4.09.2006

America's Dirty Wars


It will certainly be intresting in twenty years or so to see the full extent of U.S. involvement in the 2001 failed coup against Hugo Chavez in Venezuela. Right now, there is a lot of suspicion, but little in the way of hard evidence. But just wait.

Always suspected, it is now, thanks to declassified documents, indistputable fact that the U.S. was implicit in supporting and abetting the 1973 coup against democratically elected Socialist Salvadore Allende in Chile (Henry Kissinger: “I don’t see why we need to stand by and watch a country go communist because of the irresponsibility of its own people”). Brazil, Nicaragua, Panama, El Salvador, Granada, the list goes on and on. The United States just cannot help itself from butting into the affairs of Latin American countries.

Now, in newly declassified documents, there is documented proof of long suspected U.S. support for the 1975 military coup in Argentina. Again, Kissinger plays the key role.
"I do want to encourage them. I don’t want to give the sense that they’re harassed by the United States," said Kissinger, even after staff aides warned of the likelihood of murder and repression.

The dictatorship in Argentina ruled from 1976-83.Under orders from the it Argentina's military waged a "Dirty War" against its population where torture, assassinations, and disappearances were used as tools of repression and control. Execution techniques included throwing drugged, naked prisoners from planes into the ocean. As many as 30,000 Argentines remain missing.

"Whatever chance they have, they will need a little encouragement from us," said Kissinger after the coup.


Time will bear out truth of the matter. While we pretty much already know the truth regarding Venezuela, it is always nice to have a paper trail.

Not that it actually prevents us from making the same mistakes again and again and again and again....

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