caucus99percent free-range politics, organic community

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egyptian_revolution_of_2011

military while being accused of "colluding" witb Putin (whatever "colluding" may mean) while Putin meddled in ~~Hillary's~~ our election?

Why do I get a deja vu about the Egyptian spring?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politics_of_Egypt

#1.1

b that if history on the coup attempts in VZ are predictors, the military will stay loyal to the elected maduro government. but this morning bill van auken at wsws who loathes the 'bourgeois capitalist maduro) writes:

"It was revealed last year that US officials repeatedly met between the fall of 2017 and the beginning of last year with a group of Venezuelan military officers seeking US support for the overthrow of Maduro. These contacts failed to reach fruition because Washington believed that the conspiracy was insufficiently prepared.

These calculations may now have changed. An isolated uprising by a group of national guardsmen who seized arms and police stations on Monday has been followed yesterday with a video statement from division Gen. Jesús Alberto Milano Mendoza, appearing together with other officers, declaring that the army should revolt against Maduro and that the high command should not serve as “the armed branch of the government for its personal benefit.” Milano Mendoza had previously served as the chief of Chávez’s presidential guard."

he notes that the davos elite have rolled out the carpet for bolsonaro, which he took to mean that the ruling class loves the coup, and that may well be because: bidness. he adds that so dos the NYT, and senator dick durban. as i'd been foolin' around with a report on davos, i'd noticed there was a panel on the sidebar close to 'how to we solve a problem like VZ?' likely the answer, if the discussion's already happened, was "R2P".

also, from sputnik news: 'Exiled Venezuelan Officers Incite the Military to Stop Supporting Maduro'

but a commenter on bill van auken's piece asked about the dem socialists sanders and ocasio, and i found this either at wikileaks' or cordelier's account:

When will self-proclaimed "democratic socialists" in Congress speak out? @AOC @SenSanders https://t.co/3nD4GAiOWK

— venezuelanalysis.com (@venanalysis) January 23, 2019

i checked, neither had anything on it, but i do remember ocasio asking on firing line why people kept implying that her socialism was like VZ's when she says it like finland's.

trump has also apparently to blockade VZ's ports, another good way to increase the misery factor.

Submitted by wendy davis on Thu, 01/24/2019 - 3:53pm

in your part I,

yes, you've got it. your part II, if you mean it was an astro-turfed kinda CIA color revolution, and clinton, et.al. chose the next prez (or the one folowing?) that's how i took it. another case of a secular leader overthrown by the (never mind) kind? but i may mistake your meaning, remembering incorrectly (as happens so often.) ; D

but oh how wwe cheered that gene sharp-esque revolution, and i...sharpe in particular until i earned that his was another gladio op.

Submitted by HenryAWallace on Fri, 01/25/2019 - 5:47am

You understood me.

Submitted by wendy davis on Fri, 01/25/2019 - 8:46am

whew! ; )

hideous morning updates on the way....

Submitted by Hawkfish on Wed, 01/23/2019 - 8:37pm

The commissioner?

@boriscleto Bernie bat signal

—

We can’t save the world by playing by the rules, because the rules have to be changed.
- Greta Thunberg

Submitted by HenryAWallace on Thu, 01/24/2019 - 2:12pm

I hadn't seen that one before. I like it.

@Hawkfish

Submitted by wendy davis on Thu, 01/24/2019 - 3:54pm

what is it?

well, who is the stand-in for batman?

Submitted by Amanda Matthews on Wed, 01/23/2019 - 5:06pm

America -The Land of the Free

Our motto is “We’ve never seen a coup that we couldn’t support or a duly elected leader that we wouldn’t toss to the wolves if it suits us.”

—

I'm tired of this back-slapping "Isn't humanity neat?" bullshit. We're a virus with shoes, okay? That's all we are. - Bill Hicks

Politics is the entertainment branch of industry. - Frank Zappa

Submitted by wendy davis on Wed, 01/23/2019 - 5:37pm

if it suits us: yes.

even though ya could see it comin' a mile or twenty off, i'm sooo pissed that most of the western world agrees. but the PR campaign against maduro has been formidable.

Submitted by The Aspie Corner on Wed, 01/23/2019 - 5:22pm

Yeah, I saw Pencildick's speech on this crap this morning.

These bloodsuckers will do anything they can to prop up the petrodollar.

—

Modern education is little more than toeing the line for the capitalist pigs.

Guerrilla Liberalism won't liberate the US or the world from the iron fist of capital.

Submitted by wendy davis on Wed, 01/23/2019 - 5:40pm

they've been plannin'

@The Aspie Corner

this since obomba had called VZ govt. a 'direct threat to amerikan national security'; military solutions are not off the table'. then keeeeeep squeezing the economy to death.

god's blood.

Submitted by Azazello on Thu, 01/24/2019 - 10:07am

Aaron Mate:

Tough day to be a Democratic Party hack — Trump is attempting regime change in the country that Obama officially deemed to be a “national security threat” https://t.co/KhvTbr0CSY

— Aaron Maté (@aaronjmate) January 23, 2019

—

We wanted decent healthcare, a living wage and free college.
The Democrats gave us Biden and war instead.

Submitted by wendy davis on Thu, 01/24/2019 - 10:40am

and there it is...

@Azazello

'in person'. gracias, amigo.

i'll add some sparkling eyes eyes humor from sergei lavrov today at RT: ‘US interfering in Venezuela? No need to ask Mueller to determine that – Lavrov’, rt today

self explanatory, but a bit or three:

"Russia accused the US of hypocrisy over its instigation of a coup in Venezuela, saying such actions are in sharp contrast to the outrage which Americans express over alleged interference in their own domestic political affairs.

