Venezuela’s President Hugo Chavez appeared on state television the other day to accuse the CIA of trying to kill him again. Chavez said that he is not accusing the Obama administration, and that Chavez personally likes Obama and believes that he has good intention, but that the CIA is acting independently of the Obama administration in this lastest supposed attempt upon his life.
Where did Chavez hear of this plot to kill him? From one of his Communist allies, Sandinista President of Nicaragua Daniel Ortega, who claimed the CIA planned to attack the plane Chavez was flying to El Salvador in, to meet another Leftist ally, with a rocket. Forgive me if I do not exactly believe that the CIA was going to shoot down his plane because Chavez’ communist buddy in Nicaragua said so. Don’t get me wrong, the CIA has plans to kill all of the world’s leaders, and has tried to kill and overthrow Chavez before. However, I think this is more of a case of the boy who cried wolf, and an attempt by Chavez to use the threat of assassination by the international boogey-man, the CIA, in order to strengthen ties with allies and his subjects.
In order for a Leftist government to exist there has to be a constant threat to the existance of the government, or to the revolution, for the government to survive. The threat can be internal during times of peace, such as the threat of saboteurs, spies or counter revolotuinationaries. In this current case the threat is external, the CIA, and may carry more weight internally and internationally, especially when used to explain away failures of policy or political defeats. Chavez seems to be reading off of the same scrpits that grew tiresome in the 20th century when used by every despot and tinpot dictator around the globe.
I have no doubt that the CIA would like to off, or perhaps ‘liquidate’ is the proper euphimism, Chavez and about two dozen other world leaders, hundreds of politicians, thousands of political activists and one or two of the Re:Generator staff, but that doesn’t mean they are actively attempting to do it. Not to defend the CIA, but they have got better things to do than shoot rockets at Chavez, like trafficking drugs, guns and women, destabilizing nations, planting favorable news stories, rigging elections, funding terrorist groups, and doing a lot of blow. When you are that busy it is hard to penicil in ’shoot rockets at Chavez’ plane’ into your always busy schedule.
