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> > > Dot's Information Service Hotline > "Unbossed and unbought news and information you can use" > Visit The DISH online at www.thedish.org > Vol. 9 No 39...Dedicated to the Dialogue on Race... > > Table of Contents > > > 1. Intuit's Vibe...requiem for America: Wake Up American World Citizens! > By Mankh (Walter E. Harris III) > 2. News You Use...Devil in the Details > 3. Bit of History...Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías > 4. Disgruntled > 5. Politics Y2K6...Shadow of the Liberator...By Richard Gott > 6. Venue for an Artist...The Devil's Recipe (Excerpts from UN Speech)... > By Hugo Chavez7.Disgruntled > 7. Mailbox > > > > ****************************************** > > > > Intuit's Vibe > Requiem for America: Wake Up American World Citizens! > By Mankh (Walter E. Harris III) > > > > Many will not be able to read this > and most simply won't. > The civil war has been exported (again.) > The red and blue are battling with Iraq > and other foreign turfs. > Don't kid yourselves, > the two Americas are at least a dozen– > Republican, Democrat, neither, other, > Hispanic, Latino, White, Mexican American, > African American, Arab American, > American Indian, Asian American, > Fill In The Blank Americans… > It's all done with sleight of hand and demographics, > b/c the minorities combined > will soon be (if they aren't already) the majority! > Yet, many are numb and number, > numbered and branded like animals, > many have grown complacent… > many quietly do the work. > The war on drugs is > more about pharmaceuticals than healing, > the educational system more about > a pacifier in the mouth than pacifists, > the homicide numbers another (un)civil war. > This tripping of tongue is a mixed metaphor > not a metered foot from my mouth, > and metaphors mixed are my placebo > for media-sad-news-world. > By the way, your Indians are not your Indians, > they were here so long before you... > so long before that cameo appearance > on the cold hard street of fame called Hollywood. > Shut your loud obnoxious voice and take a rest. > Quiem! > Quies! > Quiet! > America… hear whispering in the pines > many tongues talking from one mouth... > many quietly do the work. > > > > > > > > News You Use > Devil in the Details > > > > After calling George W. Bush a devil, Venezuela President Hugo Chavez > offered the congregation at Mount Olivet Baptist Church in Harlem and > other needy US citizens 100 million gallons of subsidized oil. The offer > received warm applause and created warm feelings toward Chavez, > especially among those struggling to pay energy bills. > > > > This was not the first time Chavez has offered to spread the wealth > generated by his country's most valued resource and the current high price > of oil. While Hugo's oil gifts have been warmly received by poor people > in the US and other countries, the US federal government has been less > than receptive. Each blames the other for the situation. Tensions > between the two countries have grown since the failed US-supported coup > and the US' ongoing support of anti-Chavez groups inside and outside of > Venezuela. > > > > As Greg Palast points out, it is not the oil. Venezuela is the fourth > largest exporter of oil to the US (June 2006), which imported more than a > million barrels a day from that country, or less than one-tenth of US oil > imports. The US could replace this amount of oil from alternative > sources. It cannot, however, replace the petrodollars that fail to find > their way into US Treasury Bills and other US dollar-denominated assets. > According to Palast and others, this is the cash -- the petrodollars--that > funds multiple wars on credit when the nation is so deeply in debt. > > > > It is the petro-dollars, where they are stored and how they are used, that > are the devil in the details, we must examine when looking at US-Venezuela > relations. For more on US-Venezuela relations, read Greg Palast's > interview with Hugo Chavez at www.gregpalast.com. > > > > > > > > Bit of History > Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías > > > > Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías was born July 28, 1954 in the town of Sabaneta, > Barinas, Venezuela. He is the second son of schoolteachers, Elena Frías > de and Hugo de los Reyes Chávez. The Chávez family was not wealthy; they > sold bananas and sowed corn to make ends meet. Hugo and his older brother > lived with their paternal grandmother, Rosa Inés Chávez, so they could > complete their education. Very active, Hugo painted, sang, wrote and > played baseball. > > > > Chávez enrolled at the Venezuelan Academy of Military Sciences at age > seventeen, earning a degree in engineering (1975). He pursued graduate > studies at Caracas' Simón Bolívar University, but left without a degree. > Inspired by the 