Chavez Threatens Bolivian Opposition

Looking for proof Chavez has his claws into Bolivia, and that Evo Morales seems almost a puppet of the Venezuelan strongman? Yesterday Chavez directly threatened the Bolivian opposition on his weekly show, broadcast from Cuba of all places. Saying that Venezuelans "will not sit still" if Evo is overthrown or killed by the Bolivian "oligarchy", and that it would be a "Vietnam of machine guns" they would face. He also helpfully indicated that "compromise" with "oligarchs" was impossible.

While the lemmings who are quick to chime in about all sorts of abuses of soveirgnity by the US, World Bank, and IMF, they ignore the Chavista petro-kleptocracy's heavy handed diplomacy. And heavy handed it is. Petro-dollars and bad advice are spread around to ideological allies. And the Boliviarian Supremo then takes a paternal interest in seeing his schemes go through. Take the case of Bolivia's Constituent Assembly - which Chavez brought up in his tirade. The MAS "proposal" is almost a cliff notes version of Chavez own "revisions" to Venezuelas Constitution. That Evo Morales has to contend with an effective opposition, which knows what lies in store if the document is approved, must drive Chavez nuts.

Morales selectively appeals to Bolivian's strong nationalism only when convenient. It is clear he will put his ideological preferences over sovereignity, as when he shamefully celebrated Che and the Cuban communist invaders of 1967 over the protests of his own Army. A U.S. Ambassador making comments about Bolivian politics is a sin, but allowing Evo's ideological mentor and paymaster to bully his opponents is perfectly ok within this context. One word for that: hypocrisy.