The Russian minister said the speed of the developments on Wednesday indicated that the opposition’s move was likely orchestrated by foreign actors. [and the CIA, NED, et.al.]

The US has been actively undermining the government of President Nicolas Maduro for years and encouraging the opposition to depose him.

Lavrov said the Venezuelan opposition should decide which nation’s interests are paramount to them."

"Responding to questions from the media, Peskov said Caracas has not asked for Russia’s help to deal with the political crisis. At the moment Moscow considers the situation in the country to be an internal matter and does not plan to intervene diplomatically or in any other way, he said."

ain't lavrov a gem of a diplomat?

Submitted by wendy davis on Wed, 01/23/2019 - 6:14pm

a few additions, i'll embed the links later:

From WikiLeaks: @wikileaks 47m47 minutes ago

WikiLeaks Retweeted A/J REMIGIO CEBALLOS: “High military command in Venezuela now publicly stating support for Nicolas Maduro as Commander in Chief. Says military backs Maduro. Without army support, US government backed opposition cannot take control.”

“A tweet posted by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo condemning the landing of two Russian bombers in Venezuela as a “squandering” of public money, has quickly backfired, with many eager to point out some glaring hypocrisies.
Russia sent the two Tu-160 strategic bombers on the 10,000km trip to land at Simón Bolívar International Airport on Monday in a show of support for the government of President Nicolas Maduro, which has repeatedly expressed concerns that the US is trying to topple it.”, RT, Dec. 11, 2018

‘Unelected Brussels bureaucrats support ‘democracy’ in Venezuela ‘on behalf of EU’, 23 Jan, 2019, RT

“European Union has sided with “democratic forces” in Venezuela, backing the self-proclaimed president Juan Guaido over the elected government of Nicolas Maduro.
“Unlike Maduro, the parliamentary assembly, including Juan Guaido have a democratic mandate from Venezuelan citizens,” President of the European Council Donald Tusk tweeted on Wednesday evening, urging all of Europe to support “democratic forces” in Venezuela.
Meanwhile, the unelected EU High Representative for foreign policy, Federica Mogherini, likewise declared her support for Guaido’s self-proclaimed government, in language strangely reminiscent of EU support extended to Ukraine’s coup in 2014.

‘Venezuela Cuts Relations with United States Over Coup Support’, jan. 23, telesurenglish.net

‘The Case for the Legitimacy of Maduro's Second Term’, jan. 10, 2019, telesur english
https://www.telesurenglish.net/analysis/The-Case-for-the-Legitimacy-of-M...

#HandsOffVenezuela on twitter

pdf of CEPR's mark weisbrot explaining what further oil embargoes on VZ would do when he was on TRNN recently. for some reason i couldn't find it again at TRNN.

'Oil Sanctions on Venezuela Would Make Economic Recovery 'Impossible'

The Trump administration is currently evaluating oil sanctions on Venezuela. If implemented, they would make the current economic crisis in Venezuela far worse, and would make a recovery impossible, says CEPR's Mark Weisbrot.

Reuters reported on January 17 that Trump administration officials recently met with U.S. oil company executives to explore the possibility of imposing oil sanctions on Venezuela.
Approximately half of Venezuela's oil exports continue to go to the United States, despite
various financial sanctions that the U.S. already has in place against the government and
government officials. Oil sanctions have often been considered against Venezuela, but so far haven't happened, presumably because of the effect these would have on the U.S. oil market and on U.S. refiners. Reuters quotes one executive as saying that the oil sanctions planning is “more serious than I’ve heard before.”he'd also explained that the hyperinflation in VZ (the guardian always called it 1,000,000%) would be relatively easy to solve.

"Based on the approximately seven other cases of hyperinflation in Latin America during the
past 50 years, one can say what needs to be done. Weisbrot: “For example, in Bolivia in 1985 they had hyperinflation that was comparable to this, and they got rid of it in 10 days. And so the way in which they get rid of it is, in most cases, is called exchange rate-based stabilization …
You basically have to create a new currency system. … [You] fix your currency to the dollar at a rate that is reasonable. That is, that reflects current economic reality. And then you have to take a series of measures to restore confidence that the government isn't going to keep printing money…”

All of this, of course, presupposes that the government has some degree of flexibility and
revenues in order to make the peg of the new currency to the dollar reliable. But if imports and exports are being restricted by an outside force, such as the U.S., this is almost impossible to do. Imposing oil sanctions on Venezuela would make this even more unfeasible."

Mark Weisbrot: 'Trump’s Threats to Invade Venezuela Are Part of U.S. Strategy of Regime Change’, July 11, 2018, demoracynow.org, video and transcript

goddam them all.

Submitted by snoopydawg on Wed, 01/23/2019 - 5:44pm

It's a done deal

This has been in the works for a very long time and now it's done. Some of the tweets I read from Russia Today's article on this were downright creepy.

The US has effectively declared a coup in Venezuela. Trump recognized unelected right-wing opposition leader Juan Guaidó as new “president,” and the opposition has said very clearly that it plans mass privatization and neoliberal capitalist policies.https://t.co/luJRlH5FAW

— Ben Norton (@BenjaminNorton) January 23, 2019

Submitted by snoopydawg on Wed, 01/23/2019 - 5:53pm

Here's our gal Nikki

https://t.co/5U4qBG8wjK

— Caitlin Johnstone ⏳ (@caitoz) September 27, 2018

Gawd am I glad that she is gone. Anyone know if Trump's pick of the Fox News lady for UN ambassador is going to pass? I'm betting that the democrats won't put up too big of a fight against her.

