A post on NarcoSphere from a few days ago. It's extremely difficult to get a read on Venezuela and Hugo Chavez from the media distance of the US and through the haze of political rhetoric from the administration. The alternative view is a somewhat romanticized lefty one. The truth, of course, probably falls somewhere in between, though distrust of Bush pushes me towards the lefty side.
One thing is certain, the US has very dirty hands in South America. Rumsfeld's warning about external interference in the affairs of Bolivia elides the fact that the US, as in most South and Central American countries, has its own history of supporting nasty dictatorships and other forms of undemocracy in Bolivia. This is a major part of the history against which oppressed groups such as indigenous people are struggling. Hypocrisy! But also death and mayhem.
Chavez appears to be attempting to subvert and rewrite that history. It remains to be seen whether he's doing it in the interests of the broader populace or in the interests of a few.
By the way, if you've never read them, pick up copies of Eduardo Galeano's trilogy, Memory of Fire. An alternative history of the Americas and a fine piece of writing.
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