news agency said. "Helping the oppressed and revolutionary nations and expanding anti-imperialist fronts are the main missions of Iran and Venezuela," Ahmadinejad said after meeting Chavez who is on a two-day visit to Tehran. Full Article : breitbart.com Chavez: No proof of Iran nuclear bomb Posted: Saturday, September 5, 2009 "There is no single proof that Iran is building a nuclear bomb," Chavez was quoted as saying after arriving in Tehran early Saturday. "We are certain that Iran, as it has shown, will not back down in its effort to obtain what is a sovereign right of the people -- to have all the equipment and structures to use atomic energy for peaceful purposes," Chavez said. He also said Venezuela aims to build "a nuclear village" with Iran's assistance. Full Article : xinhuanet.com U.S. NGO's Case against Venezuela's Citgo and Chavez Dismissed Posted: Friday, September 4, 2009 By Tamara Pearson September 2nd 2009 – Venezuelanalysis.com On Monday a U.S. judged dismissed a lawsuit filed against Citgo, a U.S.-based subsidiary of Venezuela's state oil company PDVSA. The company and Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez were accused of alleged terrorist acts and human rights abuses. Full Article : venezuelanalysis.com Playing the 'Anti-Semitism' Card Against Venezuela Posted: Friday, September 4, 2009 The January Attack on a Caracas Synagogue Turns Out to Have Been a Robbery Orchestrated by the Temple's Private Security Firm By Eric Wingerter and Justin Delacour September 03, 2009 In the early morning hours of January 31, vandals broke into Tiferet Israel, a Sephardic synagogue in Caracas. They strewed sacred scrolls on the floor and scribbled "Death to the Jews" and other anti-Semitic epithets on the walls, before making off with computer equipment and historical artifacts. Understandably, the incident frightened and upset many in the Venezuelan Jewish community. Right away, U.S. news outlets, including The New York Times and The Miami Herald, linked the incident to Venezuela’s increasingly strained relations with Israel, after the two countries suspended diplomatic relations two weeks earlier over Israel’s bombing of Gaza, then still under way. A Herald editorial went so far as to describe an "official policy of anti-Semitism" in Venezuela and implied that Chávez’s foreign policy had unleashed a wave of anti-Semitic violence in the country, culminating in the assault on the synagogue. Some international NGOs were no more nuanced. Just hours after the break-in, the U.S.-based Anti-Defamation League (ADL) was already implicitly comparing the Chávez government to the Nazis, calling the synagogue attack "a modern-day Kristallnacht." But the Caracas police investigation bore out a different story. Authorities quickly realized that the synagogue’s security fence had been cut from the inside, prompting detectives to investigate the break-in as an inside job. Within the week it became clear that the attack had in fact been a robbery disguised as anti-Semitic vandalism, carried out by the synagogue’s privately contracted security team. Eleven men were arrested for their role in the plot, and their statements to the police indicated that the graffiti and desecration were intended to throw off investigators. Full Article : nacla.org Venezuela Invests Surplus Oil Dollars in Education, Housing, and Industry Posted: Friday, September 4, 2009 By James Suggett September 3rd 2009 - venezuelanalysis.com The increase in Venezuelan government spending on public housing and education, and the re-opening of a General Motors automobile factory are among signs that the Venezuelan economy may be set to recover from its contraction of 1% in the first half of the year. Meanwhile, monthly inflation rose slightly to 2.2% in August. In recent months, Venezuela's National Assembly approved more than 20 billion bolivars (US $9.3 billion) in credits, increasing the estimated total budget for this year from 167 billion bolivars (US $77.7 billion) to 180 billion bolivars (US $83.7 billion). A fifth of the credits were granted to public education, for which a new Education Law that promises increased funding was passed last month, one tenth were granted to the Housing and Public Works Ministry, and nearly half of the credits were granted to the state and local governments, while the rest went to health care and agriculture, according to the Venezuelan daily El Universal. This follows a period of conservative spending over the first half of the year, when the government adjusted its budget based on an expected average income of $40 per barrel of oil, and spent 5.2% less than it did during the first half of last year. It also raised the sales tax and increased its domestic debt to cope with a drop in oil prices from nearly $150 per barrel the previous year. Since then, however, oil prices have risen. The average price of oil produced by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) has hovered between $65 and $70 per barrel recently, and the average price of Venezuela's crude over the course of this year is more than $50 per barrel, indicating a budget surplus for the Caribbean country whose oil accounts for more than 90% of exports. Meanwhile, General Motors announced it had reached an agreement with the Venezuelan government for the issuance of dollars at the official exchange rate of 2.15 bolivars, and will thus re-open its auto factory in Valencia, Carabobo state next Monday. The factory had been closed in June due to a lack of auto parts which could not be imported because the supply of government-issued dollars had been tightened. Nelson Merentes, the president of the Central Bank of Venezuela (BCV), said the government's resolution of a series of imbalances in the supply of government-issued dollars and its payments to solicitors of these dollars is a sign that the economy is poised for a turnaround. "The reality is that the oil prices continue to rise, CADIVI [the agency which manages the dollar supply] is improving its operations, and there is a