Arnaud de Borchgrave in UPI, with thanks to Jeffrey Imm:
WASHINGTON, Feb. 7 (UPI) -- Much like Nazi and Soviet sympathizers in the 20th century, al-Qaida enjoys a movement of worldwide groupies whose common link is hatred of America.Their principal objective is to clip the eagle's talons. They now get together once a year in Porto Allegre in Brazil at the same time as the capitalist world's nabobs meet at the World Economic Forum at Davos in Switzerland. Their new hero this year was Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez, anointed by Fidel Castro as Latin America's anti-Yankee standard-bearer. Ward Churchill, the University of Colorado's tenured professor, who applauded the 9/11 al-Qaida terrorists, would have felt at home in Porto Allegre.
This year the anti-American contrarians came from 135 countries for the 5th World Social Forum for six days of debates and marches directed against George W. Bush. U.S. media were busy elsewhere and all but ignored the noise in Porto Allegre. The Maldon Institute, a Baltimore-based research organization, filled the vacuum.
The anti-imperialist jamboree ended on Jan. 31 in a three-mile-long parade of some 150,000 people with banners against President Bush, the war and occupation of Iraq, the Pentagon, the CIA, the Free Trade Associations of the Americas, and IMF and the World Bank. The organizers also posted 352 proposals cobbled by participants and printed on large white panels - such as a Global Call to Action Against Poverty.
Harrumphed WSF executive member Joao Pedro Stedile, leader of the Movimento dos Sem Terra (MST), or Landless Peoples' Movement), "The U.S. Empire is our common enemy."
What does Al-Qaida have to do with this meeting in Brazil?
I think that South American countries do have a legitimate gripe against America, for keeping them in poverty, and for the US's support of dictators like Pinochet.
I fully understand the level of anti-Americanism down there.
Here in Australia, the US got rid of the Whitlam government. Rent the movie The Falcon and the Snowman.
The link to al-qaeda is a general hatred of all things American. I saw a photo of this "conference", in which a man holds a knife to the throat of a GWB cardboard cutout. This is not a policy meeting, this is hatred and calls for murder in the streets of Brazil. If you understand it, you may need to consider who your allies are, as they include al-qaeda and other terrorist groups.
I am always impressed at the quick mention of Pinochet, etc. Of course the US supported some anti-communist dictators, which is not the same as condoning all their actions. Those dictators are now gone, while the likes of Castro and Chavez continue to oppress their people. Tell me, which group of dictators is the greater problem for their people, and the world?
And Communism/Socialism has succeeded as a viable socio-economic system where?
Look at Russia. Look at China and North Korea. Look at the Social Democracies of Europe. All ruined, crumbling or moving away from this failed 19th Century experiment.
Now, to compound their problems, they're going to let the Islamist Wolf into their homes. How naive and stupid can these people get?
Yeah, of course, the main reason for all the US meddling in Latin America is the backwardness and repressive nature of most of their governments. If we were as bad as they make us out to be, they really would be part of our empire and all those useless Red diaper babies would be in work camps. The last people who should be lecturing us are the South Americans, especially Brazilians, with their scummy, sleazy backwardness. Funny how they never hold the real tyrants and mass murderers accountable, ie the Communists! Che, Mao, and Fidel are still heroes to these mindless orcs!
"Harrumphed WSF executive member Joao Pedro Stedile, leader of the Movimento dos Sem Terra (MST), or Landless Peoples' Movement), "The U.S. Empire is our common enemy."
No, it's the backwardness of your outdated latifundia social/class/race system that makes your precious peasants landless, you Maoist stooge!
Jakester-
It'll be a cold day in hell before the Leftists own up to their shortcomings. They have the self-questioning nature of the Islamist.
Good one, Mike. Indeed, yet another reason they find themselves allied.
I didn't come to this site to be pro-American. I come to this site because it is anti-Islam.
I came to this site, not to promote the course of Willaim Walker, which this thread would give me good opportunity to do, but to learn about jihad and Islam. If you and others care to learn a bit more about the issue a hand, and if you wish to spread the word further in your communities, you can go to babypasta and co-jet to download our first leaflets. You can pass them around or sneak them into public places or stand on a street corner and pass them out if you will.
Our first series is on "Women and Islam," and we will soon have five of them up for you to pass around. We hope to produce two leaflets per week for the coming year. No, it's not a giant rally in Brazil. We aren't that organized yet. But this is a good start, and you can actually do something concrete if you choose to pass out these leaflets and those that follow.
You can let me know how you feel about the work we've done by leaving a message at jwunited or at babypasta or at co-jet. We're beginning to make a start against our opposition, primarily Islam itself, but against fascism everywhere. I'd like to stay focussed and concrete. Yes, the latifundistas are a menace, but we're here to discuss the fascism of Islam. Pass out our leaflets if you will and we'll deal with the major enemy first.
