Get Out of Colombia |
Posted by FoM on March 11, 2002 at 11:26:37 PT By Congressman Ron Paul, MD Source: LewRockwell.com As a member of the House International Relations Committee and the Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere, I would like to state my strong objections to the manner in which this piece of legislation was raised a resolution urging further US meddling in Colombia as an anti-terrorist scheme. I was only made aware of the existence of this legislation this morning, just a couple of hours before I was expected to vote on it. There was no committee markup of the legislation, nor was there any notice that this legislation would appear on today's suspension calendar. This legislation represents a very serious and significant shift in United States policy toward Colombia. It sets us on a slippery slope toward unwise military intervention in a foreign civil war that has nothing to do with the United States. Our policy toward Colombia was already ill-advised when it consisted of an expensive front in our failed "war on drugs." Plan Colombia, launched nearly 2 years ago, sent $1.3 billion to Colombia under the guise of this war on drugs. A majority of that went to the Colombian military; much was no doubt lost through corruption. Though this massive assistance program was supposed to put an end to the FARC and other rebel groups involved in drug trafficking, 2 years later we are now being told – in this legislation and elsewhere – that the FARC and rebel groups are stronger than ever. So now we are being asked to provide even more assistance in an effort that seems to have had a result the opposite of what was intended. In effect, we are being asked to redouble failed efforts. That doesn't make sense. At the time Plan Colombia was introduced, President Clinton promised the American people that this action would in no way drag us into the Colombian civil war. This current legislation takes a bad policy and makes it much worse. This legislation calls for the United States "to assist the Government of Colombia protect its democracy from United States-designated foreign terrorist organizations . . . " In other words, this legislation elevates a civil war in Colombia to the level of the international war on terror, and it will drag us deep into the conflict. There is a world of difference between a rebel group fighting a civil war in a foreign country and the kind of international terrorist organization that targeted the United States last September. As ruthless and violent as the three rebel groups in Colombia no doubt are, their struggle for power in that country is an internal one. None of the three appears to have any intention of carrying out terrorist activities in the United States. Should we become involved in a civil war against them, however, these organizations may well begin to view the United States as a legitimate target. What possible reason could there be for us to take on such a deadly risk? What possible rewards could there be for the United States support for one faction or the other in this civil war? As with much of our interventionism, if you scratch the surface of the high-sounding calls to "protect democracy" and "stop drug trafficking," you often find commercial interests driving US foreign policy. This also appears to be the case in Colombia. And like Afghanistan, Kosovo, Iraq, and elsewhere, that commercial interest appears to be related to oil The U.S. administration request for FY 2003 includes a request for an additional $98 million to help protect the Cano-Limon Pipeline – jointly owned by the Colombian Government and Occidental Petroleum. Rebels have been blowing up parts of the pipeline and the resulting disruption of the flow of oil is costing Occidental Petroleum and the Colombian Government more than half a billion dollars per year. Now the administration wants the American taxpayer to finance the equipping and training of a security force to protect the pipeline, which much of the training coming from the US military. Since when is it the responsibility of the American citizen to subsidize risky investments made by private companies in foreign countries? And since when is it the duty of American service men and women to lay their lives on the line for these commercial interests? Further intervention in the internal political and military affairs of Colombia will only increase the mistrust and anger of the average Colombian citizen toward the United States, as these citizens will face the prospect of an ongoing, United States-supported war in their country. Already Plan Colombia has fueled the deep resentment of Colombian farmers toward the United States. These farmers have seen their legitimate crops destroyed, water supply polluted, and families sprayed as powerful herbicides miss their intended marks. An escalation of American involvement will only make matters worse. At this critical time, our precious military and financial resources must not be diverted to a conflict that has nothing to do with the United States and poses no threat to the United