Submitted by wendy davis on Wed, 01/23/2019 - 6:25pm

go, nikki!

@snoopydawg

(wish i could abide ben norton, snoop.)

Chavista crowds gathered in Caracas vow to oppose any US-backed coups and attempts against the constitution, and to set up vigils around Miraflores Palace pic.twitter.com/siZbfBc5O0

— venezuelanalysis.com (@venanalysis) January 23, 2019

and here i was puttin' together a satirical piece on davos 2019... used to be an annual tradition.

Submitted by wendy davis on Wed, 01/23/2019 - 6:06pm

more from trnn:

The US Strategy for Regime Change in Venezuela: TRNN Live, January 23, 2019
Alex Main discusses the crippling economic sanctions the U.S. has imposed on Venezuela with TRNN’s Sharmini Peries and Greg Wilpert. arrggh, 30 minutes

[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=4&v=KOMExpicTrg]

Submitted by Amanda Matthews on Wed, 01/23/2019 - 7:28pm

Wow! Trump jacked their gold stash!

@wendy davis
As usual, the US throws out ‘sanctions’ that are intended to cause the most suffering and harm for the masses.

Executive Order 13850 of November 1, 2018
Blocking Property of Additional Persons Contributing to the Situation in Venezuela

By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) (IEEPA), the National Emer- gencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.), section 212(f) of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 (8 U.S.C. 1182(f)) (INA), the Venezuela Defense of Human Rights and Civil Society Act of 2014 (Public Law 113–278), as amended (the Venezuelan Defense of Human Rights Act), and section 301 of title 3, United States Code,

I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of America, in order to take additional steps with respect to the national emergency declared in Executive Order 13692 of March 8, 2015, and relied upon for additional steps taken in Executive Order 13808 of August 24, 2017, Executive Order 13827 of March 19, 2018, and Executive Order 13835 of May 21, 2018, particularly in light of actions by the Maduro regime and associated persons to plunder Venezuela’s wealth for their own corrupt purposes, degrade Ven- ezuela’s infrastructure and natural environment through economic mis- management and confiscatory mining and industrial practices, and catalyze a regional migration crisis by neglecting the basic needs of the Venezuelan people, hereby order as follows:

Section 1. (a) All property and interests in property that are in the United States, that hereafter come within the United States, or that are or hereafter come within the possession or control of any United States person of the following persons are blocked and may not be transferred, paid, exported, withdrawn, or otherwise dealt in: any person determined by the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State:

(i) to operate in the gold sector of the Venezuelan economy or in any other sector of the Venezuelan economy as may be determined by the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State;

(ii) to be responsible for or complicit in, or to have directly or indirectly engaged in, any transaction or series of transactions involving deceptive practices or corruption and the Government of Venezuela or projects or programs administered by the Government of Venezuela, or to be an immediate adult family member of such a person;

(iii) to have materially assisted, sponsored, or
provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, any activity or transaction described in subsection (a)(ii) of this section, or any person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursu- ant to this order; or
(iv) to be owned or controlled by, or to have acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, any person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to this order.

(b) The prohibitions in subsection (a) of this section apply except to the extent provided by statutes, or in regulations, orders, directives, or licenses that may be issued pursuant to this order, and notwithstanding any contract entered into or any license or permit granted prior to the date of this order.

https://www.state.gov/e/eb/tfs/spi/venezuela/

And that’s only Section 1.

All your stuff be ours, Venezuela. So drop back five and punt.

—

I'm tired of this back-slapping "Isn't humanity neat?" bullshit. We're a virus with shoes, okay? That's all we are. - Bill Hicks

Politics is the entertainment branch of industry. - Frank Zappa

Submitted by wendy davis on Wed, 01/23/2019 - 8:51pm

good on ya;

i was trying to remember who had the story about (was it?) the bank of england refusing to give VZ back their own gold because: sanctions.

can i drop this here? i'm plum wore out already:

via amerikan diplomat Pompeo, this grotesque pronouncement: ‘US refuses to withdraw diplomats from Venezuela, vows ‘appropriate action’ if they’re harmed’, via RT (h/t mr. wd)

“We call on the Venezuelan military and security forces to continue protecting the welfare and well-being of all Venezuelan citizens, as well as US and other foreign citizens in Venezuela,” Pompeo said in a statement on Wednesday evening, adding the US “will take appropriate action to hold accountable anyone who endangers the safety and security of our mission and its personnel.” (w/ documentation from the state dept.)

“Cuba and Bolivia have expressed support for Maduro, while Mexico has said it would continue to recognize Maduro’s legitimacy “for now.” [ah, yes, the hopey/changey obombaesque AMLO]. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said the US “handpicking” of a government in Caracas perfectly illustrates the true Western sentiments toward international law, sovereignty and non-interference in internal affairs of states.”

kinda had been wondering whether the russians might park a few bombers at VZ airports, myownself.

