He’s been traveling – and speaking. A lot…
The Guardian interviews Chavez
Some critics have accused him of cosying up to the military regime in Burma. “That is the first time I have heard about Burma – they say I support Bin Laden or ETA, but never Burma. But … if you say so. Many things are said about me, so many things both inside and outside the country. This is a well-orchestrated, worldwide campaign. Now what is the purpose of this campaign? Simón Rodriguez, BolÃÂÂvar’s tutor, used to say 200 years ago – the idea is to destroy the model and by doing so you prevent it from becoming contagious.”
At an enthusiastic rally in London’s Camden Centre on Sunday afternoon, Chávez delighted the crowd during his marathon three-and-a-half-hour speech by taking the same metaphor further. A few years ago, few people dared to call themselves socialists, he says. Now it is different. “We have to marshal our ideas for a better world. We have to infect people. Let’s have a badge, saying, ‘I’m a socialist. I will infect you’.”
Mr Chávez said he was insulted by a comparison suggesting he was interfering in elections in other Latin American countries, such as Peru or Bolivia, just as he accused Mr Bush of meddling in other countries’ affairs. “Have we invaded a country? Are we bombing cities? Are we killing presidents?” he asked.
Oil Would reach $100 if Venezuela ends U.S. Sales, Chavez says, something that could happen if the U.S. invades Iran (according to the MSNBC article.)
Pricing oil in euros, not dollars
Venezuela’s president Hugo Chavez said Tuesday that he would consider pricing his country’s oil in euros instead of dollars in line with a similar declaration made by Iran.
Visiting Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said here on Thursday in case of a military attack against Iran, no country in the world would have access to crude oil.
Chavez made the remark at a press conference, adding, “as Iran’s President Ahmadinejad has reiterated, if Tehran would come under attack, oil would get scarce for everyone.”
He also said that the American President George W. Bush should be put to trial at the International Court of Justice for having launched genocide in Iraq.
Greg Palast on Democracy Now
As you’ll see in next week’s Harper’s coming out, which is basically an excerpt from the book, Hugo Chavez on June 1st is going to ask OPEC to officially recognize that he has more oil than Saudi Arabia. This is a geopolitical earthquake. And the inside documents from the U.S. Department of Energy, which we have in the book and in Harper’s, say, yeah, he’s got more oil than Saudi Arabia.
(Thanks to Sue for finding the links!)
The thing that I find most interesting since Chavez spoke at the UN calling Bush the devil, is an American resentment that he came to “our country†and had the audacity to call our beloved president such derogatory names. The UN buiding is NOT The United States. It may be located here, which in and of itself is ludicrous, but he spoke on a platform of diplomatic immunity, to which he is entitled. So, if you’re going to be angry at his comments, don’t bring your American borderline patriotism to the table. He wasn’t invited to our country to come and speak. He spoke at the UN, of which his country is a member, and had every right to say as he pleases. If you want to be angry at him, you’re entitled to be angry at his words. You however have NO right to be angry that he spoke his words on American soil. The UN Building, my idiotic American simpletons,is not the USA. God it’s no wonder we’re in such a mess when the majority of this population doesn’t even understand that simple diplomatic and political reality. Go get your GED.