30 years of suffering for the Nicaraguan people

 
Speech given by Daniel Ortega at 30^th celebration of the Nicaraguan Revolution July 17, 2009.
Because the truth is that our sister republic of Bolivia and Venezuela have come to the aid of the people of Nicaragua – that is the truth. We would be without energy in the entire country. There wouldn't be light in Nicaragua nor would companies be able to function if it were not for the solidarity of Hugo Chavez and Fidel who were the ones responsible for the formation of the ALBA alliance (a leftist Latin American Alliance). And when the United States decided to cut the last funds of the millennium, President Hugo Chavez immediately said we are going to help Nicaragua, and so we counted on Venezuela to generously give to Nicaragua 50 million dollars to defend itself in these difficult times.
President Hugo Chavez just called, and he sent a message that we are going to read and publish. In the telephone message that he just made, he called to send us his greeting. He is very happy for our 30^th anniversary. He is watching thousands of Nicaraguans through channel Telesur. He congratulates Daniel and all the people of Nicaragua. He is sorry he could not be present because of sudden health problems at the last minute. Soon we will be together Long live the people of Nicaragua. Long Live Sandino, signs Hugo Chavez and the president of the Republic of Bolivia 1:30 pm Nicaraguan time.
July 17, 2009 marks the 30^th anniversary of the Sandinista Revolution so says Ortega. My wife (who is from Nicaragua) and I used to travel to Nicaragua frequently before the revolution to enjoy its people and its culture. We have been back to Nicaragua since on several occasions, but Nicaragua is not the country it used to be. The destruction of its economy and the country can be attributed to one person Daniel Ortega, and Daniel Ortega's rise to power can be attributed to one man Jimmy Carter.

Ortega speaks of the 30th year of the revolution, yet for most of those years, the left in Nicaragua wasn't even in power.

I have followed Nicaragua since the 70s, so in commemoration of its 30^th anniversary, I thought I would post a few pieces I wrote about Nicaragua.
What the elections in El Salvador mean (including Nicaragua) click here

Fraud in Nicaragua – Continuing Jimmy Carter's legacy click here

Obama's new buddy – Daniel Ortega click here

One of the traditions in Nicaragua, and only in Nicaragua click here

Obama's new buddy - Daniel Ortega

Just a sample of what Obama's new buddies are like

Spanish below
Dear Daniel Ortega and FSLN

I was in Nicaragua in 1986-87, 6 months, to build a school in El Carrizal near La Cruz de La India, lived with a very poor family; I was very pleased with this family. This year, 22 years after I returned to visit them, it was a great pleasure to review them, but a huge disappointment to see that there lives not had been better, still no electricity or water in the house, it seamed as they had lost hope, what is happening in Nicaragua?

This year I had my wife with me to Nicaragua, 3 months, I had told her that Nicaragua was one of the best places on earth, she also thought that the first 2 months, but then we were arrested by police for 15 hours because a hotel owner accusing us having destroyed a floor in the hotel room, we had not, the floor was bad when we came, it is normal that something is broken in hotel rooms in Nicaragua, toilets, doors, walls, floors you name it.

The hotel owner attacked my wife from behind with a police truncheon when we were detained by police so she faint in my arms, police said nothing to the hotel owner, is it OK that a man hit a woman of 65 years in the head in Nicaragua, the police said nothing.

During detention they gave us no permission to call the embassy or other, we got no food or water, was first released during the night without a passport after the hotel owner and his wife had given 3 different explanations which ended up with that we had been drunk and had taking drugs, and the police believed it all, the only report we have admitted, was the attack on my wife, and the police were not happy to write it.

Since the system is corrupt in Nicaragua, it ended up with that we after several days had to pay 920US $.
After this treatment, we say forever goodbye to Nicaragua.

The hotel was, Hotel La Posada in Poneloya.

Best Regards

Kai Birk Nielsen
Denmark
Traducción
—————–

Estimado Daniel Ortega y FSLN

Estuve en Nicaragua en 1986 hasta el 87, 6 meses, para construir una escuela en El Carrizal, cerca La Cruz de La India, viví con una familia pobre; Estaba muy complacido con esta familia. Este año, 22 años después, regresé para visitarlos, fue de gran placer verlos de nuevo, pero fue una gran decepción ver que sus vidas no habían mejorado, aún están sin servicio de agua o electricidad en la casa, parecía que habían perdido la esperanza, ¿Qué está pasando en Nicaragua?

