apropos of a longer, though plannedly 'tentative' meditation on what an Obama presidency might mean for Venezuela and the rest of Latin America...some thoughts from a fellow traveler.
story (thanks to abiding in Bolivia!):
Are you over your hangover from partying up Obama tuesday night? Good, because here are some sober thoughts on Obama from Bolivia.
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What could President Obama mean for improving US - Bolivian relations after Bush sent Goldberg to support a bunch of fascist coup plotters? Well if Obama´s current advisors signify anything, not much. A while back Gringo Tambo dug up this video of Obama´s Bolivia advisor, Greg Craig speaking about the possible extradition of Bolivia´s ex-Pres "Goni" Sanchez de Lozada for his role in the 2003 El Alto Gas War in which more than 60 civilian protesters were shot dead by the national military. Summerized:
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“we do not accept your characaterization of those events as a massacre.” He says there were no crimes against humanity, genocide, disappearances, or torture, but rather, “tragically, civil disturbances which cost lives.”
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Oh, did I forget to tell you?, that in addition to advising Obama on Bolivia, Craig is also Goni´s legal representive. Conflict of interst. What conflict of interest?
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But hey, Bolivia is a small poor country anyways. Who cares? Obama is awesome, smart, unifying, and "transhistorical"- MLK´s dream fulfilled. Except Bolivians, like Americans, also elected in 2005 their first President from a group historically enslaved, racially segregation, and widely discriminated against. So Bolivia has been living a "postracial" politics ever since, right?
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I am sorry to say this folks, but if Bolivia and Morales are any gauge, what we saw during the McCain-Palin rallies ain´t nothing compared to what is down the road in an Obama Presidency. Dig in, beacuse now is the time when the real work of progressives starts.
link:
http://casa-del-duderino.blogspot.com/2008/11/note-of-caution.html
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