Accusation against Diosdado Cabello appears to be off the wall.

THE ACCUSATION AGAINST DIOSDADO CABELLO (second in command of the Chavista movement in Venezuela) OF BEING THE CAPO OF THE CARTEL DE LOS SOLES DOESN’T STAND UP TO SERIOUS ANALYSIS OR COMMON SENSE. Never (at least that I know of) in the history of drug trafficking has there been a politician who heads drug cartels, because by nature they are clandestine operations. Politicians serve as accomplices, but not as kingpins who direct drug operations, as Leamsy Salazar, now in the hands of the DEA, is claiming. None of the heads of the Cartels of Mexico or Colombia (Pablo Escobar, for instance) have been above-ground figures. Salazar’s accusation lends itself to the launching of new acts of protest-civil-disobedience-violence to lead into an attempt to overthrow the government of Nicolás Maduro, a repeat of the guarimba operations of last year.

THE BEST SELLER “GUANTANAMO DIARY” AND THE U.S. JUDICIAL SYSTEM

 READ “GUANTANAMO DIARY” AND YOU’LL ASK THE SAME QUESTION I’M ASKING:

How is it that the judicial system in the U.S. doesn’t hold real criminals such as those responsible for these unimaginable types of torture accountable? Mohamedou Ould Slahi has been subject to a whole range of merciless torture techniques during his 12 year in Guantanamo without any charges leveled against him. And he’s still there! That includes 70 days without sleep during which time he received 24-hour a day interrogation; and the order allegedly from Rumsfield to forbid him from praying. A former Guantanamo prosecutor stated that Slahi is as much of a terrorist as Forrest Gump! The diary, which was originally heavily redacted, has been released after a 7-year legal battle and has surprisingly become a best-seller.  

The real culprit is the U.S. justice system. Isn’t its role to probe, prosecute and castigate in cases like this? If it doesn’t act in cases of crimes against humanity, than how reliable can it be? How committed can its prosecutors and judges be to guaranteeing justice?

 

http://www.democracynow.org/2015/1/22/inside_the_us_torture_chambers_prisoners

THE “ECONOMIC WAR” IN VENEZUELA IS NOT FICTITIOUS

PROOF THAT THE “ECONOMIC WAR” IN VENEZUELA IS NOT FICTITIOUS, AS OPPOSITION LEADER HENRIQUE CAPRILES CLAIMS. And proof that large economic groups tied to international capital and to the political right are directly involved.

The Venezuelan government’s occupation of the warehouses in eight states of the firm Herrera C.A. that have hoarded goods, obviously to be smuggled into Colombia, demonstrates these tie-ins. Goods like diapers, detergent, milk and corn flower, which are highly scarce throughout Venezuela and impossible to get without waiting on long lines for many hours, had been lying around for long periods of time in warehouses that the government raided in the states of Falcon, Zulia and Anzoátegui. Herrera C.A. is the exclusive distributor for Kellog’s, Nestle, General Mills and Avelcasa in 8 states, as well as for key merchandise of Procter and Gamble and Pfizer. Peggy Carolina Quijada, an important leader of the right-wing Voluntad Popular (whose jailed leader is Leopoldo López, the darling of the Obama administration), is tied to the ownership of Herrera C.A. There is an arrest order for the Herrera brothers who are currently on the run. For those who read Spanish, check this out (unfortunately you won’t be reading about this in the English-speaking corporate media):

http://www.telesurtv.net/news/Claves-Quienes-estan-detras-del-acaparamiento-en-Venezuela-20150113-0035.html

 

LAST WEEKS ATTACKS IN FRANCE: A DIFFICULT ISSUE TO BROACH

The terrorist actions that took place last week in France should be condemned in absolute terms by everyone including political organizations across the political spectrum. But in a democratic society, people have the right to know all of the facts, in this case what were the political issues, if any, that inspired these actions. This facet of the topic has been virtually taboo for the U.S. corporate media in its coverage of terrorism, in spite of its voluminous output on the topic. In the New York Times article on the evolution in the life of one of the terrorists involved in last week’s killings titled “French Police Say Suspect in Attack Evolved from Petty Criminal to Terrorist” no mention at all is made of political issues (for examples, the use of drones, Israel's occupation of Palestinian territory, Jewish settlements in the West Bank, etc.) that may have explained motivations. In the only reference to politics, the article quotes one of the alleged terrorist as supporting the Palestinian cause because “The children of Palestine are the fighters of tomorrow.” In other words, the terrorist viewed the Palestinian problem as a vehicle to gain recruits, not as a tragedy to be repudiated. Only a nihilist would think along these lines.

Are the terrorists really nihilists, as the corporate media implies in all of its reporting? By presenting them as nihilists, may not the corporate media be justifying further U.S. military involvement? To get down to the point, if there is a correlation between U.S. military intervention and terrorist activity, may we not want to factor this relationship into the equation that determines our support for or opposition to Washington’s use of force throughout the world and in the Mid-East in particular? Critics of U.S. policy who claim that military actions to combat terrorism have been counterproductive are basically arguing the same point. In short, contrary to the cherry picking policy of the corporate media, the facts are necessary to determine policy. Isn’t that what democracy is all about: debating difficult issues regardless of where the conclusions may lead?