Este año llevé a mi esposa conmigo a Nicaragua, 3 meses, le dije que Nicaragua era uno de los mejores lugares en la tierra, ella también creyó eso los primeros 2 meses, pero luego fuimos arrestados por la policía 15 horas porque el dueño de un hotel nos acusó de destruir el piso de un cuarto del hotel, no lo habíamos hecho, el piso estaba mal cuando llegamos, es normal que algo esté roto en los cuartos de hotel en Nicaragua, inodoros, puertas, paredes, pisos, lo que se te ocurra.

El dueño del hotel atacó a mi esposa por atrás con una macana de policía cuando la policía nos detuvo y ella se desmayó en mis brazos, la policía no le dijo nada al dueño del hotel, está BIEN que un hombre golpee en la cabeza a una mujer de 65 años en Nicaragua, la policía no dijo nada.

Durante la detención, no nos dieron permiso para llamar a la embajada o algún otro lugar, no nos dieron comida ni agua, nos liberaron en la noche sin pasaporte, luego de que el dueño del hotel y su esposa dieran 3 explicaciones diferentes, las cuales terminaron en que nosotros estábamos ebrios y habíamos estado tomando drogas, y la policía lo creyó todo, el único reporte que nosotros admitimos, fue el ataque a mi esposa, y la policía no estuvo feliz de escribirlo.

Como el sistema está corrupto en Nicaragua, luego de varios días, tuvimos que pagar US$ 920 dólares.

Después de este tipo de trato, le dijimos adiós para siempre a Nicaragua.

El hotel era, Hotel La Posada en Poneloya.

Los mejores deseos
Kai Birk Nielsen
Dinamarca

World, please love me – I am only human and besides I am better than Bush.

So as dusk falls, and Obama silently leaves Latin America, he leaves with a somber heart as he ponders," Why did Daniel Ortega say that about America when I was sitting right there? Why did Hugo Chavez hand me that anti-American book so the world could see. Don't they get it? I just want them to love me. I am not Bush. Bush did mean things and I am a nice guy – can't they see that?"
L

The naiveté of liberals never ceases to amaze me. Even European leaders questioned Obama's capability. Sarkozy opined,

"Mr. Obama, has a subtle mind, very intelligent and very charismatic. But he was elected two months ago and never ran a ministry in his life. He doesn't have a position on a number of things. He is not always operating at a level of decision-making and efficiency"

Obama's European trip proved to be an abysmal failure. It did not "wow" the European leaders as presupposed by the American electorate. European leaders and their constituents may have fawned over him, but they gave him nothing. In the wake of Obama's European vacation, the world begins to snub Obama. Iran sentences former beauty queen and freelance journalist with dual citizenship Roxana Saberi to eight years in prison after a mock trial for spying. The Iranians possess not one shred of evidence against her. North Korea tests a missile, and we do nothing except tell North Korea "please, don't do it again." Russia won't help with Iran; China won't help with North Korea. There are 241 prisoners in Guantanamo and Barack Obama has promised to close it down in large part to appease our European friends, but what is the cooperation he gets from Europe. France will take one prisoner, Austria will take none and Spain on Informe Semanal, Spain's 60 minutes, reports Spain will take six detainees. Now if my calculations are correct, that leaves uh hum 234. Of course, we can use the Interior Minister Maria Fekter of Austria's logic, "If they're not dangerous, why not just keep them in America. Informe Semanal called the situation in Guantanamo probably one of the biggest examples of violation against human rights in a Democracy. Steve Forbes said of Obama's G-20 summit in London, "Obama's closing statement sounded tentative as if he were looking for guidance from others as to what the U.S. should do." Since the European trip turned out to be a failure, Obama heads off to Latin America for a little more cajoling.