States. Trying to designate increased military involvement in Colombia as a new front on the "war on terror" makes no sense at all. It will only draw the United States into a quagmire much like Vietnam. The Colombian civil war is now in its fourth decade; pretending that the fighting there is somehow related to our international war on terrorism is to stretch the imagination to the breaking point. It is unwise and dangerous. Dr. Ron Paul is a Republican member of Congress from Texas. Newshawk: Paul Armentano - http://www.norml.org/ Related Articles & Web Site: Colombia Drug War News Don’t Let U.S. Get Sucked into Colombia Quagmire Oil a Key to U.S. Role in Colombia When War is Over, Oil Dealers Will Be Winners Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help |
Comment #10 posted by FoM on March 11, 2002 at 15:28:35 PT |
Drugs, Russia and Terrorism Joseph D. Douglass Jr. Friday, March 8, 2002 Copyright: NewsMax.com
Editor's Note: This article is the first part of a two-part article. "When we fight drugs, we fight the war on terror," President Bush explained on Feb. 12 as he announced an increase in the budget for the war on drugs. Complete Article: http://www.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2002/3/7/212349.shtml
Part II: Complete Title: http://www.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2002/3/10/222920.shtml [ Post Comment ] |
Comment #9 posted by SpaceCat on March 11, 2002 at 15:01:40 PT |
The Nazi's didn't exactly seize power- they were elected to parliament, with their plans clearly spelled out. Hitler and the party then used the political process to take over the reigns of government, dismantle the Weimar Republic, and violently suppress their opponents. Sounds familiar, doesn't it? On a more positive note, I never heard of Ron Paul, and he is obviously important to our cause, which illustrates the power of sites like Cannabis News to bind us together and make us stronger through the dissemination of vital information. [ Post Comment ] |
Comment #8 posted by DdC on March 11, 2002 at 14:45:03 PT |
"Puritanism: the haunting fear that somebody, somewhere, might be having a good time." --H.L. Mencken Get Out of Colombia by Congressman Ron Paul, MD In swearing in his White House staff last January 22, the president said: THE POLICE STATE COMETH by Rep.Ron Paul It's a joke. Greed and the desire to take drugs are two separate things. If you want to separate the two, the thing you do is make drugs legal. Accept the reality that people do want to change their consciousness, and make an effort to make safer, healthier drugs." THE DRUG WAR IS A FRAUD Resistance to tyrants is obedience to God." SENTENCING IS PERVERSE IN WAR ON DRUGS Yeah, man. It's time to let de people get good herbs and smoke. Government's a joke. All dey wan' is ya smoke cigarettes and cigar. Some cigar wickeder den herb. Yeah, man, ya can't smoke cigar. Smoke herb. Some big cigar me see man wit', God bless! Me tell him must smoke herb." The Drug War: Suppression Tactics Will Never Work "Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and never will." The Duplicity of the War on Drugs "A clique of U.S. industrialists is hell-bent to bring a fascist state to supplant our democratic government and is working closely with the fascist regime in Germany and Italy. I have had plenty of opportunity in my post in Berlin to witness how close some of our American ruling families are to the Nazi regime. . . Certain American industrialists had a great deal to do with bringing fascist regimes into being in both Germany and Italy. They extended aid to help Fascism occupy the seat of power, and they are helping to keep it there." The Cold War of the '90's "It is better to die on your feet than to live on your knees." JUST SAY NO TO AMERICA "The media's the most powerful entity on Earth. They have the power to make the innocent guilty and the guilty innocent, and that's power. Because they control the minds of the masses." Domination and Control? "Our problems stem from our acceptance of this filthy rotten system." DRUG PROHIBITION: A PERVERTED INSTINCT? "I think people need to be educated to the fact that marijuana is not a drug. Marijuana is an herb and a flower. God put it here. If He put it here and He wants it to grow, what gives the government the right to say that God is wrong?" [ Post Comment ] |
Comment #7 posted by DdC on March 11, 2002 at 14:05:03 PT |
