Part 2 of 2: Can George Bush II say “steal oil” in Spanish? Yes, he can.

by Richard Lee Friday, Mar. 28, 2003 at 6:23 PM
ricardolee@netzero.com

The warmongers in the Pentagon, including Bush, Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, Paul Wolfowitz, and Richard Perle, are having a field day since Uribe’s election by routing the U.S. “foreign aid” money to U.S. “defense” contractors who in turn ship their arms to Uribe, so he can continue to kill thousands of Colombian political dissidents annually.

GUNS, NOT FOOD FOR COLOMBIA

Uribe's methodology is to arm and supply paramilitary forces, of which he created 69 such groups as mayor of Medellin, providing them with radios, motorcycles and guns. As head of the civil aviation administration in the early 1980's, Uribe's policies served the interests of the international drug trade. For example, his authorization of permits for the construction of private airstrips in Medellin did nothing for peasants in desperate need of roads to take their goods to markets. Uribe’s groups have killed unionists, students, human rights workers and missionaries who dared to express their oppositon to the right of U.S. oil and energy corporations to have free reign. The constant wars have subjugated poor Colombians to a perpetual cycle of despair and destitution. But the oil companies are happy — they are making money hand over fist — Colombia is life in paradise for the corporate jet-setters.

As president, Uribe pledges to create a militia of one million civilians at the expense of the state, thanks to the American taxpayer, to buttress the armed forces.

Plan Colombia: (Bush’s plan for Colombia) Uribe welcomes the billion military package pledged by the U.S. for Plan Colombia, (US military aid to Colombia has ballooned from an average of million a year between 1992 and 1995 to the 7 million President George W. Bush is requesting for 2002, on top of the .3 billion for Plan Colombia that President Bill Clinton signed in 2000). Plan Colombia is the military portion of the Free Trade Agreement of the Americas. The Bush and Uribe alliance gives allows the U.S to potentially make Colombia this hemisphere's version of Vietnam. Human rights groups, the Red Cross and others report that the death toll from these activities is rising steeply since Bush’s election. Instead of fighting a supposed “War on drugs,” Plan Colombia will only conflagrate an already tumultuous situation in the region.

Uribe is calling on the U.S. to help him intensify the war against civilians. Instead of spending money on food and creating jobs, he wants to double “defense” spending and is asking for more helicopters and greater U.S. involvement in areas such as intelligence sharing. And Bush has a lot of willing participants. Army Lt. Gen. James T. Hill recently told a senate committee that he and others should be sent to Colombia ASAP: "You need to let me get on the ground."

Unemployment in Colombia is over 20%, and two million Colombians have been displaced due to incessant oil drilling and drug wars. Over 35,000 Colombians have been killed in the last 30 years, and hundreds of thousands of others have fled the country to avoid death. The Colombian people have endured endless atrocities, but the U.S. media still talks more about the German holocaust of the Jews that happened 60 years ago than present-day U.S. government-led ongoing atrocities in South American and the Middle East, the two most oil-rich regions in the world.

Texaco, based in George Bush’s home state, also has a contract with Ecopetrol through 2004, and an agreement to continue operating the fields under a build—operate—maintain—transfer agreement until 2016.

El Cerrejón Norte, the world's largest open-pit coal mine, contains an estimated 3 billion tons of reserves. In 1996, it produced about 16 million short tons (nearly 60 percent of Colombia’s total). The mine is operated by Intercor, an Exxon-Mobil subsidiary. Another major project, La Loma, opened in 1996, operated by Drummond, another U.S. company.

In 2000 and 2001, Colombia signed more than 60 contracts with US, Canadian, British and Spanish companies: BP-Amoco. Chevron-Texaco, Shell-Occidental, Exxon-Mobil, Canadian Oxy, Talismán, Alberta Energy, Nexen, Repsol, and CEPSA. So now the Colombia government has sold out virtually all its oil reserves for exploration and exploitation to foreign companies, and all of the resultant wealth has been concentrated in the hands of a select few. The only reserves left untouched are the Pacific oil fields — reserved by the U.S. for special military contingencies.