The silliness of Obama's world tour continues when he meets with Chicagoan type thugs, Hugo Chavez and Daniel Ortega. Chavez shakes Obama's hand and gives him an anti-American book, Open veins of Latin America: Five Centuries of Pillage of a Continent by Uruguayan journalist Eduardo Galeano. Fox News reports that the book has shot from 54,278 up to number two at Amazon.com. Do you think Chavez is getting a kick back from the sales? Hugo Chavez has previously called Obama "an ignoramus" and Bush "El Diablo." Obama has probably a lot more in common with this book than one might think. And then in vintage Ortega, Obama receives a 50 minute diatribe from Ortega on American imperialism. Obama doesn't only stay quiet, but takes the opportunity to say he was only three and a half months old when it all occurred. Argentina's president Cristina Kirchner who is also on Chavez's payroll and whose own economic policies (in the style of Evita Peron) have been a failure harangued about America's role in the 1980s. But let me digress, back to Ortega.

I have been following Ortega since the start of his career. His first tenure as president or dictator of Nicaragua was in 1979, two years after I was married in Nicaragua's capital, Managua. Nicaragua has been devastated by Earthquakes, hurricanes and the ravages of the Sandinista war, but when Ortega took power he diverted all of its remaining resources to building up its military. He was to be the arm of the Soviet Union in Latin America. His rise to power caused a brain drain from Nicaragua. All the people with the smarts to run the country left. The saying was, "Nicaragua is left with Sandinistas and old people." Although Anastasio Somoza was corrupt, Nicaragua was growing. Somoza was also an ally of the United States. We want Latin America Leaders who believe in Democracy and free trade, not leaders who ally themselves with our enemies (i.e: the Soviet Union and Iran.) Both the left and the right in Latin America tend to be corrupt, so the goal in Latin America should be to seek out allies as its primary concern, not root out the corruption. Nicaragua's economy has since fallen off a cliff partly as a result of Ortega's decade of populist economic policies which included a trade embargo from the United States. Ortega was a threat then and he remains a threat now and we now know that activity from Iran's Republican Guard has been observed in Nicaragua.

Jimmy Carter withdrew his support from Anastasio Somoza in the late 70s and began supporting the Sandinistas. He did it in the mistaken belief that once the Sandinistas were in power, they would be pro-American. He was wrong. Helping the Sandinistas to power did not endear the Sandinistas to America even though it was Carter who gave them the victory. In fact, the line in the Sandinista hymn stated their feelings towards America, "we fight against the Yankee the enemy of humanity." License plates throughout Nicaragua read, "Nicaragua Libre." Or "Free Nicaragua." But Nicaragua was far from free. When the Sandinistas took control of Nicaragua in 1979, there was a tsunami of political refugees that came from Nicaragua to America. It is for this reason that political refugees from Nicaragua tend to be Republican because they remember how Carter betrayed the Somoza regime. Ortega has not changed his stripes. He remains virulently anti-American, and he will remain so. His thirst for power is equivalent to that of Hugo Chavez, and he will continue to keep Nicaragua mired in poverty.

But Obama and his cronies won't learn from history. They will continue to think you can make nicety nice with Latin American thugs. President Obama will continue his role as Don Quixote accompanied by his faithful and loyal squire Sancho Panza or Joe Biden tilting at windmills. Obama sees not thugs but friends to be won over. How many times will he need to be embarrassed to realize that he needs to take care of the interests of the United States and not worry about the needs and wants of two-bit dictators from Latin America.

Good news: The captured Somali pirate will be tried as an adult.

Elections in El Salvador – What they mean.

This is an in depth analysis of what the recent elections in El Salvador mean to the United States. I have broken down this piece in segments so it is easier to digest. While the United States is embroiled in made up controversies with the AIG bonuses, and while Barack Obama spends trillions of dollars in vain attempts to try and reignite this economy, there is something nefarious going on in Central America and throughout Latin America. In the late 70s and 80s, Nicaragua and El Salvador were frequently in the headlines because they represented the frontline of the cold war in Latin America. These countries were the bastions of Marxist-Leninist thought. Unlike Nicaragua, the 12 year civil war in El Salvador which began in 1979 and killed 75,000 people did not topple the government. However the 1992 ceasefire did begin a two decade long political battle for the soul of El Salvador that finally ended in victory for the ultra-leftist socialist party. Americans do not think what happens in these countries will ever affect America, but they are mistaken, and we better start paying attention.

