Iran Sees U.S. Behind Chavez's Venezuela Ouster

yahoo.com ^ | Apr 13, 2002 6:27 AM ET | Gilles Trequesser, Reuters

[Cincinatus' Wife]

TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran, which had built up friendly ties with deposed Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, said Saturday the fiery populist's ouster by the military was in part hatched by the United States.

State television said Washington was concerned that Venezuela -- the world's No 4 oil exporter and a leading supplier of petroleum products to the U.S. -- would heed a call by Iran to cut oil supplies for one month to countries that support Israel.

Noting that Chavez's foreign policies "were contrary to American interests in Latin America" it said the flamboyant ex-paratrooper's fall "reminds one of the American-backed coup by General Augusto Pinochet in Chile in 1973."

Chavez, whose mandate was due to end in 2006, was forced out of power Friday by the armed forces who blamed him for street violence against a huge opposition protest during a general strike in which 15 people were killed in central Caracas.

Elected in a landslide in 1998 with a pledge to lead a so-called peaceful revolution in favor of the poor majority of Venezuelans, Chavez had angered the U.S. government by his strident anti-American rhetoric and strong ties with Cuba.

He had visited fellow OPEC -member Iran and was warmly received in a country strongly opposed to Washington since the 1979 Islamic Revolution and recently labeled by President Bush part of "an axis of evil."

The White House, clearly pleased by Chavez's departure, said it did not consider his ouster a coup and said the Venezuelan people rose up for the protection of democracy.

WAS VENEZUELA TO JOIN EMBARGO?

But for Iranian television, "the most important reason for America's concern was the issue of oil...There was an increasing probability that Venezuela would also support the stoppage" of supplies, suggested by Tehran.

It provided no evidence however that Chavez's government was indeed considering a suspension of oil exports to countries allied with Israel in protest at its military incursion into Palestinian areas of the West Bank.

Iraq has banned oil exports for one month for that reason but non-Arab Iran said it would do so only if the move found unanimous support among Muslim countries.

Iranian newspapers also saw the American hand in Chavez's downfall.

"Some reports indicate the United States gave the green light for the coup d'etat and that Chavez was deposed because of his avowed anti-American policies," wrote Resallat, a conservative daily.

For Jomhooriye Eslami, widely seen as the mouthpiece of religious hard-liners, Chavez's ouster was "the culmination of a concerted effort in which the United States played no small part. The deposing of a government that favored a policy aimed at cutting the production and raising the price of oil is no accident."

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Venezuela's Power Shift Condemned

[xm177e2]

Iran Sees U.S. Behind Chavez's Venezuela Ouster

And so do the dorks at IndyMedia... but who cares?

[etcetera]

Hey, if this was a CIA operation I say, "Good work!". Finally the CIA gets one right!

[Cincinatus' Wife]

But for Iranian television, "the most important reason for America's concern was the issue of oil...There was an increasing probability that Venezuela would also support the stoppage" of supplies, suggested by Tehran.

Bump!

[Cincinatus' Wife]

The credit goes to the people of Venezuela. They'd had enough of Castro II.

4-10-02 San Diego Union-Tribune Ruining Venezuela - An example of how not to help the poor [Full Text] Time may be running out on the stormy tenure of ex-paratrooper Hugo Chavez as Venezuela's president. Rumors of a coup and speculation on constitutional means of removing the autocratic Chavez are common fare on the streets of Caracas these days.

There is an object lesson in all this.

Chavez, elected president in 1998 after failing to seize power in a 1992 coup d'etat, styles himself a left-wing nationalist. He proclaims his admiration for Cuba's Fidel Castro and reportedly aids neighboring Colombia's Marxist guerrillas. Chavez' so-called "Bolivarian revolution" (after Latin America's 19th century liberator, Simn Bolivar) was supposed to raise living standards for the estimated 60 percent of Venezuelans who live in poverty.

But neither Chavez nor his ill-conceived "revolution" has delivered on its promises. Quite the contrary.

Despite oil wealth that makes Venezuela the No. 4 petroleum exporter in the world and the No. 3 exporter to the United States, the country's mismanaged economy is slumping badly. A zero growth rate is likely this year and inflation could reach 20 percent. The government's budget deficit is large and growing, credit is tight, and foreign investment is down.