WOULD AL GORE HAVE BEEN THE “SAVIOR” OF SOUTH AMERICANS?

The U.S. supposedly holds “free” elections. But the fact is in the November 2000 elections, big oil men were the only choices they had. Al Gore was the alternative to George Bush and he is probably a bigger hypocrite than Bush.

Gore dresses in earth tones, constantly harps about protecting the Amazon rain-forests, and touts the new Earth religion – all as a ploy to get Democratic party votes. Yet he owns a 5,000 share in and sits on the board of Shell-Occidental, the oil company that has profited from the expropriation of the indigenous U'wa Indians land, in the rain-forests of Colombia, and to boot are polluting the same land they have plundered the oil from. Gore personally profits from the dirty deal handed to Colombia's indigenous peoples, who have long suffered at the hands of Bogotá and the Americans. The chief complaint of the locals, aside from the outright theft of U'wa lands, seems to be that the pipeline has attracted the guerrillas and greatly increased the level of violence in a region that had been relatively free of it. Since Shell-Occidental’s incursion, there have been more than 600 guerrilla attacks in the area, with the innocent U'wa caught in the crossfire. As history repeats itself, the South American Indians have been pushed onto a reservation, just like what happened in North America, and stripped of most of their ancestral lands by government fiat. The U'wa caught the attention of the world when they threatened to protest this aspect of "globalization" in the only way they could: by threatening to commit collective suicide.

Ray Irani, chief executive of Occidental at the time, made a donation of 0,000 to the Democratic National Committee in the early 90s following an invitation by Clinton-Gore to stay in the Lincoln Room of the White House. The Gore camp claims that the income from the Occidental assets goes to his mother, but this hardly makes it morally palatable: does he want to make his own mother morally responsible for the death of a people? Furthermore, if the financial interests of the Gore family are so inextricably intertwined with maintaining "stability" in Colombia, how could he separate these interests from the national interest when it comes to deciding if and when to directly intervene in Colombia?

CHÁVEZ TRYING TO GOVERN VENEZUELA IN PEACE

Ironically, Chávez has planned for several years on opening the Venezuelan oil industry up to U.S. private investment if Bush II would just stop causing hell in his country and allow him govern in peace.

Bush is so bent on taking covert control of the country that Chávez has only been able to concentrate on fending off the foreign intervention coming from the Bush administration and is having difficulty focusing on the execution of his original plan, which was to allow foreign investment, but only to a maximum of a 49% share. In November 2001, Chávez decreed a new law that makes the government the majority partner, of at least 51%, in any new energy venture in Venezuela. But Bush wants the controlling interest that he’s been accustomed to for the past three decades, but Chávez insists that the controlling interest of Petroleos de Venezuela (PDVSA) be maintained in Venezuela. Bush says he’s for freedom, but that’s only for himself, not other countries.

BRAZIL RESISTING U.S. IMPERIALISM

In a display of militaristic spirit, the Bush advisors — Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, Paul Wolfowitz, & Richard Perle — who are the men most responsible for American foreign policy interventionism under Bush II, recommended last year that he renew the “1964 method” in Brazil, in the belief that he who controls Brazil controls South America. In Brazil, the Partido de los Trabajadores PT (Workers’ Party) won the elections in a third of the municipalities, including in the city of São Paulo, the biggest city in the country. Meanwhile, the other opposition labor party won the mayoral post in Rio. PT could win the next presidential election, while the landless peasant movement (MST) is ever-stronger and more active. Washington also does not like that Brazil’s government will not accept advancing the end of the FTAA free trade negotiations from 2005 to 2003. Instead Brazil insists, with Venezuela, on strengthening the Mercosur trade agreement for a South American Common Market, which Bush II is vehemently combatting. Brazil is also refusing to allow Bush II to impose his U.S. “military training” on their troops, which is intended by Bush to break the South American union.