#7 As usual, the US throws out ‘sanctions’ that are intended to cause the most suffering and harm for the masses. Executive Order 13850 of November 1, 2018 Blocking Property of Additional Persons Contributing to the Situation in Venezuela By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) (IEEPA), the National Emer- gencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.), section 212(f) of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 (8 U.S.C. 1182(f)) (INA), the Venezuela Defense of Human Rights and Civil Society Act of 2014 (Public Law 113–278), as amended (the Venezuelan Defense of Human Rights Act), and section 301 of title 3, United States Code, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of America, in order to take additional steps with respect to the national emergency declared in Executive Order 13692 of March 8, 2015, and relied upon for additional steps taken in Executive Order 13808 of August 24, 2017, Executive Order 13827 of March 19, 2018, and Executive Order 13835 of May 21, 2018, particularly in light of actions by the Maduro regime and associated persons to plunder Venezuela’s wealth for their own corrupt purposes, degrade Ven- ezuela’s infrastructure and natural environment through economic mis- management and confiscatory mining and industrial practices, and catalyze a regional migration crisis by neglecting the basic needs of the Venezuelan people, hereby order as follows: Section 1. (a) All property and interests in property that are in the United States, that hereafter come within the United States, or that are or hereafter come within the possession or control of any United States person of the following persons are blocked and may not be transferred, paid, exported, withdrawn, or otherwise dealt in: any person determined by the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State: (i) to operate in the gold sector of the Venezuelan economy or in any other sector of the Venezuelan economy as may be determined by the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State; (ii) to be responsible for or complicit in, or to have directly or indirectly engaged in, any transaction or series of transactions involving deceptive practices or corruption and the Government of Venezuela or projects or programs administered by the Government of Venezuela, or to be an immediate adult family member of such a person; (iii) to have materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, any activity or transaction described in subsection (a)(ii) of this section, or any person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursu- ant to this order; or (iv) to be owned or controlled by, or to have acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, any person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to this order. (b) The prohibitions in subsection (a) of this section apply except to the extent provided by statutes, or in regulations, orders, directives, or licenses that may be issued pursuant to this order, and notwithstanding any contract entered into or any license or permit granted prior to the date of this order. https://www.state.gov/e/eb/tfs/spi/venezuela/ And that’s only Section 1. All your stuff be ours, Venezuela. So drop back five and punt.

Submitted by wendy davis on Thu, 01/24/2019 - 3:56pm

it seems that marco rubio

(or was it pence? all pinheads look alike?) is advising guaido that if he can just hang in there, amerika will free up millions of dollars confiscated from VZ to aid his new gummint.

#7 As usual, the US throws out ‘sanctions’ that are intended to cause the most suffering and harm for the masses. Executive Order 13850 of November 1, 2018 Blocking Property of Additional Persons Contributing to the Situation in Venezuela By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) (IEEPA), the National Emer- gencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.), section 212(f) of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 (8 U.S.C. 1182(f)) (INA), the Venezuela Defense of Human Rights and Civil Society Act of 2014 (Public Law 113–278), as amended (the Venezuelan Defense of Human Rights Act), and section 301 of title 3, United States Code, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of America, in order to take additional steps with respect to the national emergency declared in Executive Order 13692 of March 8, 2015, and relied upon for additional steps taken in Executive Order 13808 of August 24, 2017, Executive Order 13827 of March 19, 2018, and Executive Order 13835 of May 21, 2018, particularly in light of actions by the Maduro regime and associated persons to plunder Venezuela’s wealth for their own corrupt purposes, degrade Ven- ezuela’s infrastructure and natural environment through economic mis- management and confiscatory mining and industrial practices, and catalyze a regional migration crisis by neglecting the basic needs of the Venezuelan people, hereby order as follows: Section 1. (a) All property and interests in property that are in the United States, that hereafter come within the United States, or that are or hereafter come within the possession or control of any United States person of the following persons are blocked and may not be transferred, paid, exported, withdrawn, or otherwise dealt in: any person determined by the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State: (i) to operate in the gold sector of the Venezuelan economy or in any other sector of the Venezuelan economy as may be determined by the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State; (ii) to be responsible for or complicit in, or to have directly or indirectly engaged in, any transaction or series of transactions involving deceptive practices or corruption and the Government of Venezuela or projects or programs administered by the Government of Venezuela, or to be an immediate adult family member of such a person; (iii) to have materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, any activity or transaction described in subsection (a)(ii) of this section, or any person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursu- ant to this order; or (iv) to be owned or controlled by, or to have acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, any person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to this order. (b) The prohibitions in subsection (a) of this section apply except to the extent provided by statutes, or in regulations, orders, directives, or licenses that may be issued pursuant to this order, and notwithstanding any contract entered into or any license or permit granted prior to the date of this order. https://www.state.gov/e/eb/tfs/spi/venezuela/ And that’s only Section 1. All your stuff be ours, Venezuela. So drop back five and punt.

Submitted by on the cusp on Wed, 01/23/2019 - 6:27pm

Exxon wants their oil.

The US government sees their job as making sure Exxon gets their oil.
Period. (In another place and in another time, I would have typed "Seig Hiel").

—

"We'll know our disinformation program is complete when everything the American public believes is false." ---- William Casey, CIA Director, 1981

Submitted by wendy davis on Wed, 01/23/2019 - 7:19pm

Rexxon's already

@on the cusp

been drilling in the disputed fields between guyana and VZ.

Submitted by on the cusp on Wed, 01/23/2019 - 7:50pm

Your point being?

—

"We'll know our disinformation program is complete when everything the American public believes is false." ---- William Casey, CIA Director, 1981

Submitted by wendy davis on Wed, 01/23/2019 - 9:39pm

what a gnarly way to

@on the cusp

elicit further information. but rather than breeze by i'll give you conventional thinking on the contested fields from oilprice.com, aug. 2015

Hungry Venezuela Eyes $40 Billion Offshore Discovery In Guyana:
opening graphs:

"On May 20, the ExxonMobil subsidiary Esso Exploration and Production Guyana Limited announced the discovery of approximately one billion barrels of oil equivalent in an area called the Stabroek Block, 120 miles off the Guyanese coast. Nicolas Maduro, the troubled Venezuelan dictator, immediately ordered ExxonMobil to stop exploring the block because he considers it Venezuelan territory. The move shocked Guyana's newly elected President David Granger because Venezuela already has the world's largest proven reserves. Clearly, Venezuela doesn't need more oil.