Although the focus of this piece will be on El Salvador, the recent events in Nicaragua will help to understand what is going on in El Salvador and what it means to the United States. Both El Salvador and Nicaragua are following parallel paths.

Sunday, March 15, 2009 elections were held in war-torn El Salvador between the leftist candidate Mauricio Funes , the candidate for The Frente Farabundo Marti para la Liberación Nacional, (FMLN) and Rodriguo Ávila of the conservative party La Alianza Republicana Nacionalista, (ARENA). Funes was swept into power with 51.27% of the vote. So why is this so important? And why should this be an important event to Americans? This is what I will attempt to discuss.

The FMLN

The Frente Farabundo Marti para la Liberación Nacional, (FMLN) was created in 1980, through the fusion of five revolutionary Marxist-Leninist guerrilla groups. The FMLN was named after Agustín Farabundo Martí (1894 – 1932) who was an avid supporter of Leon Trotsky and who helped found the Central American Socialist Party in 1925. Martí joined and later broke with Sandino (the patron saint of the Sandinistas of which Daniel Ortega is the head) in his struggle against the U.S. in Nicaragua. Martí was the symbol of the revolution in El Salvador.

The FMLN in El Salvador preached Marxism-Leninism as did the FSLN in Nicaragua. Since the peasant population of El Salvador and Nicaragua remain predominately Catholic, poor and illiterate, the FMLN needed a method to disseminate its propaganda. Exit stage left - the Catholic Church. The FMLN used the Catholic Church by mixing Marxism-Leninism using progressive priests to reach the poor and impecunious peasants to spread its message. The tool they used was "liberation theology" The message was that Christ came for the poor, and it was the duty of the poor to overcome his oppressor – the rich "The class struggle is a fact; neutrality on this point is simply impossible "one liberation theologian wrote. It worked. Peasants began joining the ranks of the FMLN especially after the infamous death squads and corruption of the right wing.

As the internal ideology of the organization began to take shape, the FMLN formulated its position in Estrella Rojo:

The fundamental revolutionary objectives of the working class are 1) the liberation of the country with respect to imperialism, 2) the liquidation of the political and economic power of the landholding oligarchic bourgeoisie and of the bourgeoisie in general, and 3) the liquidation of the regime and the establishment of popular power (FPL, 1973).

Like the FSLN, The FMLN aligned itself with both Cuba and the Soviet Union.

For two decades, the FMLN has been gaining power in El Salvador, but this is the first time, the FMLN has won the presidency. 49 year old Mauricio Funes will be the first civilian president to have run for president from the Marxist-Leninist revolutionary party since its 12 year war 1980-1992. Since the ceasefire in 1992, the FMLN has thrown off its revolutionary past and now describes itself as a social-democratic party, but this change has only been to gain political favor.

Rep. Diana Rohrabacher (R-CA) said

The fact is that what happens in this election will have impact on our relations, and it is not just something that the people can elect an anti-American government and expect everything to stay the same.

www.hertiage.org stated the following:

Several members of the U.S. Congress expressed deep concerns about the FMLN's violent, revolutionary past and its relations with terrorist organizations such as Colombia's FARC guerrillas and to Venezuela's populist, anti-American president Hugo Chávez. Members of Congress warned that if the FMLN aligned itself with designated sponsors of international terror like the FARC, such actions would have an adverse impact on remittance flows and the renewal of Temporary Protected Status in 2010.

The Palestinian Liberation Organization, (PLO), Hamas, and the Frente Sandinista Liberación Nacional, (FSLN),
have all tried to gain legitimacy through the ballot box after dubious pasts. The Frente Farabundo Marti para la Liberación Nacional, (FMLN) is attempting to do the same. In all cases, the anti-American American activities continued under the radar.

