You Lie!

When I listened to Obama's Nobel Prize war speech and heard him say this

"Yet the world must remember that it was not simply international institutions – not just treaties and declarations – that brought stability to a post-World War II world. Whatever mistakes we have made, the plain fact is this: the United States of America has helped underwrite global security for more than six decades with the blood of our citizens and the strength of our arms."

I wanted the blood of the millions of East Timorese, Vietnamese, Salvadorans, Guatemalans, Iraqis, Palestinians, Haitians, Chileans and others murdered by the US "strength of arms" to cry out "You Lie!"

Then on Sunday morning I had to hear NPR feature not one, but TWO stories on an assassination carried out under Pinochet's dictatorship in Chile. In spite of discussing the dreadful state of repression under Pinochet, neither story made any mention of the strong role played by the United States in instigating and supporting the Chilean nightmare.

This brought me back to Obama's speech. No wonder he can get away with saying something so blatantly and obscenely false. The news coverage of events that would contradict such propaganda disappears down the memory hole again and again.

Galeano Who?

If you doubt that NPR is an obedient lapdog of US foreign (and military and economic) policy, consider how Scott Horsley reports on Hugo Chavez's gift to President Obama of Eduardo Galeano's book Open Veins of Latin America.

Here's Horsley on Saturday's ATC:

"...this morning in what a senior administration official called a publicity stunt Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez presented Mr. Obama with a book about five hundred years of exploitation of Latin America (chuckles). Now even the critics don't lay all five hundred years of at Mr. Obama's doorstep (chuckle)...."

And then this morning on Weakened Edition Sunday Horsley is back at it:

"As cameras clicked away Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez stepped into the frame and presented Mr. Obama with a book, Open Veins of Latin America, it's a leftist history of the region with a subtitle: five centuries of the pillage of a continent. The barbed gift was a reminder of the resentment that some Latin American leaders still feel toward the United States."

One can't help but be struck by Horsely's contempt. It is striking that Galeano's name is not even mentioned - ever. From Horsley's description and tone, one might think Galeano was some two-bit, dull leftist historian - instead of a major literary figure of the continent. In the introduction to Open Veins of Latin America, Isabelle Allende described Galeano as "one of the most interesting authors ever to come out of Latin America, a region known for its great literary names. His work is a mixture of meticulous detail, political conviction, poetic flair, and good storytelling...." He has received major literary prizes and global critical acclaim.

Everything about Horsely's remarks mirrors the viewpoint of US power. A literary, powerful (and thoroughly researched) work of history is reduced to "a leftist history" and "a barbed gift." There is no mention of the truth underlying Galeano's work: that the US has worked tirelessly for over a century to inflict killings, rape, torture, poverty, and economic exploitation on Latin America. This long, sordid and thoroughly documented history is laughingly reduced to "resentment that some Latin American leaders still feel."

Fortunately, many people in the US are far more curious than the timid newsreaders at NPR.

The Big Stick of Enforced Amnesia

NPR's constant erasure of the US role in the history of Latin America comes in very handy as they offer a completely one-sided report on the expulsion from Bolivia of US Ambassador Philip Goldberg. The report is not really a report, but a transcription of Golberg's claims against Bolivian President Evo Morales (with back-up provided by the aptly named Michael Shifter who worked for that favorite spawn of Reagan, the National Endowment for Democracy).

Kelemen (taking the side of the US State Department) says:

"Goldberg called it a roller coaster ride, saying President Morales often used the US and the US embassy as a foil, a distraction from the problems inside Bolivia....he says the Bolivian government aired what he called a propaganda infomercial about him on TV."

Goldberg then follows:

"It was a vile piece of propaganda, accusing the United States, accusing opposition members, too of taking instructions from the US, making links with people I never met. It really is a sad display."

It's a vile piece of propaganda only if you are completely ignorant or completely dishonest about what the US has been up to in South America for well over a hundred years. Jim Shultz of the Democracy Center of Bolivia, in an excellent post on the crisis in Bolivia points out:

"The U.S. has a long history of intervention in Latin America, and Bolivia has not been spared. For nearly two decades Bolivian governments been pressured by Washington to wage a "War on Drugs" in Bolivia, with serious collateral damage to human rights."

And of Goldberg, Shultz notes

"Goldberg himself, who took over as Ambassador shortly after Morales' 2006 inauguration, has proved to be an inept diplomat over and over again. In June 2007 the military attaché at the Embassy in La Paz, a U.S. Army Colonel, decided to have a relative carry down 500 rounds of 45-caliber ammunition packed in her suitcase. The event spiked Bolivian fears of U.S. intervention and Goldberg made the public uproar even worse by going against the advice of senior aides, trying to downplay the incident as a minor mistake.

Last February, a young U.S. Fulbright Scholar revealed to ABC News that an Embassy official had asked him to gather intelligence on Cubans and Venezuelans in Bolivia. It also turned out that the Embassy was systematically asking U.S. Peace Corps volunteers to do the same – a direct violation of the laws governing both programs. Again Goldberg tried to downplay the incident as an innocent error. The Morales administration threatened to prosecute the official involved and he left the country."

You won't hear that on NPR!

For a rather biting take on Bolivia and the US role in destabilizing that country BoRev.net is always provocative. Or you can cozy up with the US Government (the same one that had nothing to do with the Pinochet Coup of 9/11/73) side of the story by tuning into NPR or reading the Washington Post.