strong relationship between the BCV and the Finance and Planning Ministries, where we are working hard so that the economy continues to grow in the coming months," said Merentes in a recent televised interview. The president of the National Statistics Institute (INE), Elias Eljuri, explained that "Venezuela during this whole period [of the world economic downturn] has maintained its growth and its savings of important resources that have allowed it to maintain social spending and not decrease its investments." Merentes also said the government is discussing measures to reduce the gap between the official value of the dollar and the informal market value of the dollar, which approached seven bolivars recently. These measures are expected to be announced later this month. "The parallel dollar has a great impact on inflation," Merentes said. In August, monthly inflation was 2.2%, a slight acceleration relative to the 2.1% monthly inflation in July, according to the INE. This brought the accumulated inflation this year to 15.6%, which is less than 19.4% the accumulated inflation over the first eight months of last year. In addition, the INE reports that Venezuela's unemployment rate at the end of July was 8.5%, an increase over the average unemployment rate of 7.9% over the first half of the year. Also, as of September 1st, Venezuela's minimum wage officially increased by 10% to 960 bolivars (US $447) per month. The increase completes the government's promise to increase the minimum wage by a total of 20% in two stages beginning last May 1st. The minimum wage increase is understood to largely be an adjustment to Venezuela's high inflation rate relative to the region. Inflation was spurred by more than twenty quarters of consecutive GDP growth prior to this year's contraction. The wage increase was accompanied by a year-long prohibition of layoffs of workers earning the minimum wage without just cause. Source: venezuelanalysis.com Obama administration uses Blackwater in drone killings Posted: Tuesday, September 1, 2009 ¤ Colombia says president has swine flu ¤ Opposition wins landslide in Japan election ¤ Japan Democrats take power, tough challenges loom Japan's next leader Yukio Hatoyama, fresh from a historic election win, faced the task on Monday of forming a government to tackle challenges such as reviving the economy and steering a new course with close ally Washington. ¤ Lockerbie: The Real Cover Up ¤ Secret documents uncover UK's interest in Libyan oil Libya has been courted by government ministers and Foreign Office mandarins on a dozen or more occasions in pursuit of lucrative oil and gas contracts. ¤ Is The USA A Sick Country Or What? ¤ Obama administration uses Blackwater in drone killings In the wake of Thursday's revelations that the Bush administration hired Blackwater USA to carry out assassinations of alleged Al Qaeda operatives, more information has come to light regarding the intimate and ongoing relationship between the shadowy paramilitary security contractor and the American state. ¤ Iranian Sunni rebel confesses U.S. role in terror plots inside Iran ¤ Outgoing IAEA Chief ElBaradei Calls Iranian Threat 'Hyped' ¤ How Lockerbie bomber appeal threatened Scottish justice ¤ While the world looks the other way, its children are stunted ¤ Noam Chomsky Meets with Chavez in Venezuela U.S. author, dissident intellectual, and Professor of Linguistics at the Massachussetts Institute of Technology Noam Chomsky met for the first time with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez in Caracas and analyzed hemispheric politics during a nationally televised forum on Monday. ¤ Is this Evidence of Sri Lankan 'War Crimes'? A video clip received from Journalists for Democracy in Sri Lanka (JDS) evidences the way extra-judicial killings are executed in the island. The video captured in January show the behaviour of Sri Lankas soldiers during the war that is claimed humanitarian operation to rescue the Tamils, JDS reported Tuesday ¤ US Wants 20,000 More Troops to Fight Taliban ¤ CIA Releases Its Instructions For Breaking a Detainee's Will ¤ Tutu to Haaretz: Arabs paying the price of the Holocaust ¤ Gaddafi: Israel 'aids Africa wars' ¤ Why Not Crippling Sanctions for Israel and the US? In Israel, a country stolen from the Palestinians, fanatics control the government. One of the fanatics is the prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu. Last week Netanyahu called for "crippling sanctions" against Iran. The kind of blockade that Netanyahu wants qualifies as an act of war. Israel has long threatened to attack Iran on its own but prefers to draw in the US and NATO. Why does Israel want to initiate a war between the United States and Iran? ¤ Luster is Off Obama's `High Moral Ground' ¤ The Silence of the Antiwar Movement is Deafening A funny thing has happened on Cindy Sheehan's long road from Crawford, Texas, to Martha's Vineyard. Many of those who claim to lead the peace movement and who so volubly praised her actions in Crawford, TX, are not to be seen. Nor heard. The silence in fact is deafening, or as Cindy put it in an email to this writer, "crashingly deafening." Where are the email appeals to join Cindy from The Nation or from AFSC or Peace Action or "Progressive" Democrats of America (PDA) or even Code Pink? Or United for Peace and Justice. ¤ The Brute Factory ¤ The Truth Of Iraq's City Of Deformed Babies ¤ What Obama Isn't Telling You About Afghanistan ¤ Profitting From Pandemics The swine flu pandemic can be plenty good for business. In his article, "A Capitalist Pig's View of Swine Flu," investor Brian Orelli said that "there is nothing wrong with drug companies and investors making money" from the crisis. "If we do reach pandemic stage," he said on April 27th, "the big winners would be companies developing ways to quickly produce vaccines." ¤ A Sea of Monocrops ¤ Israeli Organ Harvesting ¤ Bill Would Give President Emergency Control of Internet ¤ Beware the Mass Media |
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