I don't think I would call LoneSnark a liberal by any definition of the word.

12/3/2007 6:41:44 PM

I am a liberal in the sense that I believe people should be left alone

12/3/2007 8:39:20 PM

http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5g-c3zwzjxAgXPAtt8oaYz3NOePnA

chavez brokered a deal to get 3 american hostages in columbia released...they been hostages for like 5 years

Quote :

"Colombia backs Chavez plan for FARC hostages' release 17 hours ago CARACAS (AFP) — Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said Colombian Marxist rebels could free three hostages as early as Thursday after the Colombian government approved a handover plan he devised with the guerrillas. Bogota gave its nod to the plan Wednesday, hours after Chavez said it was the only thing needed to launch the operation to pick up the two women and a child from the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). "We are asking the Colombian government to cooperate with us," Chavez said, adding that "We have different options for a secret release but we do not want that, it is very risky." As relatives of the three rejoiced, Chavez described his plan to pluck former lawmaker Consuelo Gonzalez de Perdomo, 57; Clara Rojas, 44; and Emmanuel, 3, the son Rojas bore to a rebel in captivity, from a secret location deep in the jungle. The women have been held since 2001 and 2002, respectively. Rojas was the presidential campaign manager of French-Colombian politician Ingrid Betancourt when the two were abducted by FARC in February 2002. Betancourt remains in captivity. Rojas and Betancourt are among 45 hostages, including three Americans, whom the rebels want to exchange for some 500 FARC members held by the Colombian government. But the two sides have not agreed on conditions for the swap. Colombian President Alvaro Uribe had named Chavez as a mediator for the possible swap but stripped him of the role after the Venezuelan leader ignored his demand that he not directly contact his generals. But Chavez has remained involved in the hostages situation, and the FARC announced on December 18 that they would free the three hostages to him or a representative of his choosing. Under the plan unveiled Wednesday, Venezuelan airplanes and helicopters will fly into Colombia with representatives of France, Argentina, Brazil, Cuba, Bolivia and Ecuador, as well as the International Committee of the Red Cross. Chavez will be represented in the operation by former Venezuelan interior minister Ramon Rodriguez Chacin, while Colombia has designated its High Commissioner for Peace Luis Carlos Restrepo. The release "has been agreed to the tiniest detail with the FARC commanders," said Chavez, who has been involved in mediation efforts with the rebels. "If the operation begins tomorrow (Thursday) morning, before the day is over Clara, Consuelo and Emmanuel could be here," he said, adding that he had been given information that the three are in good health. Chavez said the airborne caravan would travel to the Colombian city of Villavicencio, in Meta department, which lies approximately one hour's flight from the border and 100 kilometers (62 miles) southeast of Bogota. From there two helicopters will fly to a rendez-vous point that will be set by the FARC and communicated only to Venezuelan authorities. The freed hostages will be taken to Villavicencio and then head to Venezuela before heading back to Colombia. Bogota, which has testy relations with Caracas and had been largely sidelined in the hostage handover drama, quickly approved the plan. "The government of Colombia authorizes the humanitarian mission in the terms of its missive," Foreign Minister Fernando Araujo said in Bogota. "For constitutional reasons, the aircraft employed in this humanitarian mission should carry the emblems of the International Red Cross," he added. In Bogota, elated relatives began to form their own travel plans. "Soon we will have the final result, having her home again," Ivan Rojas, Clara Rojas's brother, told AFP. "I think that tomorrow, we will travel to Villavicencio. Definitely God is with us." "We are very, very happy, we already feel that my mother, Clara and Emmanuel are very, very close, thanks to God," said Maria Fernanda Perdomo, a daughter of the abducted lawmaker. She said her family was waiting for instructions about where to go. "Our greatest wish is to embrace my mother as soon as possible," she told Caracol television. The FARC, a 17,000-strong group that has waged an insurgency against the Colombian government for more than 40 years, holds close to 800 hostages. "

12/27/2007 7:36:51 AM

^ NEWSFLASH: Socialist thug does something good--dnl falls for it. dnl declares: "Maybe he's not so bad."

