“Today, President Trump presented Venezuela’s military officers with a choice – work for a democratic future for all Venezuelans or see the financial circle close for their families and loved ones,” tweeted US National Security Advisor John Bolton today following a Miami speech by the president.
If you know anything about John Bolton, you just know he typed “noose” first instead of “circle”.
This would be the same John Bolton, for the record, who once threatened to murder an international official’s children for obstructing his attempts to manufacture support for the Iraq invasion which killed a million human beings and plunged the region into terrorism and chaos. A man named José Bustani was the director-general of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons in early 2002, during which time The Intercept reports he came under fire for having too much success in diplomacy with the Iraqi government, which undermined the case for an invasion. So Bolton attempted to scare him off.
From The Intercept:
“Cheney wants you out,” Bustani recalled Bolton saying, referring to the then-vice president of the United States. “We can’t accept your management style.”
Bolton continued, according to Bustani’s recollections: “You have 24 hours to leave the organization, and if you don’t comply with this decision by Washington, we have ways to retaliate against you.”
There was a pause.
“We know where your kids live. You have two sons in New York.”
And now we see this same psychopath threatening to starve and impoverish the families of a sovereign nation’s military with economic warfare if they don’t facilitate a coup by the most violent government on earth in the most oil-rich nation on the planet. All in the name of spreading Freedom and Democracy™, of course.
Today, President Trump presented Venezuela’s military officers with a choice – work for a democratic future for all Venezuelans or see the financial circle close for their families and loved ones.
— John Bolton (@AmbJohnBolton) February 18, 2019
Bolton, who was in attendance at the president’s speech, gave a more direct and honest summary of what was happening than the one Trump’s speechwriters fed him:
“We seek a peaceful transition of power, but all options are open,” Trump said of the US-led Venezuela coup agenda. “We want to restore Venezuelan democracy, and we believe that the Venezuelan military and its leadership have a vital role to play in this process. If you choose this path, you have an opportunity to help forge a safe and prosperous future for all of the people of Venezuela. Or you can choose the second path: continuing to support Maduro. If you choose this path, you will find no safe harbor, no easy exit, and no way out. You will lose everything.”
This would be the same President Trump, for the record, who just hours earlier tweeted about “an illegal coup attempt on the President of the United States,” regarding statements made by former Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe that there had been discussions among top officials at the Justice Department and the FBI about possibly using the 25th Amendment to remove Trump from office. This same man who is outraged about an attempt to oust him early on in his administration using laws and bureaucracy has no qualms about ousting the government of a sovereign nation using starvation sanctions, CIA ops, an aggressive campaign to delegitimize Maduro, and now outright threats to the nation’s military personnel.
Trump has also been tweeting furiously about the “lies” McCabe told about him, who wrote the following in his new book about a 2017 Oval Office meeting:
“Then the president talked about Venezuela. That’s the country we should be going to war with, he said. They have all that oil and they’re right on our back door. He continued on, rambling and spitballing about whatever came to mind.”
I am sure that McCabe is as much of a deceitful sleaze as every other FBI boss, but that part at least sounds truthful.
Page 136 of McCabe's new book, recounting a 2017 Oval Office meeting: "Then the president talked about Venezuela. That’s the country we should be going to war with, he said. They have all that oil and they’re right on our back door." pic.twitter.com/RY39h1dXoc
— Aaron Maté (@aaronjmate) February 18, 2019
For the rest of Trump’s speech he very tediously introduced all his loyal sycophants backing his Venezuela agendas, he bloviated repeatedly about the horrible horrifying terror of socialism, he kept referring to Venezuela’s elected leader as “Dictator Maduro” and some rando that fewer than one in five Venezuelans had even heard of until last month as “President Guaidó”, he tossed out nonsensical red herrings about Venezuela being controlled by Cuba, and he repeated his administration’s braindead talking point about the Venezuelan government refusing to let in US “humanitarian aid”, which the Red Cross, the UN, and even war-happy NPR recognize as a transparent ploy to foment regime change.
These are the people you’re meant to believe are the “good guys” coming to the rescue, America. The guys who threaten to kill the families of officials if they aren’t given their way. The guys who threaten to starve the families of military officials who don’t turn on their government and kill anyone who tries to stop them. The guys who pick mass murder facilitator Elliott Abrams to spearhead Venezuela’s transition to Freedom and Democracy™. The guys who helped murder a million Iraqis and plunge us into a new era of military expansionism and Orwellian surveillance. Those guys.