The relationship between the FSLN (Nicaragua) and the FMLN (El Salvador)

November 5^th, 2006, Daniel Ortega becomes president of Nicaragua once again in a quasi-legitimate election. He was determined not to lose the election like he had the previous three elections, so he devised a scheme with the opposition, the liberal party. Arnoldo Alemán, the ex-president of Nicaragua was currently under house arrest. In backroom deals commonplace in third world countries, Ortega made a deal to free Alemán and split the Liberal Party. By splitting the liberal party, Ortega could win the presidency with a lower percentage of the vote. He won by 38% of the vote.

When Nicaragua elected its Marxist-Leninist president, Daniel Ortega, head of the Frente Sandinista Liberación Nacional., (FSLN) I wrote a piece entitled Deconstructing Obama. In it I wrote the following:

Nicaragua represented one of the last remnants of the cold war. The 1972 earthquake that leveled the capital of Nicaragua, Managua marked the beginning of the end for the Somoza regime in the country. A growing discontent among the Nicaraguan people prompted the then fragmented anti-Somoza factions to coalesce helping the Frente Sandinista , (FSLN) led by Daniel Ortega to gain strength and the populace to begin an active rebellion against the Somoza regime. The Sandinistas gained power as a direct result of the Carter administration's funding of the Sandinistas. In July 1979, the Sandinistas entered Managua, and Somoza fled the country. Nicaragua, a former ally of the United States, quickly aligned itself with Castro's Cuba and Communist Russia. A former friend of the United States was now a bitter enemy. The Sandinista regime destroyed any remnants of Nicaragua's economy. Part of Ortega's success and rise to power came from promoting and advocating a philosophy of Marxism-Leninism mixed in with a perverted form of Catholicism called "Liberation Theology."

Ortega has replaced the Soviet Union with Iran as I discuss below, and his anti-American activities have continued. Some would like to portray him as a moderate. Ortega began to mollify his radical rhetoric in favor of a more moderate form of socialism but his Marxist-Leninist ideology remains intact as does his quest for power as evidenced by his the stratagems he used to win the presidential and municipal elections. Since Ortega's election, the Marxist-Leninist leader has been anything but moderate.

Ortega needed to retain control of Managua and the Sandinista candidate and former boxer Alexis Arguello was losing to the opposition party's candidate Eduardo Montealegre so Ortega sent out his thugs. Ortega's supporters and cadre of friends were spotted throughout Nicaragua. There were reports of violence, harassment of poll watchers, mobilization of mobs to intimidate voters, stuffing of poll boxes. He effectively eliminated two opposition parties before the Municipal elections, and he did not allow outside observers to monitor the elections. Ortega effectively stole the election.

Nicaragua and Iran

What is disturbing is the relationship between Iran and Nicaragua. On the Atlantic side of Nicaragua live the Mozquito Indians . Only 10% of Nicaraguans live there. The Mozquitos speak their own language and even have their own elected chief. The Mosquito Coast is isolated from the main population of Nicaragua. It is a sparsely-populated region of jungles and swamps and provides easy cover for nefarious activities. Monkey Point is located here and is the site of activity from the Iranian military.

As the San Antonio News reported:

As part of a new partnership with Nicaragua's Sandinista President Daniel Ortega, Iran and its Venezuelan allies plan to help finance a $350 million deep-water port at Monkey Point on the wild Caribbean shore, and then plow a connecting "dry canal" corridor of pipelines, rails and highways across the country to the populous Pacific Ocean. Iran recently established an embassy in Nicaragua's capital.

Ahmadinejad was present at the inauguration of Daniel Ortega and their relationship remains very close. When Ortega came to power the first time in 1979, he allied himself with Cuba and the Soviet Union. These two countries supplied him with copious amounts of money which he used to strengthen his military and build up an arsenal of weapons. Ortega remains an avowed enemy of the United States, and is now using Iran as its ally in its war against the United States.

Ortega believes in radical revolutionary change with Marxism-Leninism as its core. He therefore is enamored with Obama. Before the election, Ortega said the following:

"It's not to say that there is already a revolution under way in the U.S. ... but yes, they are laying the foundations for a revolutionary change."

Ortega's favorable opinion of Obama will not stop the Iranians in Nicaragua. It was Jimmy Carter who helped Ortega gain power in the 70s, and that didn't stop Ortega from pursuing his anti-American policies. Ortega believes in power, and like Hugo Chavez sees the United States as the imperialist that needs to be brought down.