12/27/2007 9:27:22 AM

What did dnl fall for? He just posted a link with a very short summary comment you sad sack of shit

12/27/2007 9:43:10 AM

Ah yes, all leftists are evil and all conservatives are protecting the world order as the right hand of god.

12/27/2007 9:56:51 AM

^^




[Edited on December 27, 2007 at 10:00 AM. Reason : .]

12/27/2007 9:58:07 AM

Colombian Rebels' Ties to Chávez Come Into Focus
Computer Files Found In Raid Detail Efforts To Gain Arms, Money

Quote :

"BOGOTA, Colombia, March 6 -- A trove of correspondence recovered during a raid on a guerrilla camp is providing a rare window into how Colombia's largest rebel group has drawn closer to Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez in an effort to acquire money, arms and the political recognition the organization craves. If authentic, the documents would make clear for the first time that Chávez's affinity for the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, has translated into more than rhetoric on its behalf. The documents were discovered Saturday on three laptop computers and two hard drives after Colombian forces bombed a rebel camp 2,000 feet inside Ecuador, killing 24 guerrillas, including Luis Edgar Devia, a member of the FARC's ruling secretariat who used the name Raúl Reyes. The correspondence appears to show that Venezuelan officials are eager to work with rebel commanders to isolate Colombian President Álvaro Uribe, an ally of the Bush administration. The documents also include letters to Chávez from FARC leader Manuel Marulanda."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/06/AR2008030604091.html?hpid=moreheadlines

Chávez's cronies working with FARC--a terrorist organization--and against a U.S. ally, Colombia? Well, well. But it ain't no big surprise--except to Chávez defenders.

[Edited on March 7, 2008 at 12:34 PM. Reason : .]

3/7/2008 12:30:07 PM

yawn, how is that any different than the US training, funding, and supplying weapons to dozens of terrorist paramilitary groups in the region over the last 50 years? Our hands are hardly clean in South America.

3/7/2008 12:53:57 PM

^ Yawn? Yet you felt the need to post here nonetheless.

Blame America first, right? Can you and some of the others bring yourselves to deal with the Chávez shit first? He's a bad guy--a fucking thug dictator, adored by Hollywood leftists and leftist terrorists alike, right, Chavistas?

Chavismo!

3/7/2008 1:24:31 PM

I'd rather deal with America first, since, unlike you, I don't like being a hypocrite.

3/7/2008 1:32:19 PM

this chavez guy use to be cool...now hes becoming a douche like bush

3/7/2008 1:43:33 PM

^^ So you support state-sponsored assassinations now? And can you stop with the fucking moral relativism and address this situation?

^ Please just STFU.

3/10/2008 3:43:22 AM

seriously hooksaw...did you hear about him moving tanks to the border? what a douche

3/10/2008 9:25:31 AM

I'm not sure America comes into this. Which terrorist paramilitary organizations has George Bush funded and supported? I can't think of any. As such, if true, this would make Chavez worse than Bush in one respect.

3/10/2008 10:01:04 AM

Questions about Venezuela as Rice arrives in Brazil
She says U.S. will act accordingly if Chavez is found to have aided Colombian rebels. Bogota says it has evidence he funded FARC.

Quote :

"SAO PAULO, BRAZIL -- U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice declined to say Thursday whether the Bush administration would move to designate Venezuela a state sponsor of terrorism after new revelations about the country's alleged links to Colombian rebels. 'We will watch the situation and the U.S. will act accordingly,' Rice said during a news conference in Brasilia."

http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/asection/la-fg-rice14mar14,1,2064096.story

3/14/2008 6:10:35 AM

Does anyone know what that would mean?