U.S. IMPERIALISM IN MEXICO

On March 14, 2003, the Bush II Administration issued threats against Mexico, which has a seat on the United Nations Security Council, in order to get their to vote in support of another resolution (after 1441) which unsuccessfully failed to gain the U.N. authorization of a war on Iraq. Bush alluded to the possibility of reprisals against Mexicans and Hispanics in the U.S. if Mexico were to vote against the U.S. Bush II warned of "discipline" being imposed on Mexico, in a March 3 interview with the Copley News Service.

U.S. IMPERIALISM IN SOUTHERN SOUTH AMERICA

U.S. Army advisors have been placed in Paraguay on supposed “training and assistance” missions. In reality they are not only aiming to squash the growing militant farmers’ movement in Paraguay, but also aiming to control Brazil and prevent further unification of South American states. Bush doesn’t like the sound of the “United States of South America,” and will do all he can to stop it, even if it means using military force.

U.S. IMPERIALISM IN ECUADOR

In 2001, Bush & the U.S. government, courtesy of American taxpayers, pumped in another 0 million to exert its military muscle in Ecuador by constructing the Manta military base. The U.S. government refers to this expansion of American imperialism is referred to as the “Andean Regional Initiative.”

U.S. IMPERIALISM IN BOLIVIA

The International Monetary Fund, secretly operated out of and based in Washington, D.C., instigated a civil war in Bolivia in February by imposing a huge tax hike on the already poverty-level wages of public and private employees. The IMF’s tax imposition means an additional 10% of would go to the loansharking IMF through the Bolivian government. Through February 12, 2003, 13 people died in the U.S.-sponsored military repression to control the rebellions, even though President Sánchez de Lozada quickly announced he would rescind the ominous tax burden or "impuestazo" tax that precipitated the civil war in Bolivia, as the people thought, “How dare they even try to pull off that scam?” This tax hike served as the spark to ignite the explosion of social discontent and protest, including the police strike(Grupos Especiales de Seguridad). Many are demanding the president’s resignation, and are calling for a general strike.

The “impuestazo” drew fire not only from the vast majority of Bolivia’s population that lives in poverty, but also drove the middle class onto the streets and even provoked some corporate sectors. The idea had been, following the strict regulations of the IMF, to cutdown on the “household deficit.” The eradication of Coca, privatization of gas, (which usurps the profits from the general populace to American Oil Corporations), the FTAA and other US impositions, had already caused campesino roadblocks that were brutally attacked by the U.S. puppet government in Bolivia, causing the death of at least 14 people, which incited the protests to explode in the cities. Among the protesters were the striking policemen without uniforms and their wives. Students of Colegio Ayacucho, protesting against the dismissal of the schools director, took advantage of the police absence by throwing stones at the government building called "burned palace" in Plaza Murillo, as more and more protesters gathered. The military police were trucked in and viciously cracked down on the protesters, killing several and then moving on to fight the striking police. The conflict went on all day on February 12, as there were similar events in Cochabamba and other parts of the country. The protesters set fire and ransacked the ministry of employment, the vice presidency, and the buildings of the parties MIR and MNR, which are also part of the ruling government. Some shops were also ransacked. At 6 pm the president announced that the tax imposition had been rescinded and ordered the military to retreat. At least 13 people were reported dead and, at least 50 people wounded. Evo Morales, of the Movimiento al Socialismo (Socialist Movement) and Central Obrera Boliviana (Worker’s Trade Union), amongst others, asked for Sanchez de Losada to resign. Despite the troops retreat, martial law has been imposed, including a curfew and miitary aircraft circling the town.

U.S. IMPERIALISM IN CENTRAL AMERICA

Also in 2001, the U.S. government began applying economic pressure on Panama to accept “visiting” U.S. troops against the “banana republic’s” will. It will be very difficult for Panama to resist the imposition of will from George Bush II, Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, Paul Wolfowitz, Richard Perle, the five henchmen most responsible for setting American foreign policy under Bush II.