But oil is not Maduro's primary motive for dredging up the conflict. His motivations are deeper and more political. The dispute reaches back to 1899, when the Paris Arbitration Award granted Great Britain the contested territory west of the Essequibo River. Venezuela contested the ruling, eventually declaring it “null and void” at the United Nations in 1962, just four years before Guyana declared independence from Great Britain. Since then, Venezuela has refused to recognize the territory west of the Essequibo River as anything but Venezuelan sovereign territory. The issue is a raw nerve in the Venezuelan body politic, and Maduro is plucking this nerve to rally support for his party ahead of legislative elections in December."

but VZ is also rich in other minerals: bauxite, coal, gold (second highest gold reserves in the world, according to teh wiki), and iron ore. as w/ afghanistan and much of sub-saharan africa, it's treasure right for pluckin' and plunderin'.

Submitted by Bollox Ref on Wed, 01/23/2019 - 6:39pm

Once the new Trumpian

president of Brazil assumed office (musing about invasion), this was on the cards.

—

Gëzuar!!
from a reasonably stable genius.

Submitted by wendy davis on Wed, 01/23/2019 - 7:27pm

it's been in the cards

@Bollox Ref

since the OAS booted VZ out, colombia entered nato, and entertained amerikan troops there.
telesur desk via mronline.org. and of course: Boss Tweet of the Trigger Finger and bolton. #asshole

Submitted by OzoneTom on Wed, 01/23/2019 - 8:00pm

Well there haven't been Venuzuelans in the migrant caravans

But they may have to join soon. It sucks to live somewhere that is on top of our oil and mineral resources.

Submitted by wendy davis on Wed, 01/23/2019 - 9:16pm

it's hard to find

@OzoneTom

rebuttal to 'millions and millions are fleeing VZ' in the msm, including zero hedge, but one dude on trnn had done so, although he wasn't terribly good at it.

well, this ain't it, but as i'd missed it and it has some almost satirical opening paragraphs at the top, so hello: 'Guardian Reports More “Good News”, Kid are Dying in Venezuela, David William Pear | January 14, 2019

"The Guardian’s Tom Phillips’ article Venezuela Crisis Takes Deadly Toll on Buckling Health System (January 06, 2019) is more good news for US psychopaths, such as Trump, Bolton and Pompeo. Children are dying in Venezuela. Sanctions are working!

Tom is becoming the Luke Harding of Venezuela. Luke…err, Tom blames all of Venezuela’s problems on president Nicolas Maduro. Tom has piled on, repeating the Washington Consensus vilifying Maduro……that is what “repeaters” do.

If Maduro is illegally and violently removed from office, what will come after? Probably chaos, since there is no united opposition. Chaos is what the US desires, because chaos gives the US an excuse for interventions. A dysfunctional opposition then gives the US the power to be the kingmaker. The US has a self-proclaimed “right” to intervene anywhere, anytime in Latin America, according to the 1823 Monroe Doctrine, and the 1904 “Big Stick” Roosevelt Corollary.

US doctrines do not become internationally laws, and instead usually violate international law. Doctrines are just a “wish-list” of US foreign policy. The main US foreign policy objective is to promote US corporate exploitation of foreign countries.'Guardian Reports More “Good News”, Kid are Dying in Venezuela', jan 16, trnn

Submitted by Amanda Matthews on Thu, 01/24/2019 - 4:59pm

The Guardian would have to improve

@wendy davis
tenfold before you could call it a piece-of-shit propaganda outlet.

—

I'm tired of this back-slapping "Isn't humanity neat?" bullshit. We're a virus with shoes, okay? That's all we are. - Bill Hicks

Politics is the entertainment branch of industry. - Frank Zappa

Submitted by wendy davis on Thu, 01/24/2019 - 5:40pm

william pear done good, eh?

@The Voice In the Wilderness

if you hadn't seen this tweet i'd posted at the bottom, make it a stand-alone to read nunes whole storify of the money withheld from VZ. the gold bars make an appearance, among many other billions.

Thread on how the US strangled #Venezuela's economy, deprived its citizens of vital staples, and disabled the government's ability to move or access funds anywhere. It wasn't #Maduro, it was #America. https://t.co/VOmUzKqlAh

— Sharmine Narwani (@snarwani) January 24, 2019

Submitted by earthling1 on Wed, 01/23/2019 - 9:26pm

Satan rules here.

No matter how much we ask God to bless America.

—

Neither Russia nor China is our enemy.
Neither Iran nor Venezuela are threatening America.
Cuba is a dead horse, stop beating it.

Submitted by wendy davis on Wed, 01/23/2019 - 9:57pm

plenty of satans,

@earthling1

but you've reminded me of Hugo Chavez following george bush at the UN general assembly quipping 'the stench of sulphur is still in the air'.

good night, all. i'm closing down for the night, heading into the mystic...

[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_6r2P4W9Yog]

Submitted by wendy davis on Thu, 01/24/2019 - 11:22am

given that most see the military is

key to the eventual outcome of this putsch, this is good to see,good to know: ‘Venezuela: Defense Minister Padrino, Military's Top Brass Affirms Loyalty to President Maduro’, jan 24, telesurenglish.net (w/ accompanying photo)

“General Vladimir Padrino said that the United States and other governments are executing a war against Venezuela.
The military high command of Venezuela ratified Thursday its support for President Nicolas Maduro, whom he recognized as the legitimate president, said the defense minister.
General Vladimir Padrino in a statement from the ministry and in the company of the military leadership said that the United States and other governments are executing a war against Venezuela. "I warn the people that there is a coup underway against our democracy and our president Nicolas Maduro," Padrino said during the press conference. "As soldiers, we work for peace and not for war."

