Aid for the US

[mepearl53]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20050829/wl_afp/usweathervenezuelaoil_050829235602

Check out this news bulletin! Is this political???

 

[blueroses]

Hell, who cares--clearly there is a need for all the help those who are affected can get!!

(Plus, considering he just had a CBN Fatwa issued against him, who can blame him for trying to up his profile in a positive way?)


ETA: But yeah, you're right: playing politics is clearly part of it--just as the 1st-world country one-upmanship that went on post-tsunami was probably political too.

 

[laney]

Ok -

The first part of the article.. fine..

But what the heck is this..

"Last week, Chavez offered discount gasoline to poor Americans suffering from high oil prices and on Sunday offered free eye surgery for Americans without access to health care."


EYE SURGERY??????

mmmm okaaaay.

 

[mepearl53]

He''s considering offering vasectomy''s also

 

[blueroses]

I have to be honest--I skimmed and didn''t see those details Laney posted. Offering aid to hurricane victims is one thing, but the rest of it?? Come on....

 

[aphisiglovessae]

This might be why: http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20050830/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/venezuela_us_jackson_9

 

[AGBF]

Date: 8/30/2005 5:10:25 PM
Author:mepearl53
Check out this news bulletin! Is this political???

Hi, Bill-

I didn't really know what you were asking. I thought everyone knew that Pat Robertson had called for the assassination of Venezuela's President, Hugo Chavez. We assassinated Salvador Allende when he was (democratically) elected President of Chile, so the assassination wouldn't have been anything new, had we done it. The odd part was that Robertson asked for it openly. Usually murders of Heads of State by the US are nominally secret.

Here's another link:

Robertson Calls for Murder of Chavez

Chavez offered help to the victims of Hurricane Katrina. Venezuela is a major oil producer and is geographically close to the stricken area. I am sure that if the US responded to his overture, he would send aid. I also think that his offer of help was political. After a prominent citizen of the US called for his murder, he offered to help the US. It certainly put the US to shame. Chavez, not Robertson, acted like a Christian. I think Chavez was very smart to act as he did.

Deb

 

[movie zombie]

AGBF, you got it right.

peace, movie zombie

 

[mepearl53]

Date: 8/30/2005 9:30:42 PM
Author: AGBF

Date: 8/30/2005 5:10:25 PM
Author:mepearl53
Check out this news bulletin! Is this political???

Hi, Bill-

I didn''t really know what you were asking.

I was joking Deb! I don''t believe this guy gives 2 cents for what happens in the US. More a parody of what the media chooses to print.

 

[EdSkinner]

''Last week, Chavez offered discount gasoline to poor Americans suffering from high oil prices and on Sunday offered free eye surgery for Americans without access to health care.''

Probally so those blind goofs who voted for Bush can someday see through the bull

 

[EdSkinner]

The only other country that I ever heard of that wanted to offer us any kind of aid was Bangladesh after Andrew. All they had to offer was rope, but that is more than than anybody else.

 

[UmmTankMan2]

Like has been said, I think it is real and also political. A lot of people in Latin America like Chavez. They see that privatization, free-market reforms and other U.S. suggestions have only broadened the rich/poor gap. Chavez was democratically elected despite very strong resistance from the (relatively) rich and powerful of Venezuela by promising to help the poor in a country that''s neglected them despite its large oil income. He''s acted like he promised and has done a lot of good things for the poor and indigenous people of Venezuela, allegedly at the expense of the richer buisness sector. A few years ago he was toppled in a coup and the Bush administration officially said something to the likes of "We look forward to working with the new leaders of Venezuela," with very bad timing. Two days later Chavez re-emerged as the elected president and accused the U.S. of backing the coup attempt. It''s common knowledge in Latin America that the U.S. has toppled democratically elected leaders before, e.g. Chile, and generally meddled in the continent that it considered its "back yard." This has generated resentment against the U.S. and Chavez''s bold anti-US stance is quite popular even outside Venezuela.

The fact that the U.S. is just now, after years, considering deporting Posada-Carilles to Venezuela doesn''t help. This is a man that Venezuela considers a terrorist for bombing a Cuban airliner, attempting to assassinate Castro in Panama and bombing several hotels in Havana, the last of which he actually admited to at one point.

And yes, last week Pat Robertson called for the assassination of Chavez saying he''s a portal of communism and radical islam (quite a contradiction) into the continent. Robertson then, for some unbelievable reason, denied having said it (Memo: Dude, you said it on TV! People have VCRs now!) and then later in the day apologized for it. Chavez demanded the U.S. officially condemn his statements, whereas Rumsfeld said something like "we just don''t do that [assassinations]."

So anyway, he''s popular for his Anti-US and pro-poor policies and rhetoric. A third-world country offering the U.S. help after a major disaster, despite also accusing the US of trying to topple his government and a popular right-wing preacher calling for his assassination... gives Chavez a lot of points.

 

[movie zombie]

more re Pat Robertson:


http://www.tompaine.com/articles/20050901/christ_has_left_the_building.php


peace, movie zombie