Venezuela Post 8

I am not an anti-imperialist.  I am an anti-hegemonist.  Regardless of their political or economic system, large countries assume they know better than smaller neighbors what is in their self-interest.  Russia with its near-abroad:  Ukraine, Crimea, Georgia.  China in the South China Sea:  Viet Nam, Philippines.  England with its forcefully United Kingdom: Ireland, Ulster, Scotland.  The US with Cuba, Central America, Venezuela.

That is how I make sense of the hopelessly one-sided coverage by cable TV, wire services, NPR, the New York Times and the Washington Post.

The Wall Street Journal remains the only publication that laid out two months ago what was going on before it happened: 

"The goal, the administration’s thinking goes, is to sever ties that bind Venezuela to Cuba and sink regimes in both countries.

The emerging U.S. assertiveness stems from the desire of the White House to reverse a partial rapprochement with Havana by the Obama administration through the easing of sanctions and the island’s opening to U.S. investment."

Wall Street Journal, 'Trump Sees Maduro Move As First Shot in Wider Battle.', 1/30/19             Full article here https://cubapeopletopeople.blogspot.com/2019/02/cuba-goal-in-us-conflict-with-venezuela.html

John Bolton took off the disguise of democratic principle when pressed by Jake Tapper to explain the difference between US policy on Saudi Arabia and Venezuela, citing the Monroe Doctrine.

Remarkably today Fareed Zakaria goaded President Trump to defend his red line on Venezuela,  wondering whether, "this will be the moment when Trump ends his appeasement of Russia".  He explicitly justified that by the Monroe Doctrine.   He also welcomed Elliot Abrams making no reference to his role in the contra wars and hia conviction for lieing to Congress.   https://www.cnn.com/videos/tv/2019/03/29/exp-gps-0331-fareeds-take.cnn

Zakaria seems to have forgotten that Secretary of State John Kerry officially retired the Doctrine during the Obama Administration.

My comments to his twitter account:

Replying to 

Disappointing you side with Bolton and Abrams over Kerry at OAS: "The era of the Monroe Doctrine is over."  Or do you share your Russian guest's sphere of influence idea: Venezuela for us, Ukraine for them.   Do you honestly believe sanctions and war help Venezuelan people?
  ----
"We did not think that this would happen quickly," US representative to Venezuela Elliott Abrams says, of the campaign to oust President Nicolas Maduro

Another lie from Abrams.  The Pompeo-Bolton strategy assumed the army would abandon Maduro because of diplomatic isolation then aid border confrontation then Pence meeting threat of invasion.  UN negotiations not US hegemonism through Guaido only path to peaceful solution.

For the record this is what Kerry said on November 18, 2013 at the Organization of American States:

In the early days of our republic, the United States made a choice about its relationship with Latin America. President James Monroe, who was also a former Secretary of State, declared that the United States would unilaterally, and as a matter of fact, act as the protector of the region. The doctrine that bears his name asserted our authority to step in and oppose the influence of European powers in Latin America. And throughout our nation’s history, successive presidents have reinforced that doctrine and made a similar choice.

Today, however, we have made a different choice. The era of the Monroe Doctrine is over. (Applause.) The relationship – that’s worth applauding. That’s not a bad thing. (Applause.) The relationship that we seek and that we have worked hard to foster is not about a United States declaration about how and when it will intervene in the affairs of other American states. It’s about all of our countries viewing one another as equals, sharing responsibilities, cooperating on security issues, and adhering not to doctrine, but to the decisions that we make as partners to advance the values and the interests that we share.

https://2009-2017.state.gov/secretary/remarks/2013/11/217680.htm