In his message broadcast on official television, Padrino said they would not recognize "a person" who proclaimed himself head of state referring to opposition lawmaker Juan Guaido. "Those of us who lived through the coup of 2002 have it etched into our minds, we never thought we'd see that again, but we saw it yesterday."

commenter don bacon (iirc) at bernhard's coverage had offered this:

'How Capable is Venezuela of Defending its Airspace? Part One' The Most Vulnerable Target State?, miltarywatchmagazine.com

after listing their weaknesses and strengths, the article wraps up:

"While Venezuela's general military capabilities are negligible compared to those of the United States, it may well prove capable enough at defending its airspace to deter an American intervention - or else make such an intervention far more difficult that it was in Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Afghanistan, Panama, Yugoslavia or any other theatre the U.S. Air Force has operated in in decades. The presence of such advanced air defence systems and air superiority fighters would necessitate the deployment of F-22 fighters and stealth bombers - which is itself a risk as if these untested cutting edge capabilities are neutralised by Venezuela's Russian made SAMs and fighter aircraft then it would seriously undermine American military prestige worldwide - a risk which achieving strategic goals in the small South American country may well not be worth.

Continued in Part Two"

let's seriously hope and pray it doesn't come to that.

Submitted by The Voice In th... on Thu, 01/24/2019 - 12:39pm

So what's the story here?

Who won the election? Over at Booman Tribune, people are claiming that Maduro is not the elected leader under Chavez's constitution. Can somebody offer facts rather than opinion on this? Was the Constitution changed? What were the election results? what are the claims by both sides? Are we just picking the leader WE want and Trump is picking the leader HE wants? The important thing is which leader do the majority of the Venezuelan people want?

I have no dog in this fight. Just looking for facts. And I don't trust Trump OR Putin! Or Schumer OR Pelosi (Good God!)

—

I've seen lots of changes. What doesn't change is people. Same old hairless apes.

Submitted by Battle of Blair... on Thu, 01/24/2019 - 12:50pm

Booman is a CIA spook, just like Markos

@The Voice In the Wilderness They both started operations at the same time and fed each other from day one. I am not surprised to hear he's towing the deep state narrative.

Submitted by wendy davis on Thu, 01/24/2019 - 4:15pm

guaido never ran for president,

and was almost unknown until a month or so ago. his politics seem to have been akin to (MUD) henrique capriles and/or leopoldo lopez. but may i refer to you to this lengthy explanation so you can decide if maduro's election was legitimate?

'The Case for the Legitimacy of Maduro's Second Term' jan 10, telesurenglish.net it's been a long and nasty business.

and this is simply (or not) in the 'FWIW' category, even though it's from VZanalysis.com.

Legal claim for @jguaido to declare himself President is article 233 of the Venezuelan constitution, which permits Parliament to "duly" declare an abandonment. But 335 gives Supreme Court ultimate say on its proper application. https://t.co/A7Qd08qlRH pic.twitter.com/sgeDbWFyfq

— WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) January 24, 2019

but none of the opposition has used this as a pretext for guaido crowning himself King, nor for so many governments supporting his self-crowning. ever single 'hooray for deposing the tyrant maduro' screed notes that all these nations agree:

United States, Canada, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Panama, Paraguay, European Parliament President Antonio Tajani, European Council President Donald Tusk, and EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini.

meanwhile, supporters: Cuba, Turkey, Russia, Iran, China, Bolivia, Nicaragua, recently el salvador, and mexico: for now.

Submitted by irishking on Thu, 01/24/2019 - 12:58pm

Britain says Maduro "not legitimate leader".

Now there's a surprise. /s

https://www.rt.com/news/449626-britain-claims-maduro-not-legitimate/

Submitted by HenryAWallace on Thu, 01/24/2019 - 2:29pm

Who gave the US or the UK a vote in Venezuela, anyway?

@irishking

FWIW, I don't think Trump or May is a legitimate leader.

Submitted by wendy davis on Thu, 01/24/2019 - 4:24pm

R2P doctrine?

USiasn Monroe Doctrine?

Submitted by wendy davis on Thu, 01/24/2019 - 5:50pm

ah, well, i'd spoken too

[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QyX82K7CgoE&start_radio=1&list=RDQyX82K7...

soon about trump's poodle and guaido: ‘Putin: Foreign interference in Venezuela’s internal affairs grossly violates international law’, RT today

"France and Britain joined the chorus on Thursday. London claimed that Maduro is “not a legitimate leader” of Venezuela while Paris said that Maduro’s election was “illegal” and “Europe supports the restoration of democracy.”

apologies: this was meant for @irishking.
but also:
"Former U.N. expert Alfred de Zayas said in an interview that the U.S. attempted coup in Venezuela is against international laws.
Alfred de Zayas, a former United Nations expert who visited Venezuela in 2017 as a U.N. representative, said that the United States is conducting an illegal coup in the country which is against international laws", telesur english. ya think???

but this is some sort of face-saving bullshit, isn't it? 'Exclusive: White House preparing draft national emergency order, has identified $7 billion for wall', cnn

Submitted by wendy davis on Thu, 01/24/2019 - 4:29pm

rotflmao!

@irishking

and next, trump's poodle will declare for guaido! dayum, i ♥ this photo!

added on edit: pretty mealy-mouthed of corbyn, imo.