19th-century Pan-American philosophies of Simon Bolívar, > Chávez and fellow activists developed a left-nationalist doctrine called > "Bolivarianism." Influenced by the teachings of various socialist and > communist leaders, including Peruvian Juan Velasco, Chávez established the > Bolivarian Revolutionary Movement in 1982. > > > > Chávez began his 17 year military career during this time. He rose > through the ranks, holding command, and staff positions to become a > lieutenant colonel. Teaching at the Military Academy of Venezuela, > Chávez's fiery lecturing style and unusually radical critique of > Venezuelan government and society inspired his peers and students. > > > > Amidst growing anger at economic austerity measures, Chavez led an attempt > to overthrow the government of President Carlos Andres Perez in February > 1992. He spent two years in prison before being granted a pardon. > Following his release, he relaunched his party as the Fifth Republic > Movement (MVR) and made the transition from soldier to politician. Like > 67% of the people, the charismatic populist is a mulatto (African, Spanish > and Indigenous descent). Leading the leftist Patriotic Pole alliance and > promising a peaceful social revolution, he won 34% of the seats in the > National Congress and was elected president in 1998 with 56% of the > votesthe largest majority in four decades. > > > > Chavez took office with a mandate to reverse Venezuela's economic decline > and strengthen the role of the state in the economy on February 2, 1999. > He ended the privatization of Venezuela's state holdings, took control of > economic matters, and cut oil production to raise oil prices. The > constituent assembly wrote a new constitution granting the president > increased powers, a 6-year term of office and weakened the legislature and > judiciary. Addressing poverty amongst the landless poor, Chavez acted to > redistribute the wealth of the rich elite, took measures against > corruption, criticized the traditional oligarchy, and made more funds > available for social programs. > > > > Opposition supported by strikes and demonstrations increased following > Chávez's reelection in 2000 after he started the privatization of > Venezuela's social security system, aluminum industry, and the oil sector. > This led to a short-lived coup in April and a prolonged strike by oil > workers late in 2002. Briefly overthrown by military and corporate > interests in the US- sponsored coup, Chávez was returned to power when > massive demonstrations followed. > > > > Chávez launched several Bolivarian Missions; their goals are to combat > disease, illiteracy, malnutrition, poverty, and other social ills. In his > personal life he is married and has five children, three girls and two > boys. His wife works as a public official also; she was elected in 2000. > He also enjoys going home, where his father is currently the mayor. > > > > > > > > Disgruntled feels: Rovian! As if Karl Rove, political strategist and > brain behind Bush, pulled their strings, mainstream media reported on a > leaked National Intelligence Estimate (NIE). It said what we knew – the > US is creating enemies, call them jihadists, terrorists or guerillas. > But, ‘we are fighting them over there,' whispers the media fear mongers. > We'll never know who leaked the memo because the Bush regime will never > expose the brain behind the scheme to heat up the political debate on > national security, the supposed GOP strong suit. Running around like > headless ducks, Democrats fell for it again. And, to sweeten the deal for > the sheep, the price of gasoline at the pump is falling, just in time for > the November elections! How Rovian! > > > > Disgruntled says: Beginning with Afghanistan, the US entered wars of > aggression based on the commission of terrorist acts by non-state actors. > Thousands have died. The UN's failure to stop these acts and others by > member states, including genocide in Darfur, shows the UN is weak. UN > Secretary-General Kofi Annan and others support reforms that include > enlarging the UN Security Council to make it more representative of the > international community and eliminating the veto of its permanent five > members – US, Russia, China, France and Great Britain -- a move aimed at > ending the free ride given international bad actors. > > > > Disgruntled wants to know: Parents, families and loved ones of those > killed and maimed in the War on Terror might well have been taken aback > when George W. Bush described the Iraq war as "a comma in the march of > history." Iraq is the central front in war on terror, according to Bush. > One may ask, will Bush unleash more horror and warfare so great as to > render Iraq insignificant by comparison? > > > > > > > > Politics Y2K6 > Shadow of the Liberator > By Richard Gott > > > > Heather Rogers reviewed In the Shadow of the