On September 18, 2008 Human Rights Watch released a report entitled “Venezuela: Rights Suffer Under Chávez.” The report contains biases and inaccuracies, and wrongly purports that human rights guarantees are lacking or not properly enforced in Venezuela. In addition, while criticizing Venezuela’s human rights in the political context, it fails to mention the […]
Geography Archives: Americas
South America, Central America, United States & Canada
Crisis of Capitalism and the Left
A new crisis of capitalism, in the style of 1929. The theories of casino capitalism are confirmed. The US government contradicts itself again and heavily intervenes, demonstrating that its confidence in the market isn’t as great as its propaganda displayed. Neoliberal capitalism spills its guts, and the theories of the Left — Keynesian or anti-capitalist […]
The New World Geopolitical Order: End of Act I
It would be a mistake to underestimate the importance of the agreement on September 8 between Nicolas Sarkozy of France in his capacity as current president of the European Union (EU) and Dmitri Medvedev, President of Russia. It marks the definitive end of Act I of the new world geopolitical order. What was decided? The […]
Luis Bilbao: For the United States, the Key Is Bolivia
If the United States manages to unleash a civil war in Bolivia, the plan is to extend it throughout the region and to resort to massive and extensive use of violence to regain ground, said Luis Bilbao, director of Revista América XXI, in an interview with Ernesto Villegas (via satellite) for the VTV program “Mediodías […]
Third World: Is Another Debt Crisis in the Offing?
While taking a significant toll on public revenues,1 repayment of the public debt has, since 2004, ceased to be a major concern for most middle-revenue countries and for raw material-exporting countries in general. In fact the majority of governments of these countries are having no trouble finding loans at historically low interest rates. However, the […]
Candlelight Vigil in Tehran on September 21st, International Day of Peace
The Tehran Peace Museum and the Society for Chemical Weapons Victims Support (SCWVS) are planning a candlelight vigil at 19:00 local time (10:30 EST) on September 21 to commemorate the UN-designated International Day of Peace. The organized event is a historic first in Iran, where tensions with the United States are causing serious anxiety. On […]
The Machine Gun and the Meeting Table: Bolivian Crisis in a New South America
On Monday, September 15, Bolivian President Evo Morales arrived in Santiago, Chile for an emergency meeting of Latin American leaders that convened to seek a resolution to the recent conflict in Bolivia. Upon his arrival, Morales said, “I have come here to explain to the presidents of South America the civic coup d’etat by Governors […]
Dealing with Iran’s Not-So-Irrational Leadership
Nothing expresses the widening gap between the mind frames of the Iranian ruling elite and their Western counterparts more than the headlines in their respective newspapers. The American media, above all, have unilaterally resolved the intelligence questions over Iran’s nuclear program. The New York Times leads the pack with articles and even editorials that […]
The Great Rehearsal
September 17-25 www.greatrehearsal.org 1968 was a world revolution. From Mexico City to Tokyo, Paris to Prague, Columbia University to Berkeley, it was a revolutionary event that at once failed and transformed the world. The process it put into place continues today. 1968, the long ’68, altered fundamental balances of power and set the stage […]
In Support of Cuba
Our country is facing a dramatic situation. We have suffered the wrath of two powerful hurricanes, Gustav and Ike, in just eight days. These natural disasters have seriously affected food production and essential sectors of the economy throughout the country. Although very few human lives were lost, a massive amount of houses, schools and […]
Bolivia Crisis Worsens as Emergency Summit Is Held
Forrest Hylton: The US is being shut out as the South American regional body tries to solve crisis on its own. The ongoing conflict in Bolivia saw at least 30 people killed on the weekend, as the opposition clashed with government forces. The opposition headed by wealthy landowners have vowed to make Bolivia ungovernable. Martial […]
Pakistan Invades America — “Without Permission”
The U.S. State Department lodged a sharp protest over ongoing Pakistani missile strikes and ground raids today, saying the Islamic Republic was violating American sovereignty. “We will try to convince Pakistan . . . to respect [the] sovereignty of the United States — and God willing, we will convince,” State Department Spokesman Sean McCormack told […]
Revolution! New Book Charts Roller Coaster Ride of South American Left
Throughout the past eight years of the Bush administration, North and South America have politically and economically been heading in opposite directions. While Bush waged wars, curtailed civil liberties, and spread neoliberalism, South Americans stopped corporate looting, ousted corrupt presidents, and developed economies for people instead of profit. Journalist Nikolas Kozloff’s new book, Revolution! South […]
A Guantanomized Age: The Long Interrogation
Stark images of spectral men — their appearance in bright orange jumpsuits belied by legal invisibility — have been seared into the minds of many Muslims as an index of America’s anger. But, for American Muslims, abuse and disappearance of detainees are not the defining features of the “war on terror.” Eyed by the national […]
U.S. Should Disclose Its Funding of Opposition Groups in Bolivia and Other Latin American Countries
WASHNGTON, D.C. – The Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR) called on the U.S. State Department, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), and other agencies to release information detailing whom it is funding in Bolivia — where violent right-wing opposition groups have wreaked havoc this week in a series of shootings, beatings, ransacking […]
NATO Weapons for Georgia
According to a report by the Russian newspaper Kommersant on Thursday, a group of NATO experts arrived in Georgia. The group will estimate the military needs of the country after its attack on South Ossetia and war against Russia. The activities of this working group will be kept secret. However, its presence and basic task […]
The Current Situation of the United States Economy
A Briefing to the Vietnamese Central Committee Delegation, September 11, 2008 The economic situation of the United States today is widely understood to be the most serious since the Great Depression of the 1930s, and not only for this country. So far the actions by the government have been inadequate, late, and do not address […]
Strategy of Chaos in Bolivia
On the tenth of September, one day before the 35th anniversary of the death of Chilean President Salvador Allende, Evo Morales, the Bolivian head of state, declared US Ambassador Philip Goldberg “persona non grata.” This is not a contrived symbolic decision. It came after the sabotage of a gas pipeline in the Department of […]
Women of Venezuela’s PSUV
Canadian socialist Jeffery R. Webber interviews women leaders of PSUV in the state of Mérida. Teresa Mora and María Linares at the PSUV’s Mérida headquarters In the early afternoon of September 8, 2008, I sat down at the state headquarters of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV), in the city of Mérida, for an […]
Arrogance, Ignorance, and Cowardice: Lessons from 9/11
A version of this essay was delivered to the “Struggle for Global Justice” film festival organized by the student group Azaad at the University of Texas at Austin on 11 September 2008. Given the disastrous decisions made by U.S. officials in the seven long years since September 11, 2001, it would be easy tonight simply […]