3/14/2008 8:27:46 AM

^

Quote :

"Being on the state sponsors of terrorism list imposes four main sets of U.S. sanctions: a ban on U.S. arms-related sales; export controls on so-called 'dual-use' items with civilian and military applications; bans on certain economic aid, and financial sanctions, including U.S. opposition to World Bank and International Monetary Fund loans to the country. It is not clear whether it would disrupt U.S. purchases of Venezuelan oil. Shannon said he did not know whether U.S. companies could be barred from importing Venezuelan oil if Venezuela were eventually added to the list."

http://www.reuters.com/article/latestCrisis/idUSN12227463

3/14/2008 8:37:05 AM

bump by request

6/4/2009 5:49:29 PM

Chavez is sooo 2007. We've got our own socialist in the White House now.

6/4/2009 6:04:35 PM

Israeli document: Venezuela sends uranium to Iran

Quote :

"JERUSALEM (AP) — Venezuela and Bolivia are supplying Iran with uranium for its nuclear program, according to a secret Israeli government report obtained Monday by The Associated Press."

Quote :

"The report concludes, 'Since Ahmadinejad's rise to power, Tehran has been promoting an aggressive policy aimed at bolstering its ties with Latin American countries with the declared goal of "bringing America to its knees."' The document says Venezuela and Bolivia are violating the United Nations Security Council's economic sanctions with their aid to Iran. As allies against the U.S., Ahmadinejad and Chavez have set up a $200 billion fund aimed at garnering the support of more South American countries for the cause of 'liberation from the American imperialism,' according to the report. Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor refused to comment about the secret report."

http://tinyurl.com/qsldmm

What about this? Please, let's be serious about this one. I mean, I think this is a very serious situation, don't you?

6/4/2009 6:51:20 PM

I replied to this in the Obama Legacy thread and you never answered. I'll just cut to the chase: what do you think we should do now?

Another question to answer with righteous indignation towards me once you get the chance: Is this Israeli report legit or was it produced to hopefully gain backing from the US for strikes against Iran? Remember this?



I hope you realize that we aren't opposed to you on this because we approve of some stupid strongman in Latin America or a bad leader in Iran, it's because we don't want to bomb yet another country and be forced to deal with international ramifications beyond which you don't seem to have considered.

But if you want to piss off some of the strongest, fastest growing nations (China, Brazil, Russia) to prove a point about a troll in Latin America, go right ahead. It's our own peril.

edit: I LOLed at this one...



[Edited on June 5, 2009 at 11:13 AM. Reason : .]

6/5/2009 11:12:20 AM

I'd still like to know 1) who is defending Chavez here and 2) what should be done about him.

All I see are a bunch of people who don't want to create even more distrust of the US in Latin America.

6/7/2009 10:53:15 PM

I'd say there is nothing WE can do. Afterall, is it not the UN's responsibility to enforce UN resolutions? That is why we created the UN, so we can blockade and invade countries without engendering any ill will towards the US. Regretfully, we forgot that feature and then had the US invade both Iraq and Afganistan. Quite stupid.

6/7/2009 11:17:22 PM

Yes, well, the Iraq war also left us with a sizable population of hawks in the US who think that the UN security council conspires against the US.

6/7/2009 11:20:35 PM

Quote :

"I'd still like to know 1) who is defending Chavez here "

Nobody is... hooksaw created a strawman and knocked it over. You have to create a false sense of discord among your audience before you can assert your claim to the moral high ground, totally unopposed.

6/7/2009 11:23:53 PM

strawman pwnt, congrats hooksaw!

6/8/2009 12:08:54 AM

Quote :

"Chavez is da man"

Wolfman Tim

Quote :

"Why does it matter what [Chavez] does in his OWN country?"

rainman

Quote :

"Considering that the same TV station supported a coup against Chavez in 2002, it's very generous of him to merely not renew their license now. Wasn't Chavez democratically elected anyway? There's only so much hate you can have for him, until you have to blame the people of Venezuela."

moron

message_topic.aspx?topic=479771

6/8/2009 7:08:34 PM

the first one is a joke. this was concluded long ago.

the others are basically advocating a hands off approach.

Quote :

"2) what should be done about him?"