Sometimes it’s hard to say what’s more frustrating: the fact that these deadly imperialist regime change power grabs keep happening, or the fact that people keep buying the same tired old stories that are used to sell them.
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19 responses to “Trump Administration Threatens Families Of Venezuelan Military”
https://candobetter.net/node/5685
Meeting TODAY, Wed 20 February: AUSTRALIA MUST CONDEMN UNITED STATES SANCTIONS AND THREATS OF MILITARY INTERVENTION IN VENEZUELA
Level 4 Trades Hall at 5.30 pm. This meeting will commence earlier due to a small overlap with a meeting on Venezuela on the same night, at 7pm in the Trades Hall, at which the Venezuelan Consul will be speaking. IPAN meeting will be at 5.30pm – 7pm to enable people interested to learn more about the situation in Venezuela to attend.
Just when you thought all your co-citizens were asleep at the wheel on Australian Government support for America’s latest regime change initiative, the Independent and Peaceful Australia Network (IPAN) has issued a response. IPAN reminds us that this is not our decision, nor the USA’s to make, but is a decision for the Venezuelan people. IPAN has made several recommendations, including that Australian needs to develop an independent foreign policy.
Bolton, Pompeo, Miller & ,my favorite palmetto bug, Abrams.
When traveling out of country these days I never say I’m American, rather it’s I’m Californian.
It seems to make a difference.
We now know that Trump has read Hitler’s writings and watched his speeches. Hitler personally perfected the practice of “Sippenhaft”— controlling the high command of the army by threatening to confiscate the finances of their family members and sending them to concentration camps in the event they leaked operational information. Now we see Trump and Bolton threatening the families of Venezuelan military officers who refuse to betray Maduro. Thanks for pointing out Bolton’s use of this fascist gangsterism in 2002. Perhaps he should trim his mustache to look more like Hitler and less like Yosemite Sam.
A Dictator don’t need mo stinkin’ elections.
Juan Gauidó
And stop calling it a US coalition.
It’s not about COAL, it’s about OIL.
It’s an oilalition.
A Dictator don’t need no stinkin’ elections.
Juan Guaidó
And, stop saying US coalition.
It’s not about ‘coal’ —
It’s an oilalition
I don’t think any of them give a rat’s ass about what anyone thinks. They are simply laying the ground work for what is already planned.
So let me get this straight. Trump and Bolton know better about life in Venezuelan that do the people who live there. The other day, thousands upon thousands of Venezuelans sighed documents swearing their allegiance to Maduro and disavowing Guaido. Almost to a man (and woman) when interviewed live, each and every one said, ‘Maduro is our president; we elected him. Things are not wonderful now, but we know they will get better. We do not want Guaido. We do not want the United states.’
What I don’t want is a western hemisphere version of Syria in South America. And, let us not forget that Hugo Chavez was our ally until he would not let the U.S., via the world Bank, steal Venezuela’s oil. Let’s never forget that Chavez was a better friend to the U.S. poor than were Exxon and Shell. Every year, Chavez gave millions of gallons of home heating oil to our poor, for free. Exxon and Mobil gave not a single drop.
I hate to have to say it, but my imperialistic, justifyingly murderous country does not represent me. I am about peace and love and opportunity and health and more that is positive. As John Lennon suggested, I believe that all the people should be sharing all the world. Sooner or later, if humanity does not join together in that fashion, it will cease to exist. There is not alternative that will work.
Let’s hope that what you say does not end up splattering on the windshield of the monstrous juggernaut heading from DC to Caracas at warp speed.
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BTW, you have now been labeled as an enemy of the state and probably a Russian agent.
Things that cannot continue will not continue. These shameful people are like the captain of the Titanic, drunk with pride, planning this and that, ordering full speed ahead, ignoring warnings and risks, oblivious to the safety and well-being of all the people he was responsible for. But he and his unsinkable showpiece, towering, powerful vessel had a date with destiny. And so did hundreds of his hapless and captive passengers. And so do these monster regime-change ghouls and martinets. And they are taking most of us with them. Willingly. It absolutely beggars the imagination. The world of today has absolutely no collective security, or even adult supervision. The clock is ticking.