Submitted by wendy davis on Thu, 01/24/2019 - 4:38pm

from my favorite tankie's

twit account:

all that's needed for US public/media/pols to abdicate their moral responsibility in matters of US absolutely f*cking some country is for US gov to anoint its leader a dictator. After an unbroken string of regime change cataclysms in Iraq, Syria, Libya & now Venezuela

— chinahand (@chinahand) January 24, 2019

Thread on how the US strangled #Venezuela's economy, deprived its citizens of vital staples, and disabled the government's ability to move or access funds anywhere. It wasn't #Maduro, it was #America. https://t.co/VOmUzKqlAh

— Sharmine Narwani (@snarwani) January 24, 2019

Submitted by wendy davis on Thu, 01/24/2019 - 9:16pm

time for me to close down

for the night. today we'd spoken of satan, and the rastas have always called the western empire 'satan' or 'babylon', hence 'café babylon'. so tonight as we dream of a better tomorrow for the venezuelans, for the world...free of the chaos of loose cannon control by the failing great satan, let's hear from playing for change covering peter tosh's 'jah guide'.

good night, rest well.

Submitted by wendy davis on Fri, 01/25/2019 - 8:57am

morning additions:

a disgusting virtue-signaling psyop:
‘Venezuela's Juan Guaidó offers Nicolás Maduro amnesty if he goes quietly’; In TV interview opposition challenger says he is determined to bring an end to president’s ‘dictatorship’, the guardian

“The 35-year-old opposition leader renewed his call for Venezuela’s military – whose members have been offered an amnesty – to turn on their commander-in-chief.

He also indicated Maduro – who was sworn in for his second six-year term on 10 January despite a storm of international condemnation – could himself be offered an amnesty if he agreed to step aside. “This amnesty, these guarantees are on the table for everyone who is prepared to put themselves on the side of the constitution in order to recover the democratic order,” he said."

‘Washington escalates coup provocations in Venezuela’ bill van auken, 25 January 2019, wsws

“US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is set to appear at a closed-door session of the United Nations Security Council Saturday morning to discuss the political crisis in Venezuela. The move comes after Washington declared the presidency of Nicolas Maduro “illegitimate” and recognized the self-proclaimed “interim president” Juan Guaidó of the right-wing, US-funded Voluntad Popular (Popular Will) party as the government of South America’s most oil-rich country.

The turn to the Security Council, where Russia and China, which both have extensive economic and political ties to Caracas and are certain to veto any resolution backing what amounts to a US-orchestrated coup, has all the earmarks of a propaganda gesture, aimed at making a show of appeal for UN support in order to pave the way for a unilateral US intervention.” [snip]

“The Wall Street Journal presented the unelected Guaidó’s self-proclamation as “interim president” in charge of Venezuela as the act of the entire nation reclaiming its “democracy,” while hinting strongly at the potential for a more direct US intervention. “It’s tempting to think the U.S. should send in troops, a la Panama in 1989, to assist the rebellion,” the Journal commented. “But Venezuelans have to win their freedom themselves, and if they do they are likely to prize it all the more.” And should they fail to “win their freedom” according to Washington’s dictates and interests? Clearly, as Trump and his aides have repeatedly declared, “all options are on the table.”

None of the media makes any mention of the millions of dollars in funding by the National Endowment for Democracy and USAID poured into Guaidó’s Voluntad Popular party.”

‘Congresswoman who fixed Democratic primary for Clinton now ‘fixing’ democracy in Venezuela’ 25 Jan, 2019 RT

“The House Foreign Affairs Committee has even offered a simple explanation on how a ‘dream team’ of Democrats have prepared a package of laws, which will ensure Venezuela’s transition into a better future. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell will be bringing humanitarian aid, Donna Shalala will stop the arming of Maduro’s thugs with batons and tear gas, while Debbie Wasserman Schultz gets arguably the hardest task of them all – taking on Russia’s President Vladimir Putin.

The Democrats are backing Trump on regime change in Venezuela, just like they backed disasters in Afghanistan, Iraq, Honduras, Libya, Syria, Ukraine & Yemen. When it comes to regime change, the two parties of War & Wall Street are still marching in lockstep. https://t.co/Yep6QhWIw5

— Dr. Jill Stein (@DrJillStein) January 25, 2019

and via jeffrey st.clair at counterpunch:

“+ Things Democrats do when the government is shut down: Pass the NATO Support Act in the House without a single Democratic vote against it.
+ Can someone explain to me (rhetorical device) why Reps. AOC, Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib, and Barbara Lee voted with Liz Cheney in favor of the NATO Support Act? Not one Democrat or “Democratic Socialist” voted against this pathetic endorsement of an obsolete and provocative military alliance?”

+ Only 22 brave souls voted against NATO, all of them libertarian Republicans. These are the first warm feelings I’ve ever had for Rep. Louie Gohmert.”

The Maduro government has waged a violent crackdown on Venezuelan civil society, violated the constitution by dissolving the National Assembly and was re-elected last year in an election many observers said was fraudulent. The economy is a disaster and millions are migrating. 1/3

— Bernie Sanders (@SenSanders) January 24, 2019

Submitted by detroitmechworks on Fri, 01/25/2019 - 9:03am

Maduro should remember the Lessons...

@wendy davis @wendy davis of Hussein and Qaddafi.

Americans and those they support are NOT merciful. The best he can look forward to if he gives up is a quick execution. We have already seen what the worst looks like.