Of course, no NPR story on South America would be complete without a BushCo. approved swipe at Venezuela's elected President, Hugo Chavez. Kelemen trots out Michale Shifter to end the piece, including this:

"Chavez seems to have in this moment got a bit feisty. The challenge for the US is how to sort of deal with this situation in a sort of step by step calm quiet approach which is not always easy."

Ah yes the feisty natives, and the need to walk softly - seems like I've heard that sentiment somewhere before...hmmm.

Joker Discusses Race Card

Bolivia is voting in a presidential and governorship recall vote and Juan Forero is there. Seabrook insists on telling us how to view the vote in Bolivia: "The referendum has exposed sharp divisions in Bolivia between those who support the President's socialist agenda and those who worry he's concentrating too much power in his own hands."

O.K., I'm sorry that's just too simplistic. She doesn't give any indication that Morales' administration is also opposed by the extremely wealthy and reactionary and racist elites in Bolivia who fear losing their right to exploit the indigenous poor for their own gain. No doubt that there are fears among the middle class of Bolivia that Morales is seeking too much power and is indifferent to their interests. A much better description of the situation is available from the Democracy Center blog; it also has better reporting on the results.

Seabrook does ask Forero, "And I understand race also plays a role?"

Given the really appalling racism of the opposition [on vivid display in May of this year], this is an important question (Imagine the coverage that such racist thuggery would garner if it were employed by Morales - or Chavez in Venezuela). Now take a look at Forero's duplicitous answer:

"It does. The government is very much allied with indigenous groups here....There is certainly an element of race in a lot of this, in this crisis among the two sides here because many opposition leaders - though not all - are of European extraction. But some analysts also say that Morales has been using the race card to sow divisions and paint his foes as racists - in other words delegitmize their concerns."

It's quite a performance really. It's not racism; it's just "because many opposition leaders - though not all - are of European extraction." Chew on that one for a while... And then not only does Forero minimize the racism of the opposition, he pulls out the ubiquitous "some analysts" to blame Morales for "using the race card." Scary.

For more leftist (and funny and irreverent) analysis on the situation it's hard to beat Borev.net.

The Little Laptop that Could

Tom Gjelten has been very busy little operative reporter of late on NPR (gosh, seems like it was just Friday that he was singing the praises of a CIA agent who left his mark on Latin America). He's back on with some unfinished company business on Colombia and that "miracle laptop" taken in the Colombian attack on Ecuador. Despite all the doubt about the truth surrounding the laptop and it's non-evidence, NPR just runs with it full bore.

Here's Montagne: "The fear of a terrorist group getting a nuclear weapon was revived last month. Colombia announced it had found evidence on a seized computer that a rebel army there was interested in buying uranium. Not necessarily to make a bomb but possibly to trade on the terrorism market..."

And Gjelten, follows with: "There's no evidence the left wing rebels in Colombia thought about engaging in nuclear terrorism themselves, more likely explanation for their interest in uranium is that they would have sold it - maybe even to al-Qaeda..."

One wonders if we'll ever get any unbiased examination of this supposed laptop. Probably not, but to treat this legendary little piece of hardware as hard evidence is stunning. Gjelten at least started his piece off with three words of truth - "there's no evidence." Amen!

Dr. Gjelten and Mr. Hyde

Only in this absurd time in our nation could a "news" organization report about waterboy/waterboard Bush awarding a Medal of Freedom to a Cuban dissident with no sense of irony. Oh, but this is Tom Gjelten, who cut his sharp little teeth "reporting" on the wars in Central America in the 80s and 90s (see my earlier posts on his coverage of Chile, Nicaragua, or Venezuela to get a taste of his journalism).

It's interesting to note how this detailed report on the political prisoner in Cuba, who Bush is honoring, follows immediately after the report on Guatemala that avoids any mention of the US role in destroying Guatemala's civil society for nearly forty years.

BTW, I'm not in anyway justifying the disgusting treatment meted out to Oscar Biscet by the Cuban dictatorship. It's just the absurdly lopsided attention given to Cuban human rights issues compared to the absence of coverage given to US sponsored atrocities in Latin America.

Oh and we also got to hear about defender of fetuses and the Pentagon, Mr. Henry Hyde - one of Illinois' own.

Blessings

All right, here's a confession: NPR impressed me with two recent pieces. The first was the story of neurosurgeon and professor Alfredo Quinones-Hinojosa, who admits to coming into the US as an undocumented worker back in the seventies. When the NPR interviewer asked him about his "illegal" entry, he thought about it before answering and then commented that all he was thinking about was that he was hungry and had to try and feed himself and his family. Doctor Quinones-Hinojosa went on to take classes, become a surgeon and a citizen.

Given the poisonous attitudes toward "illegal" immigrants so frequent in the media, this was a subtly challenging piece for NPR to air. It doesn't take the usual "pro-con" approach, but instead just gives listeners something to think about - poverty, determination and the dignity of the human spirit. A nice contribution.

The second piece had me cringing when it began: Julie McCarthy covering the upcoming visit by the Pope to Brazil. Uh oh! And it was going to talk about liberation theology. Wow, was I pleasantly surprised. Not because NPR just rolled over and gave a leftist perspective, but because McCarthy actually gave time for the spokespeople of liberation theology to explain their ideas. She didn't come down on one side or the other of the battle between the Vatican and liberation theologians and Latin American activists. Instead she reported on some of the realities that poor Brazilians face, on the realities of environmental degradations in Brazil, and on the attitudes of both opponents and proponents of liberation theology (without any condescension toward any parties). A welcome mind-blowing experience. Thanks Ms. McCarthy.