Roger Burbach, at Thomas Paines Corner, gives some insight into the troubles facing Bolivia’s pro-democracy leader Evo Morales.
Day after day, the crisis deepens in Bolivia, where a rightwing insurgency, supported by the usual suspects, is threatening to shut down the Evo Morales presidency and produce an “Allende” outcome. We all know that Washington, mired in Iraq/Afghanistan, and now with some headaches of its own due to its impertinence in Russia’s sphere of influence, has not been able to intervene in the usual manner to stem the leftwing drift in Latin America. But rest assured that this monster nation has plenty of well-paid, well-trained personnel — above ground and under—in and out of uniform, watching and meddling in such events, even if the distractions elsewhere have prevented a more forceful and effective response.
Now, however, in the defiant insurrectionist stance of Eastern elites who control most of the nation;s riches, Washington planners have bumped into something promising: a native rightwing power base to roll back the long overdue reforms that President Morales is struggling to secure. We must always keep in mind that what is cigarette money at the Pentagon is big money in Latin America and other parts of the Third World, so even a few dollars and resources from the US can easily complicate matters enormously for the growing Latin revolution. And Washington, of course (Obama or McCain won’t be different in this area) wants to bag the big prize: to isolate and then bring down Venezuela’s Chavez and possibly even the Fidelistas. This report by Latin America expert Roger Burbach outlines clearly the high stakes in Bolivia and the rest of the Southern Hemisphere.
