Quote Originally Posted by Big_John
sounds like basically every despot anywhere ever. have his political enemies started "disappearing" yet?

that said, i'd be surprised if the US didn't have people working in venezuela to overthrow chavez in some fashion.

if that fails, maybe this can be a battlefield 20 or so years down the line, when we need a new war.
We already tried to help overthrow him once. Instead we just made him more popular. I don't think we'd try again, at least not so blatantly.

I doubt we'll go to war down there. At least, it's highly unlikely as long as we're addicted to Venezuela's oil. Sadly, our need for his oil gives Chavez a platform from which to spew nonsense. His status as the leader of one of the leading oil exporting countries gives him a more equal standing on the world bluster stage with that other spouter of nonsense, GWB - leader of the world's leading oil importing country.