Speaking at a New York College, Hugo Chavez was greeted with a standing ovation after he accused George Bush of "committing genocide in Iraq."
Chavez also received an ovation at the U.N. after referring to Bush as 'the devil.' (Bush is 'the devil' video)
If memory serves, George W. Bush received a standing ovation at the SOTU address when he first referred to world leaders as an "axis of evil."
Is it okay if the world talks back to The Empire?
Or is there a double standard?
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said earlier that Chavez's remarks in the United Nations were "not becoming for a head of state."
"I am not going to dignify a comment by the Venezuelan president to the president of the United States," Rice told reporters. The main U.S. seat in the United Nations was empty as Chavez spoke, though U.S. Ambassador John Bolton said a "junior note-taker" was present as is customary "when governments like that speak."
Is it "becoming for a head of state" to refer to a world leader as "a pygmy"?
Governments "like that" are governments that are critical of The Empire. The Empire doesn't listen to, or talk to, governments - or people - "like that." But what happens when virtually the entire world is "like that"?
The audience at Cooper Union Hall included professors and union organizers.
Accusing Bush of neglecting the poor, Chavez started a program last winter for Venezuela's U.S.-based oil company Citgo to sell discounted heating oil to poor American families. It distributed more than 40 million gallons of oil last winter to low-income Americans, and Chavez announced a doubling of that this winter.
He said he hopes Americans choose an "intelligent president" in the future.
Singer and activist Harry Belafonte introduced Chavez at the event, while former U.S. Attorney General Ramsey Clark also attended, among supporters who waved Venezuelan flags and chanted Chavez's name. The Venezuelan leader signed autographs as a crowd rushed to him after the speech.
He also referred to his past threats that he could cut off oil exports to the U.S. if it tries to oust him.
"Believe me, if I were to decide tomorrow to stop sending oil to the United States ... the price would go up to US$150, US$200 (euro120, euro160) a barrel. But we don't want to do it, and we aren't going to do it," Chavez said. "We ask only for respect."
Chavez lambasted the U.S. government for trying to block Venezuela's campaign for a seat in the U.N. Security Council. He said if chosen over U.S.-favorite Guatemala in a secret-ballot U.N. vote next month, Venezuela would be "the voice of the Third World." The U.S. argues that Venezuela -- closely allied with Iran, Syria and Cuba --would be a disruptive force.
He also said the U.N. in its current system "doesn't work" and is "antidemocratic." He called for the world body to be overhauled, saying the U.S. government's "immoral veto" had allowed recent Israeli bombings of Lebanon to continue unabated for more than a month.
Chavez also charged that the U.S. planned and financed "a failed 2002 coup against him." The Empire denies the charge, but scholars such as Noam Chomsky insist that it is true.
In a story in the New York Times, Chomsky refers to Chavez's immense popularity as the President of Venezuela. Chomsky notes that Chavez "has gone through six closely supervised elections."
Since Chavez plugged Noam Chomsky's book, Hegemony and Survival, it has moved to Amazon.com's top ten list.
Update: Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez visited a Harlem church Thursday and promised to more than double the amount of discounted heating oil his country ships to needy Americans.
Chomsky Empire Bush Dubya Bush the Devil Hugo Chavez Republicans Politics News United Nations Axis of Evil