Amid the political turmoil which Chavez has incited, Venezuela now suffers from capital flight and a brain drain, as some of the country's brightest move to Miami.

Having alienated most of his country''s influential interest groups - business, trade unions, landowners, the military, the Catholic Church and the press - Chavez is fast running out of supporters. His public approval ratings have fallen from 80 percent in 1999 to 24 percent in February.

Chavez' 49 economic laws imposed by decree last year sharply increased government intervention in Venezuela's already over-regulated economy. Chavez' current drive to put his political cronies in charge of the state-controlled oil industry is prompting spreading strikes. His land reform program looks more like organized theft. Private property rights, so essential to economic development, are declining in Chavez' Venezuela.

Chavez' thuggish tactics also threaten his country's political and civil institutions. He bullies political opponents. He incites mob violence against Venezuela's newspapers and broadcast media, which increasingly oppose his destructive strong-arm rule.

In effect, the results are in on Chavez' brand of left-wing populism and strong-arm government as an answer to poverty and social ills in Latin America. It doesn't work: Not in Chavez' Venezuela, not in Argentina under Juan Pern in the 1950s, not in Peru under that country's left-leaning military junta of the 1970s, not in Sandinista Nicaragua in the 1980s nor, indeed, anywhere. [End]

[dennisw]

It sure looks like the events in Venezuela got the attention of the Arab oil producers and the Iranians. Signal being sent them is the USA got rid of Chavez and you might be next. At minimum we will fund insurgents and tribes that will rise up and fight you. You bother us and we will find ways to bother you.

The CIA is once again a player. The USA extends it reach to South America today and tomorrow the MidEast

[dennisw]

Psssst. Don't tell the Arabs. Let them believe it was the CIA. Anyway I believe the CIA was involved even if not the biggest factor. Those days are gone......But can return!

[The Great Satan]

Axis of Sanity bump.

[livius]

No matter what we did or didn't do, they would have attributed it to us. Just one of the burdens of being the Great Satan, I guess.

[jalisco555]

The Iranian dictators know that their people will be emboldened by the actions of the Venezuelans and so they are desperately trying to blame this on the CIA. They know that Chavez's fate will soon be theirs.

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Iran and Cuba bolster ties, strengthen anti-US solidarity [Excerpt] Castro for his part said Havana is not "afraid of America, and the Cuban nation, 40 years after its revolution, is now stronger then ever.

"Iran and Cuba, in cooperation with each other, can bring America to its knees. The US regime is very weak, and we are witnessing this weakness from close up," Castro affirmed.

During his trip, the Cuban leader also held meetings with Iran's Foreign Minister Kamal Kharazi, parliament speaker Mehdi Karubi, as well as former president Akbar Hashemi-Rafsanjani.

He also received an honorary doctorate from a Tehran university for his "contributions to justice, humanist ideals and the fight against discrimination."

Castro told journalists before leaving Tehran that he was "totally reassured about Iran. There is great hope for the future of relations between Cuba and Iran. I am leaving with many unforgettable memories." [End Excerpt]

[dennisw]

BTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT I love Iran when it goes PARANOID and fearing the CIA!

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Hopefully, they have something to fear.

[steve50]

God Bless the empire

[wretchard]

I think the Iranians are right, it was an American torpedo that sank Chavez's ship of state in the night. But are they drawing the correct inferences? Therefore Iran must continue it's war against the Great Satan, which has never held an inch of Iranian soil? Or therefore the Ayatollahs are doomed to follow Chavez to the bottom of the ocean?

[Bogie]

CIA? To a certain extent, perhaps. But really, when was the last time you saw labor unions against a commie leader? Poland in 1980 perhaps?

It dosen't happen often, and when it does there is usualy something genuine about it.

[SolitaryMan]

Wasn't he an active supporter of Columbia's FARC?

[Maceman]

Hey you Iranian Islamofascist oppressors of your people -- you're NEXT!

[chilepepper]

What? Do I hear the gnashing of teeth?