According to an article in the Aug. 20, 1997 Christian Science Monitor, Rick Stauber, a member of the seven-person team that prepared the U.S. Department of Defense's report on leftover ordinance at three military firing ranges in Panama, says during his investigation he was handed a report, listing all U.S. weapon testing from the 1960s to the early 1990s, that showed that 120mm depleted-uranium (DU) projectiles were fired on Empire Range.

At first, U.S. Ambassador William Hughs denied Stauber’s report. When the Fellowship of Reconciliation brought this to the attention of Panamanian daily newspapers, the strong reaction forced Washington to admit that the military had at the very least stored DU shells in Panama to test their deterioration in tropical climates. Stauber, a military consultant, said that they would then be obliged to test fire at least some of the shells to see if they were functional.

In Guatemala, U.S.-sponsored military dictatorships since 1954 have ravaged terror, genocide, and mass starvation upon the people and subjected more than 80 percent of the population to perpetual poverty.

CONCLUSION:

“Plan Colombia” will be used as a pretext for a U.S. and international military intervention that permits control over the continent and over the people of Latin America. After Plan Colombia is implemented, and brings the inevitable backlash, and as the “drug war” pretext no longer becomes operative, the oil and energy conglomerates will try in vain to regroup for their next invasion of South America.

The U.S. Government, led by Bush II, Cheney, Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz, & Perle — is determined on finalizing comprehensive world domination by utilizing its unparalleled military might. This doctrine is completely antithetical to the Monroe doctrine of 1823, which stated that the U.S. would essentially mind its own business and not meddle in the affairs of or get involved in wars with other countries unless first attacked. The honorable Monroe Doctrine has now been buried, and the conditions are now set for another world war.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff of the U.S. military have expressed concern over the feasibility of an Iraqi war. The despotic Rumsfeld, a who backs Bush like a Japanese kamikaze pilot backed the emperor, is said to have told the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who consist of the most intelligent and most experienced war men the U.S. military has to offer, “to get in line or find other jobs.” Bush is also said to be "extremely angry" at what he perceives as an unspoken growing Pentagon opposition to his role as Commander-in-Chief.

In reality, Bush’s planned aggression on Iraq, in addition to his “Plan Colombia” is indicative of an impetuous madman on the order of a Genghis Khan, Alexander the Great, Napoleon, Stalin or Hitler when they tried to take over the world and were eventually cast into the abyss by the world backlash. Bush is now on course to bring on the most calamitous military maneuvers since World War II.

An article from Narconews suggests that the USA is preparing to send Marines to Columbia to fight in that country's ongoing civil war - in direct violation of U.S. law. The report also suggests that American spooks in Columbia are responsible for staging various fake "Terrorist" bombings in Columbia and blaming them on FARC in order to manufacture public support for ratcheting up the war against the Columbian rebels.

Expect any US casaulties from this war to be either ignored or ascribed to U.S. battlefield casaulties in the coming invasion of Iraq.

To respond to this article, please E-mail: ricardolee@netzero.com

Credits and recommended websites:

http://www.aporrea.org/

http://www.foreigncorrespondent.com

http://www.antiwar.com/justin/j031000.html

http://www.converger.com/eiacab/colombia.htm

http://www.counterpunch.org/reich0503.html

http://www.fair.org/articles/otto-reich.html

http://www.latinosstep.com/CULTURA/colombia/history.html

http://www.nynewsnetwork.com/US%20Absorbed%20by%20Colombia.htm

http://www.zmag.org/crisescurevts/colombia/gas1.htm

http://eatthestate.org/06-11/NaturePolitics.htm

Compton’s Encyclopedia

End Part 2 of 2 (Tucsonans: Please copy and distribute at Mission Park Cesar Chávez rally on Saturday).

Original: Part 2 of 2: Can George Bush II say “steal oil” in Spanish? Yes, he can.