Posted on 02/27/2003 2:24:58 AM PST by Cincinatus' Wife
Edited on 07/12/2004 4:01:09 PM PDT by Jim Robinson. [history]
In Venezuela, the heavy-handed charges against two opposition leaders suggest President Hugo Chavez is determined to prove his harshest detractors right. And the best that can be said of the recent violence perpetrated by Chavez supporters is that the president has become unable to secure the safety of citizens.
(Excerpt) Read more at washtimes.com ...
After Iraq, there will come a reckoning with this street thug with Cuban handlers.
He already has one. It's run by Cubans.
The government is already preparing for the worst. The 2003 budget for the oil company was cut by $2.7 billion, to about $6 billion, while the income the government draws from oil is forecast by UBS Warburg to fall from $11.5 billion in 2002 to as little as $5 billion in 2003. The drop will make it especially difficult to raise the $5 billion the company would have spent to keep production steady.
Alí Rodríguez, the former leftist guerrilla turned president of Petróleos de Venezuela, does not gloss over the obstacles. But in an interview, Mr. Rodríguez said the doomsday predictions originated with dissident executives who hoped to undermine international confidence in the oil company to weaken Mr. Chávez.
He predicted that through sharp budget and personnel cuts, the company would reach 3.1 million barrels a day. And "with its resources," he said, "it is perfectly possible that it will even surpass that level."
To be sure, the Petróleos de Venezuela now emerging will be a far different company, in both its management and philosophy.***
Bump!
Venezuelan Air Force Major Juan Diaz Castillo, who is now seeking political asylum in the United States and says his "life and liberty are in danger in Venezuela," says Chavez chose him to conduct the transfer because he trusted him as a close personal assistant. But Díaz, disgusted with Chavez's regime, resigned his post on October 25 - and fled following a December 16 attempt on his life.
At a Miami press conference this past Sunday, Diaz said that shortly following the September 11 terrorist attacks, Chavez commissioned him "to organize, coordinate, and execute a covert operation consisting of delivering financial resources, specifically $1 million, to [Afghanistan's] Taliban government, in order for them to assist the al-Qaeda terrorist organization," while, "making it appear as if humanitarian aid were being extended to the Afghan people."
The first attempt to transfer the money fell through, but in late September 2001 Venezuelan Vice President Diosdado Cabello decided to funnel the money through Venezuela's ambassador in India, one Walter Marquez. The Taliban received the money and publicly acknowledged receipt of $100,000 in "humanitarian aid." "The rest went straight to al Qaeda," claims Díaz Castillo. "That is, $900,000."***
Venezuelans savor solace in Miami - Others go home prepared - St. Petersburg Times - *** Fearing the worst, Venezuelans in South Florida who plan to return home to join antigovernment street protests are stocking up on protective material at security stores. On the streets of Caracas, opposition demonstrators clash almost daily with riot troops equipped with tear gas. Several people have died in shootings. "People are afraid," said Josephina Capriles, the Venezuelan-born owner of Spytrix, a North Miami security store where sales of bullet-proof jackets and gas masks are booming. "I used to sell two bulletproof jackets a month but now I sell three a day," she said, adding that the extra sales were to Venezuelans.
Capriles offers discounts to Venezuelan clients. An Italian-made jacket costs $375, reduced from $498. Gas masks go for around $140. Other popular items include Mace, stun guns and more powerful electromuscular disruption devices, which can put down a human target at 20 feet. "We are going back, but we have to be prepared," said Leopoldo Baptista, the 60-year-old owner of a major Venezuelan construction company. Baptista spent several thousand dollars at Spytrix on protective gear for his wife and children.***
America was the one anomaly. The one "experiment that went wrong". It was the one and only place the thugs and their mindless sheep lost the battle. Unfortunately, things have a tendency of returning to the status quo. And as time passes, anomolies tend to become absorbed into the norm.
The jackboot of the police state will eventually become a permanent establishment here, and I don't think anyone is going to do a thing about it, at least in any sizeable numbers. It's getting worse with time as the older generations die off, and the younger ones grow up with no concept of Freedom.
My heart tells me I'm wrong and that the flame of Freedom will never be extinguished in America. But my mind tells me otherwise.
Today is one of those days where I wish I was a mindless sheep, blind to what is happening, as it is difficult to witness the death of Freedom.
Exactly. This was their problem the first time they tried to get rid of Chavez. I think Chavez realizes it, and is working hard to get rid of anybody who might possibly emerge as a leader.
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