[AdvisorB]

Thank you for the job you have done keeping us informed about the breaking news coming out of Venezuela. I believe that the ouster of the leftist-populist chavez was a watershed event in our fight against the forces of world terrorism. Little hugo had thrown his lot in with the ayatollahs and saddams of this world, so he was directly responsible for his overthrow. This is a major setback for opec, and those who support shahids, and hence, a victory for the US and the western world. I hope that they will try chavez in a military court along with many of his top supporters who were instrumental in the deaths of those innocent Venezuelan protestors. They must not allow these beasts to scurry back to the cuban hive. They must meet their end before Venezuealan firing squads.

[Tijeras_Slim]

Iran needs some industrial strength tin-foil.

Really, can anyone believe that the US could get 200,000 people in any Latin American country to turn out to protest for something that Uncle Sam wants? LOL!!

[American in Israel]

?Iran Sees U.S. Behind Chavez's Venezuela Ouster

Well that is different, Instead of the usual Joo plot this one is an American Plot. We have made the big time in the little town.

[Kermit]

"Iran, which had built up friendly ties with deposed Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, said Saturday the fiery populist's ouster by the military was in part hatched by the United States."

Darn right, muthas and your regime is on our list. Start packin'!

[MindBender26]

CW,

And the problem is......?

[Kermit]

Here's how to fight poverty in third world countries:

These people who write on third world development are so friggin' stupid, they haven't learned anything in 50 years. They've been coming up with magical thoughts for 50 years on "development". State planning was the solution. Exports were the solution. Democracy was the solution. World Banks loans to governments were the solution. Aid is still the solution according to Bush and his latest scheme. Now, they pretend that "globalization" was the solution.

But they are blind. They write about ending poverty, without ever talking about property.

Poverty = lack of wealth
Wealth = property
Ending poverty = getting property in the hands of the poor.

D'oh!

Here's the way to go about it. I recommend to everyone to read this book, it'll open your eyes and immunize you against the type of nonsense in this article.

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The Mystery of Capital: Why Capitalism Triumphs in the West and Fails Everywhere Else
by Hernando De Soto, Hernando De Soto

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Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
It's become clear by now the fall of the Berlin Wall and the collapse of communism in most places around the globe hasn't ushered in an unequivocal flowering of capitalism in the developing and postcommunist world. Western thinkers have blamed this on everything from these countries' lack of sellable assets to their inherently non-entrepreneurial "mindset." In this book, the renowned Peruvian economist and adviser to presidents and prime ministers Hernando de Soto proposes and argues another reason: it's not that poor, postcommunist countries don't have the assets to make capitalism flourish. As de Soto points out by way of example, in Egypt, the wealth the poor have accumulated is worth 55 times as much as the sum of all direct foreign investment ever recorded there, including that spent on building the Suez Canal and the Aswan Dam.

No, the real problem is that such countries have yet to establish and normalize the invisible network of laws that turns assets from "dead" into "liquid" capital. In the West, standardized laws allow us to mortgage a house to raise money for a new venture, permit the worth of a company to be broken up into so many publicly tradable stocks, and make it possible to govern and appraise property with agreed-upon rules that hold across neighborhoods, towns, or regions. This invisible infrastructure of "asset management"--so taken for granted in the West, even though it has only fully existed in the United States for the past 100 years--is the missing ingredient to success with capitalism, insists de Soto. But even though that link is primarily a legal one, he argues that the process of making it a normalized component of a society is more a political--or attitude-changing--challenge than anything else.

With a fleet of researchers, de Soto has sought out detailed evidence from struggling economies around the world to back up his claims. The result is a fascinating and solidly supported look at the one component that's holding much of the world back from developing healthy free markets. --Timothy Murphy --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From The Industry Standard
"An increasingly important economist provides a fascinating lesson in why capitalism works by looking at the places where it doesn't." --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

See all editorial reviews...

[Tequila Mockingbird]

The Venezuelan people should be admired for having the good sense and guts to throw out their leftist buffoon.

[varon]

But really, when was the last time you saw labor unions against a commie leader?

Maybe that explains why the Democrats & Labor Unions are bed partners here in the U.S..

[Lockbox]

the fiery populist's ouster by the military was in part hatched by the United States.

and who’s next?????????????

[Lockbox]

If we can keep Hillary out of the Oval Office, we will not have to add “God Save The Queen”.

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Wasn't he an active supporter of Columbia's FARC?

Yes indeed-de he certainly was. Check it out. Colombia 'Worried' FARC Crossing Into Venezuela

[Cincinatus' Wife]

But really, when was the last time you saw labor unions against a commie leader? Poland in 1980 perhaps?
It dosen't happen often, and when it does there is usualy something genuine about it.