6/11/2009 10:35:24 AM

Chavez supporters attack opposition TV station

Quote :

"Activists with the UPV, a radical left-wing party that backs Chavez, forced their way past security guards to enter Globovision headquarters in Caracas and fired tear gas inside the compound, images broadcast by the TV station showed. Globovision, a small but critical station, broadcasts news programing and has been highly critical of Chavez. Chavez's government condemned the attack, although Globovision's owners said they suspected the president was behind the incident."

Quote :

"The Chavez administration in recent weeks heightened measures to control private media companies. The government over the weekend shut down 34 radio stations and said it was investigating 120 more for alleged irregularities. Critics say the government is seeking to silence dissent and muzzle freedom of speech. Authorities last month hit Globovision with a $2 million fine for back taxes, and officials have twice raided its president's property, saying he illegally resold cars and kept stuffed wild animals. Authorities have said they are studying further measures against Globovision."

http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSTRE5725MN20090803

8/10/2009 7:28:03 AM

Stewie Griffin promotes drug use for the US government, says Venezuela

Quote :

"It's a cause for controversy at home and has picked up a gamut of awards in the process, but now the popular cartoon show "Family Guy" has found itself caught in the middle of a spat between Venezuela and the United States about drug trafficking. Venezuelan state TV today broadcast an excerpt from "Family Guy" as an example of how the U.S. promotes drug use. The clip features Stewie, the matricide-obsessed infant son of Peter and Lois Griffin, singing a song extolling the virtues of smoking weed. "We can observe how [the U.S. government] promotes and incites the population to consume that drug there," said Tarek El Aissaimi, Venezuela's Interior Minister. "There's no subliminal message. It's an animated cartoon where you can observe perfectly how they promote consumption and moreover they foster the legalization of marijuana.""

http://www.globalpost.com/notebook/venezuela/090922/stewie-griffin-promotes-drug-use-the-us-government-says-venezuela

Some people just don't comprehend the concept of an independent media. As such, to prevent spreading the U.S. Government propaganda, Chavez has banned Family Guy.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/8277129.stm

[Edited on September 30, 2009 at 12:26 AM. Reason : .,.]

9/30/2009 12:09:04 AM

Brian promotes weed pretty heavily--and I'm okay with this.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W9qUbMSKx7U

9/30/2009 12:31:48 AM

The actual video was available at my first link:
http://www.globalpost.com/notebook/venezuela/090922/stewie-griffin-promotes-drug-use-the-us-government-says-venezuela

9/30/2009 12:44:36 AM

^ Yeah, sorry, I didn't click the link--I thought I had the gist of it. The video in the link is better, too.

9/30/2009 3:34:41 PM

Chavez takes Hilton
October 15, 2009

Hilton the latest victim of thievery by the socialist Venezuelan government.

Quote :

"Just weeks after Libyan leader Muammar Gadaffi and President of Zimbabwe Robert Mugabe checked out of the Hilton Hotel on Margarita Island, Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez checked in for good. In the latest move in a series of expropriations of private local and international businesses, Chavez made the decision to nationalize the hotel because, he said, the island needed to boost tourism. (BBC News)"

http://www.examiner.com/x-2927-Minneapolis-Conservative-Examiner~y2009m10d15-Chavez-takes-Hilton

Of course, many of you who are mindlessly supporting the wholesale "takeover" of various industries in the United States probably don't give a damn about this.

10/21/2009 4:21:24 AM

i like how he justifies all the taking over (government taking over things) as having some sort of positive slant.

since when does government taking over something ever really help it?

10/23/2009 12:46:24 PM

Cubans fear more gov't control of farmers markets
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091028/ap_on_bi_ge/cb_cuba_food_revolt_2

10/29/2009 11:48:28 PM

I laugh every time I see this thread bumped. Damn Chavez lovers.