Todd Bensman of Pajama Media travelled to Nicaragua to report on the Iran and Nicaraguan connection:

I found that no Iranian money or concrete planning had materialized for a promised new $350 million port on the eastern seaboard bay known as Monkey Point. The Iranians had only made at least a couple of easy day trips there and elsewhere around the country aboard helicopters. Neither had anything developed from Iranian promises to redevelop the dilapidated western port of Corinto, which supposedly would be linked to this Monkey Point port by a dry land canal. To date, no progress on either project has been reported. But the Iranian diplomatic mission that American national security experts most feared was sure up and humming with activity. It has steadily expanded its "staff," according to some scattered local Nicaragua news reports.

I also discovered that suspected Iranian Revolutionary Guard operatives had been moving in and out of the country in unusual ways that assured secrecy. For instance, I was given ministry of migration documents that show a senior Nicaraguan minister had allowed 21 Iranian men to enter without passport processing. This was exactly the kind of activity that preceded the Argentina bombings in 1992 and 1994. It's the same kind of secretive movement going on in and out of Venezuela that gives current and former American counterterrorism officials — and Jewish communities in the region — the cold sweats.

In other words, Iranian Revolutionary Guards are in Nicaragua, and we should be concerned.

In Argentina, Iran used Hezbollah to blow up the Israeli embassy and a Jewish center killing 85 people and wounding many more. Argentina Still has outstanding arrest warrants for top Iranian officials and Revolutionary guards. .

Iran has also been in countries like Bolivia and Venezuela, but now the presence of the Iranians are much closer to our border. Given the chance, the Iranians will also set up shop in El Salvador.

Mauricio Funes

Funes graduated from the "Colegio Centroamericano" where he studied philosophy and economics. His work after graduation was primarily in Journalism where he hosted local news shows critical of previous governments. During the Salvadoran Civil War, he interviewed many of the leftist rebels. It was from his association with these rebels that formed his left-wing ideology.

Funes campaigned as a moderate interested in social-democratic policies in the mold of Brazil's Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. The Salvadoran people liked his campaign rhetoric of "change." The opposition ran a relentless media blitz trying to instill fear in the people by showing them how Funes would turn El Salvador into a communist state, and that he would sell its very soul to Hugo Chávez. Arena portrayed Hugo Chávez as the future owner of El Salvador.

"Everything has changed. The FMLN has changed. People's perceptions have changed. Conditions have changed," said Funes

Funes' strategy was to direct his attention towards the north, "I want Central American integration and relations with the United States" he said. In his campaign, he attempted to distance himself from Hugo Chavez. In the end however, distancing himself from Hugo Chavez will be difficult indeed. FMLN mayors own a company called Alba Petróleos. Venezuela sells the company gasoline and diesel and a discounted price. The FMLN has been awash in cash as a result, some have said to the tune of 60 million dollars. This has gained them a clear political advantage in the elections.

Moreover, even if Funes describes himself as a moderate, his vice president Salvador Sanchez Céren is a hard-liner. Salvador Sanchez Céren has the blood of many on his hand and his responsible for ordering the assassination of 1,200 to 1,500 people including torture as a method of interrogation. The Washington Times reports:

One of the favorite interrogation techniques was to bludgeon presumed enemy spies with wooden clubs. They first assaulted their arms and legs, brutally breaking them in futile attempts to get them to talk – futile because they had nothing to confess. Eventually, they realized there was nothing forthcoming and they turned their clubs on the victims' skulls, beating them until they succumbed.

 

These were not ordinary murders; they were committed by guerrillas against other guerrillas on the orders of the commanding general in the San Vicente region, known in the FMLN as El Frente Para Central (The Auxiliary Central Front)

Funes has promised to raise taxes on the rich for better social programs, including rural health care and crime prevention. El Salvador experiences the highest murder rate in the world. Approximately 30% of El Salvador live below the poverty line, so this kind of populist rhetoric is appealing.

Funes' first order of business was to reestablish relations with communist Cuba and its dictator Raúl Castro after five decades of no relations. El Salvador cancelled diplomatic relations with the government of Cuba in 1959 when Fidel Castro took power.