Liberator: Hugo Chavez and > the Transformation of Venezuela. According to Rogers, there is a huge > social experiment underway in Venezuela and few on the American left seem > to be paying attention. Author Richard Gott offers a very different > picture of the Bolivarian revolution of Hugo Chavez than what is presented > in the US media. > > > > For instance, Venezuela's military buys fresh vegetables and meat in the > countryside and trucks them to poor neighborhoods for sale at subsidized > markets. New state run pharmacies sell medicine at a 30% discount. The > government provides breakfast and lunch to children at school, which > helped boost enrollment by one million over last year. These are just a > few of the social reforms began since the election of the left-leaning > president Hugo Chavez. It all began with the rewriting of the > Constitution which now includes such provisions as civil rights for > Venezuela's indigenous population. > > > > Chavez is also rooting out corruption and graft within the government by > restructuring bodies ranging from the Judiciary to the Constituent > Assembly. Since leaving prison in 1994, Chavez has worked with both > military and civilians to build a new political party, the Fifth Republic > Movement (MVR) which was inspired by Simon Bolivar, the 19th century > liberator of South America. > > > > The rise to power began with the insane 1989 Caracazo -- city-wide riots > and looting by urban poor triggered by IMF required price increases. The > rage behind this eruption had brewed for generations, and with 80% of the > population living in poverty, it was an opportunity for Chavez and his > people to demand change. Chavez built on the popular unrest amongst poor > and lower ranks of the military. > > > > Chavez's government is composed of more than the military. His ministers > include Ali Rodriquez, a former Marxist guerrilla and labor lawyer. > Rodriquez is Minister of Energy and Mines, which is in charge of the > nation's oil industry. Chavez's Minister of Development, Jorge Giordani, > an economist and University professor, is responsible for planning the > revitalization of the country's rural economy. His ministry works to > provide affordable housing and sustainable jobs. The government is > constructing cooperative farming communities for families. The goal is to > replace shanty towns on the steep hills surrounding Caracas. Mud slides > killed 15,000 people in 1999. > > > > In 2003, Chavez launched "Mission Robinson" to provide free literacy > programs for more than 1.5 million illiterate adults. On October 12, > 2003, he initiated "Mission Guaicaipuro," a program to protect the > livelihood, religion, land, culture and rights of Venezuela's indigenous > peoples. He launched "Mission Sucre" to provide free higher education to > the two million adults that had not completed their elementary-level > education. In November 2003, he announced "Mission Ribas" with the > promise of remedial education and diplomas for millions of high school > dropouts. > > > > Economic growth picked up markedly in 2004, reaching double-digit growth > and a 9.3% growth rate for 2005. Chavez also expanded his land > redistribution and social welfare programs by authorizing and funding a > multitude of new "Bolivarian Missions" to construct, fund, and refurbish > public health care facilities nationwide. Venezuela is jointly > establishing with Cuba a second tuition-free medical school that would > provide medical training to more than 100,000 physicians who would pledge > to work in the poorest communities of the Global South. He announced that > the project would run for the next decade, and that the new school would > include at least 30,000 new places for poor students from both Latin > America and the Caribbean. > > > > The Bush Administration considers Chavez provocatively dangerous and > autocratically undemocratic. Chávez offers alternative models of economic > development to the Washington Consensus and advocates cooperation among > the world's poor nations, especially those in Latin America. Chavez > supports Iran's right to develop nuclear power, while President Mahmoud > Ahmadinejad and other Middle Eastern leaders are backing Venezuela's bid > for a rotating seat on the U.N. Security Council -- the Bush > administration supports Guatemala. > > > > > > > > Venue for an Artist > The Devil's Recipe (Excerpts from UN Speech) > By Hugo Chavez > > > > "Representatives of the governments of the world, good morning. First, I > would like to invite you, very respectfully, to those who have not read > this book, to read it. (Noam Chomsky's 'Hegemony or Survival: The > Imperialist Strategy of the United States.') It's an excellent book to > help us understand what has been happening in the world throughout the > 20th century, and what's happening now, and the greatest threat