[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cXOAcuNhFS4]

a disgusting virtue-signaling psyop:
‘Venezuela's Juan Guaidó offers Nicolás Maduro amnesty if he goes quietly’; In TV interview opposition challenger says he is determined to bring an end to president’s ‘dictatorship’, the guardian

“The 35-year-old opposition leader renewed his call for Venezuela’s military – whose members have been offered an amnesty – to turn on their commander-in-chief.

He also indicated Maduro – who was sworn in for his second six-year term on 10 January despite a storm of international condemnation – could himself be offered an amnesty if he agreed to step aside. “This amnesty, these guarantees are on the table for everyone who is prepared to put themselves on the side of the constitution in order to recover the democratic order,” he said."

‘Washington escalates coup provocations in Venezuela’ bill van auken, 25 January 2019, wsws

“US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is set to appear at a closed-door session of the United Nations Security Council Saturday morning to discuss the political crisis in Venezuela. The move comes after Washington declared the presidency of Nicolas Maduro “illegitimate” and recognized the self-proclaimed “interim president” Juan Guaidó of the right-wing, US-funded Voluntad Popular (Popular Will) party as the government of South America’s most oil-rich country.

The turn to the Security Council, where Russia and China, which both have extensive economic and political ties to Caracas and are certain to veto any resolution backing what amounts to a US-orchestrated coup, has all the earmarks of a propaganda gesture, aimed at making a show of appeal for UN support in order to pave the way for a unilateral US intervention.” [snip]

“The Wall Street Journal presented the unelected Guaidó’s self-proclamation as “interim president” in charge of Venezuela as the act of the entire nation reclaiming its “democracy,” while hinting strongly at the potential for a more direct US intervention. “It’s tempting to think the U.S. should send in troops, a la Panama in 1989, to assist the rebellion,” the Journal commented. “But Venezuelans have to win their freedom themselves, and if they do they are likely to prize it all the more.” And should they fail to “win their freedom” according to Washington’s dictates and interests? Clearly, as Trump and his aides have repeatedly declared, “all options are on the table.”

None of the media makes any mention of the millions of dollars in funding by the National Endowment for Democracy and USAID poured into Guaidó’s Voluntad Popular party.”

‘Congresswoman who fixed Democratic primary for Clinton now ‘fixing’ democracy in Venezuela’ 25 Jan, 2019 RT

“The House Foreign Affairs Committee has even offered a simple explanation on how a ‘dream team’ of Democrats have prepared a package of laws, which will ensure Venezuela’s transition into a better future. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell will be bringing humanitarian aid, Donna Shalala will stop the arming of Maduro’s thugs with batons and tear gas, while Debbie Wasserman Schultz gets arguably the hardest task of them all – taking on Russia’s President Vladimir Putin.

The Democrats are backing Trump on regime change in Venezuela, just like they backed disasters in Afghanistan, Iraq, Honduras, Libya, Syria, Ukraine & Yemen. When it comes to regime change, the two parties of War & Wall Street are still marching in lockstep. https://t.co/Yep6QhWIw5

— Dr. Jill Stein (@DrJillStein) January 25, 2019

and via jeffrey st.clair at counterpunch:

“+ Things Democrats do when the government is shut down: Pass the NATO Support Act in the House without a single Democratic vote against it.
+ Can someone explain to me (rhetorical device) why Reps. AOC, Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib, and Barbara Lee voted with Liz Cheney in favor of the NATO Support Act? Not one Democrat or “Democratic Socialist” voted against this pathetic endorsement of an obsolete and provocative military alliance?”

+ Only 22 brave souls voted against NATO, all of them libertarian Republicans. These are the first warm feelings I’ve ever had for Rep. Louie Gohmert.”

The Maduro government has waged a violent crackdown on Venezuelan civil society, violated the constitution by dissolving the National Assembly and was re-elected last year in an election many observers said was fraudulent. The economy is a disaster and millions are migrating. 1/3

— Bernie Sanders (@SenSanders) January 24, 2019

—

I do not pretend I know what I do not know.

Submitted by wendy davis on Fri, 01/25/2019 - 10:37am

my stars.

@detroitmechworks

wicked bad production.

From their destiny they wake
Bring hypocrisy and hate...

i'd imagine he's pinging another assassination by drone bombs. that little video from the house foreign affairs committee was almost unbelievable, save for DWS's bits about '& investigate caracas's ties to putin'. goddam, has she always been that hideous and bitter looking?

how much will the CIA be paying his loyal generals to mutiny? as far as who uses the teargas, abby martin showed it was the opposition/golpistas in the street when she was there once or twice.

Submitted by wendy davis on Fri, 01/25/2019 - 11:55am

as predicted,

the 'how do you solve a problem like maduro' panel met,

A new path for Venezuela?

"At Davos, the leaders of Brazil, Colombia and Peru, along with the Foreign Minister of Canada, used a joint statement to offer their countries’ backing to Mr Juan Guiado, leader of Venezuela’s opposition-controlled Parliament after he had declared himself Interim President. A day earlier, Paraguayan President Mario Abdo Benítez, called on Mr Guiado to take action."

[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ViNlblAu03k]

Submitted by Amanda Matthews on Fri, 01/25/2019 - 4:38pm

I think what I hate most about America is

that our leaders are so corrupt and the people are too damn lazy and stupid to actually RESEARCH anything, from Clinton’s attempted soft coup to being able to see how OUR ‘betters’ avarice, cruelty, and amorality is causing so much misery in this world.

This country is so damn corrupt.

—

I'm tired of this back-slapping "Isn't humanity neat?" bullshit. We're a virus with shoes, okay? That's all we are. - Bill Hicks

Politics is the entertainment branch of industry. - Frank Zappa

Submitted by wendy davis on Fri, 01/25/2019 - 5:45pm

really, i think it's