Voltaire,
If you come to this site and make anti-american statements, expect a response.
"The U.S. Empire is our common enemy."
Yes we are are'nt we
Why Brazil you might ask?
BRAZIL
Brazil cooperates with the United States in the extradition of non-Brazilians. The Brazilian Constitution, however, prohibits the extradition of Brazilian nationals. The U.S.-Brazil extradition treaty, which was signed in 1961 and entered into force in 1964, includes a broad list of extraditable offenses, with the notable exception of money laundering. Brazil, however, is a party to the 1988 United Nations Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (the 1988 UN Drug Convention), through which drug-related money laundering is deemed to be included as an extraditable offense under the bilateral treaty. While the United States is unable to obtain the extradition of Brazilian citizens, Brazil’s good faith efforts to cooperate are demonstrated by its extradition of two non-citizen fugitives and detention of six others since January 1998, including the detention of one fugitive in the first half of 2001. The Departments of Justice and State have continued the dialogue with the Government of Brazil on important issues, including the extradition of nationals, in an effort to bring fugitives to justice.
**************************************************
Very hard to extridite there
Hey everyone, let Voltaire express his opinion without treating him like a Jihadist! American foreign policy has often 'shot itself and others in the foot' and remind you 'TO ERR IS HUMAN, TO FORGIVE IS DIVINE.' Just because we sometimes criticize America's policies doesn't mean we are Anti -American, far from it, is in ALL our interests that America remain STRONG. And that we at J W remain United against Islam. First principle of Democracy is FREE SPEECH...
Too bad there is no "US EMPIRE."
Kinda makes you feel sorry for these folks, huh?
I know Porto Alegre [“Port of Joy”] quite well; I've been there about six times. I always found it an easy-going place so I'm surprised they're putting up with this rubbish.
When I used to live in South America I used to gatecrash Communist Party meetings, just for a laugh and out of curiosity. (Montevideo could get a bit a dull - and the Marxists were always good for a laugh.) That was in my foolish youth back in the 80's - I don't think I would bother with such company these days. But it was educational.
Anyway, back then they had serious (and not altogether illusory) gripes about American foreign policy. Thankfully for the last 15 years the USA has come to its senses and has completely left them to their own inept devises. The result has been that there are few reasonable and truthful gripes about the USA in Latin America anymore and the problem has largely fixed itself. Most of the region is now democratic and some economies are doing batter. Reagan is dead in more ways than one.
This lesson of this benign neglect (or isolationism) I think should be learned from as far as today's Middle East policies go. The more you try to help - the more you interfere. The more you interfere - the more people dislike you.
Anyway, the root of modern Latin American anti-Americanism is jealousy. The United States started with the same advantages and disadvantages as Latin America, the fact that the USA is successful and they are not, humiliates many of them. They then perceive America as an enemy and as “your enemy’s enemy is your friend” – they have suddenly become the friend of the Muslims. In the 1980’s they never gave a damn about Islam – it just shows how opportunistic they are.
In Uruguay for example (not far from Porto Allegre), there are very few American companies operating. Those that do business there are invariably completely staffed by Uruguayans. The main businesses in Uruguay are banking (only a small minority of banks are American - rich Brazilians, Argentinians and Colombians launder their money there, like a Latin American Switzerland), tourism (there are very few American visitors and no U.S. investment in this field) and cattle raising (of which there is no US involvement whatsoever). U.S. imports are few and far between, and the U.S. president probably knows absolutely nothing about Uruguay. AND YET if you speak to many Uruguayan leftists they are absolutely convinced that America wants to take over their country and that the USA is largely to blame for their poverty! It's pure nonsense, paranoia and jealousy. After blaming U.S. business for poverty in Latin America, they then blame the USA for causing poverty in Cuba because America won't do business there. Try working that out.
Anyway, it's important to know that in Latin America maybe only 10% of the people think this way. There is no unifying philosophy such as popular Communism or Islam to harness and expand such illogical vilification. Unfortunately there are enough confused malcontents to host meetings such as the one above - but this has very little to do with the Brazilian people and government. (Whereas Islamic terrorism has everything to do with Islam.) So please, don’t fall in with the same cheap nationalistic rhetoric as these idiots; to attack Brazil for this, is an equal foolishness as theirs for attacking America.
That’s a pretty poor sentence I ended with there – but you get my drift.
I'm a bit late to the party so to speak, but for anyone able to read Spanish there is an excellent comment in LGF
http://littlegreenfootballs.com/weblog/?entry=14543#c0337
on Pilar Rahola : Diario El País. Madrid. article
"Porto Alegre no bebe Coca-Cola"
which just shows that not all Spaniards are dhimmis.