Great point.

[steve50]

I have no hope of keeping hiltery out, she fits in perfectly with where the NWO wants this nation to go. I just hope we can get some of the police powers under control before the witch is installed and bill heads the UN.

[Cincinatus' Wife]

An interesting thing is Venezuela's Alí Rodríguez currently holds the chairmanship of OPEC.
I wonder, is this office held on a rotation basis or is it elected or what.

[philosofy123]

I think it was the work of the CIA, but that is not saying much. It only shows that Chavez is no Saddam, Quaddafi, Ayatollah Khomeni, or Arafat!

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Bump for capitalism!!

[jalisco555]

A big de Soto bump. A great man, insufficiently appreciated.

[jalisco555]

You know, I think we may be at the beginning of a repeat of 1989, when one dictatorship after another gets overthrown by people who simply won't take any more. Hope so, anyway.

[McGavin999]

Excellent. It's nice to see that there are still clear thinkers posting on this board.

[Cincinatus' Wife]

You know, I think we may be at the beginning of a repeat of 1989, when one dictatorship after another gets overthrown by people who simply won't take any more. Hope so, anyway.

The idea of freedom is contagious. The despots better bar their doors.

[demlosers]

"Iran and Cuba, in cooperation with each other, can bring America to its knees. The US regime is very weak, and we are witnessing this weakness from close up," Castro affirmed.

Hahahahaahahahah........

[PhilDragoo]

U.S. GAVE GREEN LIGHT FOR COUP COUP CA-CHOO

Source: Hookah-smoking Iranian Caterpillar Eggman

BIOGRAPHY
Ambassador Otto J. Reich
Assistant Secretary of State,
Western Hemisphere Affairs

Otto Juan Reich was sworn in as Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs on January 11, 2002. He has spent over 30 years in hemispheric affairs, in government, private enterprise, and the U.S. military.

From 1989 to 2001, Ambassador Reich was in private practice, advising U.S. and multinational clients on government relations, market access and strategic planning, as a partner in the Brock Group and later as President of his own consulting firm.

From 1986 to 1989 Ambassador Reich served as U.S. Ambassador to Venezuela, for which he received the highest awards of both the State Department and the Republic of Venezuela. As Special Adviser to the Secretary of State from 1983-1986, he established and managed the inter-agency Office of Public Diplomacy for Latin America and the Caribbean at the Department of State, which received the Department's Meritorious Honor Award.

From 1981 to 1983 he was Assistant Administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) in charge of U.S economic assistance to Latin America and the Caribbean. In 1991 and 1992, as a private citizen and at the request of President George H.W. Bush, Ambassador Reich served as Alternate U.S. Representative to the UN Human Rights Commission in Geneva.

His prior experience includes service as Washington Director of the Council of the Americas; Community Development Coordinator for the City of Miami, Florida; International Representative of the State of Florida Department of Commerce; and staff assistant in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Ambassador Reich's military service included duty as a Lieutenant in the U.S. Army (1967-1969) in the 3rd Civil Affairs Detachment (Airborne), Panama Canal Zone. He received a Bachelor's degree in International Studies from the University of North Carolina (1966) and a Master's degree in Latin American Studies from Georgetown University (1973). He has appeared regularly in U.S. and Latin America news media and was co-host of CNN International's "Choque de Opiniones," a Spanish-language version of CNN's "Crossfire."

Ambassador Reich has been a Director of numerous private and non-profit corporations.

[Kermit]

Have you read "Mystery of Capital"? I've hoped more people would've picked up on De Soto, but yours is the first comment.

[jalisco555]

Yes, I have read it. Having lived in Mexico I can attest to the truth of what he says. The so-called Third World is filled with hard-working, ambitious people held back by terrible governments. All they need is the proper environment to unleash their talents. Why do you think the grandchildren of impoverished Sicilian or Polish or Mexican peasants become millionaires or CEO's or doctors here?

Unfortunately, the very people who would have to institute the reforms de Soto recommends would be the people most harmed by them. Nevertheless, de Soto's thesis is actually very optimistic since he says merely legal changes and not the far more difficult cultural changes are all that is necessary to tackle poverty.