looming > over our planet. > > > > The hegemonic pretensions of the American empire are placing at risk the > very survival of the human species. We continue to warn you about this > danger and we appeal to the people of the United States and the world to > halt this threat, which is like a sword hanging over our heads. I had > considered reading from this book, but, for the sake of time, I will just > leave it as a recommendation. > > > > It reads easily, it is a very good book. It appears in English, in > Russian, in Arabic, in German. I think that the first people who should > read this book are our brothers and sisters in the United States, because > their threat is right in their own house. The devil himself is right in > the house. And, yesterday, the devil came here; it smells of sulfur still > today. > > > > Yesterday, ladies and gentlemen, from this rostrum, the president of the > United States, the gentleman to whom I refer as the devil, came here, > talking as if he owned the world. > > > > I think we could call a psychiatrist to analyze yesterday's statement made > by the president of the US. As the spokesman of imperialism, he came to > share his nostrums, to try to preserve the current pattern of domination, > exploitation and pillage of the peoples of the world. An Alfred Hitchcock > movie could use it as a scenario. I would even propose a title: "The > Devil's Recipe." > > > > As Chomsky says here, clearly and in depth, the American empire is doing > all it can to consolidate its system of domination. We cannot allow world > dictatorship to be consolidated. > > > > They say they want to impose a democratic model. But that's their > democratic model. It's the false democracy of elites, and, I would say, a > very original democracy that's imposed by weapons and bombs and firing > weapons. What a strange democracy. Aristotle might not recognize > it...What type of democracy do you impose with marines and bombs? > > > > The president of the US said, and I'm quoting, "Anywhere you look, you > hear extremists telling you can escape from poverty and recover your > dignity through violence, terror and martyrdom." Wherever he looks, he > sees extremists. And you, my brother -- he looks at your color, and he > says, oh, there's an extremist. Evo Morales, the worthy president of > Bolivia, looks like an extremist to him. The imperialists see extremists > everywhere. It's not that we are extremists. It's that the world is > waking up. It's waking up all over. And people are standing up. > > > > > > > > Mailbox: E-Mails, Faxes and Telephone Calls > > > > Email [EMAIL PROTECTED] War Criminal at Bay...By Dr. Paul Craig > Roberts...Beguiled by neo-conservatives, who told him that the virtuous > goals of the US empire justified any means, and misled by an incompetent > Attorney General, who told him the President of the US is above the law, > Bush was deceived into committing war crimes under Article 3 of the Geneva > Convention and the US War Crimes Act of 1996. Bush is now desperately > trying to save himself by having the US Congress retroactively repeal both > Article 3 and US law. > > > > Email [EMAIL PROTECTED] While the NAM (Non-Aligned Movement) > presidential summit meets in Cuba, news reports on FOX and CNN spotlighted > billboards which mock President George Bush. One billboard shows Bush as > an "assassin" with bloody, vampire teeth, while others compare the U.S. > president to Adolph Hitler. > > > > Email www.CommonDreams.org America's Moral Decline and the Rise of False > Christianity...By Karen Horst Cobb...The lust for money, dominance and > military power is at the core of America's moral decline. It is imperative > that church leaders and laity boldly proclaim that violence, torture, > hostage taking, conquests of land and resources are actions Christians can > never condone. Killing for Christ is an abomination leaving us with > blood-stained hands and darkness in our hearts! Every church must be a > peace church or it will be a state church, then it will be no church at > all. > > > > Email www.guardian.co.uk The US government has been accused of trying to > undermine the Chavez government by funding groups via its main > international aid agency. Millions of dollars have been provided in a > "pro-democracy program" that Chavez supporters claim is a covert attempt > to bankroll an opposition to defeat the government. The money is being > provided by the US Agency for International Development through its Office > of Transition Initiatives. > > > > > ********************************************* > For comments or to unsubscribe, email [EMAIL PROTECTED] > ********************************************* > > Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/scifinoir2/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/scifinoir2/join (Yahoo! 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