From the Green Party US website:
The Green Party of the United States urged President Obama to normalize relations with the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela and to lift the sanctions against the latter.
Greens called for friendly and constructive engagement with Venezuela and other Latin American countries, especially to help Venezuela move towards economic diversification and away from reliance on oil for the country’s wealth.
“The U.S.’s hostile policies regarding Venezuela is as irrational as the current posture against Iran. It’s motivated by U.S. business interests that wish to exploit Venezuelan oil resources and by Venezuela’s friendly relations with Cuba and Iran — in other words, by refusal to comply with U.S. economic and political domination. The Green Party upholds the right of nations throughout the world to serve the needs of their own people instead of corporate power and greed,” said Didier Ortiz of Florida, co-chair of the Latinx Caucus of the Green Party of the U.S. (http://www.gp.org/caucuses_affinity_groups#latinx).
Green Party leaders said that the sanctions, imposed by President Obama’s executive order in response to allegations of Venezuelan violence against protesters, were hypocritical in light of U.S. silence over brutal suppression of internal protest by allies like Saudi Arabia.
“Instead of forcing subservience to U.S. policies and corporate interests, the U.S. should assist Venezuela in ending its fossil-fuel based economy, a necessity during the global climate crisis. There are already internal movements in Venezuela for scaling back the oil industry and diversifying the economy. They deserve our support,” said Margaret Flowers, Maryland Green candidate for the U.S. Senate (http://flowersforsenate.org).
Greens noted that U.S. hostilities against Venezuela resentment that President Hugo Chávez reversed the privatization of state-owned oil company PDVSA, which raised the country’s GDP and benefited the Venezuelan people but imposed royalties on foreign firms. In retaliation, the U.S. launched a series of covert actions in Venezuela, including aid for the failed 2002 coup, in violation of international law.
The U.S. sanctions and lowering of the price of oil to $40 per barrel (also meant as an economic blow to Iran and Russia) did not succeed in imposing austerity on the Venezuelan people. Social programs begun under President Chávez and maintained by President Nicolás Maduro remain in full operation.
Greens said that President Obama’s statement in March 2015 that Venezuela posed an “extraordinary threat” to U.S. security was reckless and deserved the widespread denunciation it received from other Latin American countries’ leaders.
Greens also sharply criticized Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders for calling Hugo Chávez a “dead communist dictator.” Greens said that the label was grossly misinformed (especially for a socialist) and consistent with Sen. Sanders’ support for neoliberal foreign policies and U.S. military dominance, in contrast to his progressive domestic positions.
“One of the best ways to give people hope that a political revolution is possible through elections is to give examples of where it has happened. Venezuela is such an example. Since Hugo Chávez was first elected in 1998, poverty and inequality have been reduced. By falling in line with the demonization of Chávez, Bernie Sanders undercuts his stated platform of fighting the billionaire class and his ability to tell truth to power,” said Laura Wells, Green candidate for state controller in California in 2014.
Laura Wells has participated in several political delegations to Venezuela to study firsthand the changes since President Chávez’s election in 1998. (See Ms. Wells’ essay “Ten Things I Learned from Hugo Chávez,” http://www.tikkun.org/tikkundaily/2015/09/02/ten-things-i-learned-from-hugo-chavez/)
“President Obama has begun to normalize relations with Cuba. Why not Venezuela?” said Sanda Everette, co-chair of the Green Party and delegate to Federation of the Green Parties of the Americas (http://www.fpva.org). “Unfortunately, the U.S. political establishment wants Venezuela to be a South American Saudi Arabia. The Green Party wants an alliance between the U.S. and Venezuela based on mutual cooperation and respect.”
“The basis for friendship between the two nations was established in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, when President Chávez sent tons of food, fresh water, and petroleum to aid the storm’s victims, as well as his gift of heating oil at a 40% discount to low-income families in New England and Detroit in 2005,” added Bahram Zandi, co-chair of the Internatonal Committee and delegate to Federation of the Green Parties of the Americas.
I don’t feel burdened. If I did, I would easily do it. As it is, I am comfortable with what I said, and already gave it more time than I should have. If you don’t believe me, you can look it up yourself or continue to not believe me; it will still remain true nevertheless. And there’s no “may have” about it. The interwar sanctions are clearly what destroyed the German economy and made Hitler a palatable option to enough people to allow him to rise to power. No maybes about that.