----- Original Message ----- From: "Alberto M. Giordano" narconews@hotmail.com Sent: Monday, March 11, 2002 9:47 AM Subject: [narconews] Colombia Voters Reject U.S. War March 11, 2002 Dear Colleagues, The results of yesterday's Congressional elections in Colombia are in.. Voters massively rejected the nation's two traditional political parties on Sunday. When the new Congress takes office on July 20th both houses will contain an absolute majority consisting of Senators and Representatives of smaller independent parties.. The two largest vote-getters, Senator-elect Antonio Navarro and > Representative-elect Gustavo Petro, are former armed combatants in the M-19 guerrilla movement who favor a negotiated peace settlement with the rebels. The daily El Espectador analyzed the former rebels' victory as "a rejection by a large part of the popularion of the idea of 'frontal war' against subversion that the electorate identifies with the figure of Alvaro Uribe." President Andrés Pastrana's Conservative party shrunk to just 13 seats in the 100 member Senate, and 21 seats in the 175 member House. The chief of his party resigned in disgrace last night after the electoral drubbing.. The Liberal Party, which has backed Pastrana's recent declaration of war against the rebels, suffered an even more massive loss: It lost 34 of its House seats and 19 of its Senate seats.. For details on the election results, and analysis of the dishonest and distorted report today by Associated Press reporter Jared Kotler, see: http://www.narconews.com/ The only foreign press agency to so far report the results accurately is the Spain-based EFE news agency, as quoted in our report this morning.. In sum, Colombian voters have rejected Plan Colombia, as they did in the October 2000 gubernatorial races.. Again, we ask: Where Is The Press? ..from somewhere in a country called América, Al Giordano Subscribe for free alerts of new reports: Changing Planet news service is the socio-metaphysical-political-science-spirituality list that doesn't hold back any punches and demands that you think for yourself in determining truth. [ Post Comment ] |
Comment #5 posted by Sam Adams on March 11, 2002 at 13:13:54 PT |
Ron Paul and Barney Frank are at the complete opposite ends of the political spectrum, yet they agree on many issues, including Columbia and the War on Drugs. Which begs the question, are they at opposite ends of the spectrum - or at the same end, opposite everyone else? [ Post Comment ] |
Comment #4 posted by Hope on March 11, 2002 at 12:52:04 PT |
Ron Paul is likely the sanest, most honest voice in Congress. He would make a wonderful President, I think. He won't pander to the big money, though, therefore his chances are limited to the American people waking up, in mass, to the facts of what is happening in government. The chances of that happening aren't very good. [ Post Comment ] |
Comment #3 posted by kaptinemo on March 11, 2002 at 12:36:12 PT:
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Because for telling he truth to the American people has made some implacable enemies. "Since when is it the responsibility of the American citizen to subsidize risky investments made by private companies in foreign countries? And since when is it the duty of American service men and women to lay their lives on the line for these commercial interests? The ugly truth is...it happens all the time. It's happening right now in Afghanistan, with Unocal hoping the fighting will die down so it's pipeline workers can start construction unmolested...guarded by US and Russian troops. Children, whenever you hear some policy wonk talk about "American interests", always insert the word 'economic' between them...and then ask yourself if said policy wonk has stock in the company that will directly benefit from the effort. All of Shrubya's Cabinet do. Every one of them is either Big Oil, Military contractors, or Construction. But none of them will ever get their hands dirty. None of them will ever know what words like 'shots fired in anger' or 'pucker factor' means. None of them ever have the embarrassing experience of having to 'make like Jake the Snake' and hit the pavement when a car backfires. That is, the lucky ones that didn't stop a bullet too hard. Ron paul has struck the nail on the head...and will receive an enormous amount of calumny for telling the truth. Pray he won't be the only one with the cojones to tell it like it is. [ Post Comment ] |
Comment #2 posted by FoM on March 11, 2002 at 12:35:23 PT |
It's really sad isn't it? I've only had the news on for a little while today because of the memorial to 9-11. I feel so sorry for the families that have to endure this. I know on the 6 month anniversary of my son's death it was very hard. I didn't have to fear that the news would exploit my loss but the families of 9-11 aren't getting any peace. Oh my how hard for them and heartless to put them through it again. How will they ever begin to heal. I am not surprised if we use nuclear weapons. I guess I know that civilization as we know it is doomed if this keeps getting more and more out of control. [ Post Comment ] |
Comment #1 posted by MikeEEEEE on March 11, 2002 at 12:22:51 PT |
The Nazi's seized power in the name of protecting its citizens from terrorists. The Columbian rebels have only recently been labeled terrorists by the US. I wonder how much more damage the white house could do, then I see this: Alarmed officials from Moscow to Tehran warned that the "power crazy" President, buoyed up by the successful campaign in Afghanistan, could plunge the world into chaos. US Nuclear Hitlist http://www.commondreams.org/headlines02/0311-02.htm [ Post Comment ] |
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