As fucking if

10/30/2009 1:24:49 AM

Iran, Venezuela Share a Nuclear Dream
December 15, 2009

Quote :

"A Wall Street Journal opinion piece has suggested the relationship between Iran and Venezuela is flourishing, with deeply troubling nuclear 'cooperation' as the binding agent. Bret Stephens writes in the Monday op-ed that the Obama administration should 'take note that we are now on course for a replay' of the Cuban missile crisis — which saw a faraway power at odds with the U.S. deliver a threat to America's doorstep via a Latin American country. Rather than Cuba hosting Russian weaponry, this time the suggestion is that Iran has quietly climbed into bed with the regime of Venezuela's Hugo Chavez in hopes of establishing a stable uranium supply to fuel its nuclear reactors. Stephens lists a number of already-established industrial links between Tehran and Caracas, including an Iranian tractor factory, dairy plant and even a bicycle manufacturer on Venezuelan soil. All of these ties have also yielded very direct transport and shipping links between the two countries. According to the article, Iran and Venezuela have now signed an agreement to hunt for what could be a vast uranium deposit in a remote Venezuelan region called Roraima Basin. A mineral resources company which operates a large uranium mine in Canada told Stephens the Roraima is the 'geological look-alike' of its Canadian site, suggesting potentially huge amounts of the radioactive material. In another fairly direct indication of the shared nuclear ambitions of the two countries, Stephens notes that senior officials in Venezuela's state-run oil company, military-industrial complex; state-owned mining concern, and the Minister of Interior himself are all Venezuelans of Iranian descent. 'Forty-seven years ago, Americans woke up to the fact that a distant power could threaten us much closer to home,' concludes Stephens. 'Perhaps it's time Camelot 2.0 take note that we are now on course for a replay.'"

http://www.cbsnews.com/blogs/2009/12/15/world/worldwatch/entry5980756.shtml

12/28/2009 10:16:27 AM

this is scary

12/29/2009 1:20:13 PM

Quote :

"Chavez ordered that a Venezuelan judge, who released a prisoner that the Chavez government wouldn't put on trial or grant bail for two years, be sent to prison for 30 years. He helpfully suggested that she was lucky that he didn't have her shot."

http://mungowitzend.blogspot.com/2010/01/your-hugo-chavez-update.html

1/4/2010 1:54:30 PM

But but but but according to the braintrust of folks like God and McDanger, they have the ideal government!

1/4/2010 2:00:47 PM

^congrats, your understanding of politics doesn't go beyond monolithic left or right. or you're just a shithead.

1/4/2010 2:17:29 PM

or I'm just not in love with the idea of government having the peoples' best interests in mind, ever.

You keep living that fantasy though, big boy.



[Edited on January 4, 2010 at 3:46 PM. Reason : I can't believe anyone would actually defend Chavez. ]

1/4/2010 3:45:25 PM

Quote :

"But but but but according to the braintrust of folks like God and McDanger, they have the ideal government!"

Who the fuck are you?

1/4/2010 4:49:28 PM

Quote :

""Chavez ordered that a Venezuelan judge, who released a prisoner that the Chavez government wouldn't put on trial or grant bail for two years, be sent to prison for 30 years. He helpfully suggested that she was lucky that he didn't have her shot.""

You don't have to look too far down in TSB to find hooksaw et al arguing that we shouldn't have a trial for certain people because they "might" get off or that it costs too much money. I don't know the details of the Chavez situation, but at least some people here don't really have a right to criticize anyone for "expedited justice."

1/4/2010 6:12:00 PM

Quote :

"or I'm just not in love with the idea of government having the peoples' best interests in mind, ever. You keep living that fantasy though, big boy."

AS A RUGGED INDIVIDUAL I CAN SAY THAT ONLY I, AS A PRIVELEDGED YOUNG ADULT WITH AN ENGINEERING DEGREE, UNDERSTAND FREEDOM

you're still demonstrating a knowledge of politics which hasn't even reached hooksaw's level though if you think garden variety liberals are like Chavez. do you get your opinions of current events from South Park?

1/8/2010 2:57:24 PM

Hugo Chavez says U.S. is using earthquake as pretext for occupying Haiti
Monday, January 18th 2010

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/2010/01/18/2010-01-18_hugo_chavez.html

Chavez called Obama "boy," too.

1/19/2010 9:48:07 AM

It's not just Chavez, apparently.

