> [And the hits keep on coming.]
>
> Regime Change By Assassin? Easier Said Than Done.
>
> By Lynne Duke
> Washington Post Staff Writer
> Wednesday, August 24, 2005
>
Lynne Duke's article reads as if the editorial staff at the WaPo said: "Bring it on", Pat.
BBC is approaching the story a bit differently. A story entitled "Chavez assassination row erupts" ends like this:
<...> State department spokesman San McCormack said Mr Robertson was speaking as a private citizen and that (and that?//lcm) the US administration did not share his views.
"Any allegations that we are planning to take hostile action against the Venezuelan government are completely baseless," Mr McCormack said.
*[Weasel Word Alert]*: I think it's apparent that the U.S. government does not consider the Venezuelan government to be legitimate, nor the "real" government of Venezuela//lcm]
"We have been very clear that this is not the policy of the United States."
Venezuela is the fifth-largest oil exporter and a major supplier of oil to the United States. <...>
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/low/americas/4178608.stm
Droll. Very droll.
This [off topic] headline is drollness incarnate:
Bush defends policy on Iraq war President Bush again says the US must "stay the course" in Iraq as he interrupts a holiday to address US war veterans.
More on Chavez:
>From Bloomberg... Breaking:
Venezuela's Chavez Squeezes Oil Companies With Taxes, Raids Aug. 24 (Bloomberg) -- On July 14 in the western city of Maracaibo, Venezuelan government tax auditors and a prosecutor went to the offices of Chevron Corp., the second-largest U.S. oil company.
They seized boxes of records to build a case that San Ramon, California-based Chevron and 21 other energy companies owe Venezuela $3 billion in back taxes. The raid is part of President Hugo Chavez's push to squeeze more money out of foreign companies that want to pump oil from the world's fifth-largest petroleum exporter. <...> http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=71000001&refer=&sid=a3z63_HrIvtc
>From IndyMedia Colombia:
Turning Chavez Into Noriega.
By Lloyd Hart 08/22/05
In a recent series of articles in The New York Times a disturbing strategy seems to be emerging out of the White House and the U.S. press. An insidious strategy of turning Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez's public image here in the United States into that of resembling former Panamanian President Manuel Noriega, who is now languishing a federal prison cell here in the U.S as a result of the U.S. invasion of Panama during the previous Bush regime in which over 10,000 Panamanian civilians were killed by U.S. forces. The U.S. was also caught burying those dead civilians the U.S. murdered in mass graves on U.S. military bases in Panama. At the time of the invasion the Bush regime was attempting to arrest Manuela Noriega on drug charges.
In a recent article written by Juan Forero and published in The New York Times it has been revealed that the U.S. has revoked:
"the visas for three high-ranking Venezuelan military officers suspected of drug trafficking, prompting President Hugo Chávez's government to retaliate by promising to withdraw diplomatic immunity for American narcotics agents in Venezuela." <...> http://colombia.indymedia.org/news/2005/08/29793.php
And finally, I believe Hugo Chavez is to visit NYC next month. At least the Venezuelan government is requesting a guarantee of his safety when he's there at that time (per bbc radio).
Leigh www.leighm.net