No, I want you, who claim that sanctions LED TO war, list them. And BTW, I did not claim that those sanctions “led to” the war. That’s a historical speculation. It might have been a factor.
Remember, you said sanctions “often lead to wars”.
It is not me who alleged that; you did. That is why the burden of proof is on you.
Now that you gave us the first example, can you give us the next four? I believe you can do it, Jim.
Thanks for bringing up Germany between the wars, Jim. It was sanctions against Germany that gave rise to the conditions that paved Hitler’s rise to power and led to the second war.
Did someone say or imply that it is? Not that I see.
It was in the section you responded to: “Sanctions hurt the common people who are already being victimized by the regimes those sanctions are supposedly directed at.” If you can’t even read what you quote, why should I bother?
Of course I am able to. I don’t have to prove my abilities. You are able to, as well. I have yet to see why it would be worth my time to prove the obvious when you can look it up just as easily. And when you don’t even read the exact words you quote, apparently.
One thing we should ask ourselves is if sanctions would be okay in extreme cases, lets say pre-WWII Germany. (I hope you don’t think I am merely fulfilling Godwin’s Law, or https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Godwin%27s_law ).
It is said that the military is always re-fighting the last war. Therefore, it would not be surprising if politicians were always “re-fighting” the last pre-war period.
It is said that Britain virtually invited war (Neville Chamberlain) by failing to stand up to Hitler, when it would have counted. Prior to that, presumably Germany was violating the terms of the surrender of Germany in WWI. These violations were apparently ignored also.
(I should note that from everything I’ve read, blame for WWI should pretty much have been apportioned all around, not solely to Germany.)
Nevertheless, with the benefit of hindsight, can we imagine some kind of sanctions against Germany in the 1930’s that would have been beneficial?
“Right now, I’d say that America isn’t much a ‘beacon of freedom’ with Obama violating the laws.
To become a ‘beacon of freedom’ America would have to adopt Libertarian principles, and it hasn’t done that.”
I agree.
Jed, you said: “Sanctions are just never a good idea. The best way to spread freedom is through free trade, peace, and being a beacon of freedom within one’s own borders.”
Right now, I’d say that America isn’t much a “beacon of freedom” with Obama violating the laws.
To become a “beacon of freedom” America would have to adopt Libertarian principles, and it hasn’t done that.
Paulie: You said, “Sanctions hurt the common people who are already being victimized by the regimes those sanctions are supposedly directed at. Meanwhile, those at the top of such regimes still live lavishly and have anything they need or want.”
That would be true in any case. So what’s your point?
You also said, “Yes.. and sanctions also often lead to wars, which also mainly hurt the common people, more so than the regime thugs claiming lordship over them.”
If it’s “often” you should be able to mention at least 5 examples of ‘sanctions leading to wars”.
Yes.. and sanctions also often lead to wars, which also mainly hurt the common people, more so than the regime thugs claiming lordship over them.
Sanctions are just never a good idea. The best way to spread freedom is through free trade, peace, and being a beacon of freedom within one’s own borders.
Sanctions hurt the common people who are already being victimized by the regimes those sanctions are supposedly directed at. Meanwhile, those at the top of such regimes still live lavishly and have anything they need or want.
Jed: The article says, “Green Party leaders said that the sanctions, imposed by President Obama’s executive order in response to allegations of Venezuelan violence against protesters, were hypocritical in light of U.S. silence over brutal suppression of internal protest by allies like Saudi Arabia.”
I would be in favor of initiating sanctions against Saudi Arabia for violence against protesters.
Not as an anarchist libertarian, of course, merely as a aid to consistency in the current scheme of things.
Yes, Venezuela is an awful dictatorship. And we should lift sanctions.
Check out the Wikipedia article on PDVSA: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PDVSA The Venezuela oil company.
The article included this: “PDVSA purchased 50% of the United States gasoline brand Citgo from Southland Corporation in 1986 and the remainder in 1990.”
If we treated Venezuela like it treats its own citizens, we would “nationalize” (steal) Citgo from that country.
Clearly, this Wikipedia article shows what a dictatorship looks like.
I agree with Jim’s comment above and also with lifting sanctions.
Venezuela is an economic basket-case. They start out over an ocean of oil, and their economy is so mismanaged that they squander all that wealth. They sell gasoline to their citizens for 1 cent per gallon, for God’s sake!!!