For general discussion and debate. Possible talking point: must-read column concerning Honduras.
Washington's endorsement of the flawed electoral process [in Venezuela's 2004 elections] was a green light. Mr. Chávez grew more aggressive, emboldened by his "legitimate" status. He set about using his oil money to destabilize the Bolivian and Ecuadorean democracies and to help Nicaragua's Daniel Ortega and Argentina's Cristina Kirchner get elected. Soviet-backed Fidel Castro was able to intimidate his neighbors in the 1960s and '70s, and Mr. Chávez has done the same thing in the new millennium. This has given him vast power at the OAS. Hondurans had the courage to push back. Now Chávez-supported agitators are trying to stir up violence...This is a moment when the U.S. ought to be on the side of the rule of law, which the Honduran court and Congress upheld. If Washington does not reverse course, it will be one more act of appeasement toward an ambitious and increasingly dangerous dictator.
Read the whole marvelous piece and offer thoughts.