John Bolton is certifiable. He and Pompeo belong in a mental institution. Or better yet, the mental ward in a prison for war criminals along with a large number of their predecessors. Unbelievable. The man’s a violent lunatic.
The US’s war of aggression against Vietnam lasted from about 1954 to 1975. I was 18 in 1968, living in northeastern US. I attended large anti-war demonstrations in Boston. There were such demonstrations all over the US. But those demonstrations did not stop the war. Millions of the “great silent majority” still voted for LBJ and Tricky Dicky even though the body bags of American young “men” kept coming and coming home. Finally the Vietnamese were able to defeat the US.
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What we see happening today in Venezuela has been the US’s Standard Operating Procedure for Regime Change since even before the end of WWII. The “victory” for the US has been that it has, by virtue of its fiat USD, been able to continue its wars of aggression that have benefited the war corporations and all of its employees and spin-offs. Without perpetual war and without a detailed plan to transition from a war-based economy to a peace-based economy, the US economy WILL undergo great shock.
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If the US is able to brind down the Maduro government; install its puppet government and start stealing Venezuela’s oil for cheap, who or what is going to finally put a stop to US hegemony? Because the US is NEVER going to stop doing what it has been doing to the world for decades. NEVER.
To correctly predict the actions of the US government. ……..
Step 1) Hold Gangster flick movie nite. Binge watch several of your favorite mafia movies.
Step 2) Now that you are firmly into the mindset of a Hollywood movie mafia don, you will find you can correctly predict the actions of the US government nearly 100% of the time.
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Warning, Being in the mindset of a Hollywood mafia don can be dangerous to family, friends, neighbors and random strangers. Only attempt this with someone who you trust and who has instructions to restrain you before you start to hurt people. Think carefully before you try this, especially in locations like America where there are lots of guns lying about.
Well Bolton’s choice is a real no brainer. Let’s hope the Venezuelan people do what he suggests and work for a democratic socialist future by standing with the besieged President Maduro that they actually elected – and reject the financial circle of Trump’s OPEC cronies kindly offering to strangle the life out of the Presidents families and loved ones.
“Remember that all through history, there have been tyrants and murderers, and for a time, they seem invincible. But in the end, they always fall. Always.” — Mahatma Gandhi.
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If that doesn’t cheer me up, I go and look at pictures of the fate of Mussolini.
It’s amazing how easy it is to control 7.7 billion people. The Donner party on steroids.
My god! Our nation is under the control of actual thugs.
And has been for a very long time.
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Sorry, but I grew up during the Vietnam War, so the good old days of my golden childhood are knowing that when I turned 18 the government would draft me, and send me off to a meat grinder war which was killing the older brothers of my friends (and many more Vietnamese) every year. My golden childhood was the age when the deep state was openly killing the Kennedy’s and MLK and the National Guard was shooting down protesting kids. That was when us kiddies weren’t doing Duck n Cover drills pretending that a flimsy school desk would protect us from nuclear war. I’ve known America was governed by thugs since I was about 10 years old. And so did the people my age who are the thugs running America now.
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Sorry, don’t want to depress anyone. Music helps, alot. 🙂 But yes, America is governed by thugs. Oliver Stone seemed to put the transition as the 1944 Democratic convention where FDR’s choice for a successor was pushed aside by Democratic Party bosses who wanted Harry Truman and the Cold War 1.0. But it may date back to when the gangsters got the alcohol money during Prohibition. Don’t know, I’m old but I’m not that old. 🙂
Venezuela is to the US as is the Ukraine to Russia.
Only difference is that Putin & Co. are vastly better at “shadow warfare” than the US.
We seem compelled to exercise blatant blunt force in response to all threats to our global hegemony.
Appears we actively WANT to be seen as the World’s bully. What foreign policy BENEFIT there is in this is lost on me.
Doubtful that other nations wholeheartedly and of their own volition “coalition” or “ally” with us in these matters.
Crude ploy;
sanction an ”errant” country into economic collapse and citizen misery.
Then blame THAT country’s leadership for the mess WE’VE put them into.
Then “rescue” and “restore democracy” for those foreigners we care SO much for, ….
By deposing THEIR government for one the US wants.
And we keep electing politicians who support this abusive behavior, from BOTH parties.
same as the old boss