France accused the US of "occupying" Haiti on Monday as thousands of American troops flooded into the country to take charge of aid efforts and security.

Quote :

"The French minister in charge of humanitarian relief called on the UN to "clarify" the American role amid claims the military build up was hampering aid efforts. Alain Joyandet admitted he had been involved in a scuffle with a US commander in the airport's control tower over the flight plan for a French evacuation flight. Haiti: Humanitarian aid prioritised at airport "This is about helping Haiti, not about occupying Haiti," Mr Joyandet said. Geneva-based charity Medecins Sans Frontieres backed his calls saying hundreds of lives were being put at risk as planes carrying vital medical supplies were being turned away by American air traffic controllers. But US commanders insisted their forces' focus was on humanitarian work and last night agreed to prioritise aid arrivals to the airport over military flights, after the intervention of the UN. The diplomatic row came amid heightened frustrations that hundreds of tons of aid was still not getting through. Charities reported violence was also worsening as desperate Haitians took matters into their own hands. The death toll is now estimated at up to 200,000 lives. Around three million Haitians – a third of the country's population – have been affected by Tuesday's earthquake and two million require food assistance. While food and water was gradually arriving at the makeshift camps which have sprung up around the city, riots have broken out in other areas where supplies have still not materialised. Haiti was occupied by the US between 1915 and 1935, and historical sensitivities together with friction with other countries over the relief effort has made the Americans cautious about their role in the operation. American military commanders have repeatedly stressed that they are not entering the country as an occupying force. US soldiers in Port-au-Prince said they had been told to be discreet about how they carry their M4 assault rifles. A paratrooper sergeant said they were authorised to use "deadly force" if they see anyone's life in danger but only as a "last resort". Capt John Kirby, a spokesman for the joint task force at the airport, said the US recognised it was only one of a number of countries contributing to a UN-led mission. He also emphasised the US troops, which he said would rise to 10,000 by Wednesday would principally be assisting in humanitarian relief and the evacuation of people needing medical attention. The main responsibility for security rests with the UN, which is to add a further 3,000 troops to its force of 9,000. However, it was agreed on Sunday night that the Americans would take over security at the four main food and water distribution points being set up in the city, Capt Kirby said. "Security here is in a fluid situation," he said. "If the Haitian government asked us to provide security downtown, we would do that." He played down the threat of violence, saying: "What we're seeing is that there are isolated incidents of violence and some pockets where it's been more restive, but overall it's calm.""

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/centralamericaandthecaribbean/haiti/7020908/US-accused-of-occupying-Haiti-as-troops-flood-in.html

I'm not really understanding why we're sending troops there, to be honest. This isn't the military's job. Humanitarian groups should be going over there, and not on behalf of the U.S. government.

1/19/2010 10:04:29 AM

^ The same reason we don't send cops to arrest terrorists in the middle of a war zone--they're not trained or equipped to do it. The scale of some things is so large and the tasks so difficult and dangerous that only the military can initially handle it--humanitarian groups are there, too.

Retired general: U.S. aid effort too slow
Updated 2d 12h ago

Quote :

"WASHINGTON — The U.S. relief effort after the Haiti earthquake started too slowly and cautiously, says a retired general who led the military relief effort on the Gulf Coast after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. 'The next morning after the earthquake, as a military man of 37 years service, I assumed … there would be airplanes delivering aid, not troops, but aid,' said retired Lt. Gen. Russel Honore, who coordinated military operations after disaster struck the U.S. Gulf Coast in 2005. 'What we saw instead was discussion about, "Well we've got to send an assessment team in to see what the needs are." And anytime I hear that, my head turns red.' The problem, Honore told USA TODAY, is that the State Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development, instead of the military, take the lead in international disaster response. 'I was a little frustrated to hear that USAID was the lead agency," he said. "I respect them, but they're not a rapid deployment unit.'"

http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2010-01-15-general-criticizes-response_N.htm

[Edited on January 19, 2010 at 10:31 AM. Reason : And a stable democracy in our region is in our interests.]

1/19/2010 10:22:52 AM