Funes told Megavision television

Nothing traumatizing is going to happen here. We will not reverse any privatizations. We will not jeopardize private property. There is no reason at this moment for fear."

Of course one has to wonder what he means by "at this moment." Presently, Mauricio Funes is an unknown on to how he will govern. What is more of a concern is not how he will govern El Salvador, but what his relationship will be with the United States. He has already said that he wants to have an amicable relationship with the United States, and he wants to be trading partners. What will his relationship be with Hugo Chavez and Mahmoud Amadinejad? Chavez has already infused the tiny country of El Salvador with copious amounts of cash. He will expect payback. And, what about Iran? Will Iran spread their influence to El Salvador like it is doing with Nicaragua? Will we even care?

Conclusion    

The victory of Funes represents one more victory in a string of leftist victories taking place in Latin America by former guerrillas. The FMLN wants to portray itself as a moderate party; left of center, but its leadership is comprised of unrepentant ultra-left Marxist-Leninist rebels. The Vice-President Salvador Sanchez Cerén is no moderate and also a former guerrilla. Funes has begun relations with Cuba and it is only a matter of time before Iran tries to spread its influence into the country. Funes stated he would not be beholden to Hugo Chavez but this may have been campaign rhetoric. Chavez holds the purse strings, and to think Chavez will not want payback seems rather foolhardy. Chavez's influence in Central America is growing. Nicaragua is receiving 60%-70% of its annual crude oil from Chavez, and the program allows Ortega to pay only half the bill. Chávez's influence in El Salvador and Nicaragua is undeniable. Hugo Chavez's goal is hegemony over both Central and South America.

Barack Obama's understanding of the terrorist threat seems dubious at best. He won't use the name "enemy combatants" to describe former terrorists who were caught in battle. He sends videos to Iran in vain attempts to communicate to the Iranian leaders while the country continues to advocate the destruction of Israel and deny the holocaust. He gives legitimacy to the terrorist organization Hamas by trying to include them in Palestinian peace talks. This is no different than what Bill Clinton did with Arafat and the PLO. So, if we have terrorists roaming around El Salvador or Nicaragua why would we believe Barack Obama would do anything?

When we do have friends in Latin America, we snub them as Nancy Pelosi did with Colombia. Nancy Pelosi has continuously tried to stop free trade with Colombia. The Washington Post in their report, Drop Dead Colombia states:

THE YEAR 2008 may enter history as the time when the Democratic Party lost its way on trade. Already, the party's presidential candidates have engaged in an unseemly contest to adopt the most protectionist posture, suggesting that, if elected, they might pull out of the North American Free Trade Agreement. Yesterday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi declared her intention to change the procedural rules governing the proposed trade promotion agreement with Colombia. President Bush submitted the pact to Congress on Tuesday for a vote within the next 90 legislative days, as required by the "fast-track" authority under which the U.S. negotiated the deal with Colombia. Ms. Pelosi says she'll ask the House to undo that rule.

When we do this, countries like Venezuela move in for the kill. Will the Democratic Party ever wake up?

The MS-13 gang, considered to be the most dangerous gang in Central America, whose base spreads from El Salvador to Honduras, has received hefty sums to smuggle foreign born terrorists to the United States. What will Funes do about the MS-13 gang?

Barack Obama does have an opportunity . Obama should take Funes up on his willingness to trade with the United States, but in doing so, he should monitor El Salvador for activity by Venezuela, Iran, Cuba or other enemies of the United States. Mexico's president Felipe Calderón won by a scant one percent of the vote. It is very possible that Mexico can turn to a leftist president in its next elections especially since the drug cartels are expanding their reach. The left turn of Central and South America is a new reality we need to face. Latin America has become the new breeding ground for terrorist activities. We need to expand our influence throughout Latin America, and at the same time we should monitor the activities of foreign governments in these countries.

We know terrorists are entering the United States via Mexico. The 9/11 commission report warned that terrorists would find different ways to attack the United States. President George W Bush and now President Barack Obama refuse to send troops to the border even though it represents an unprecedented security threat. Will we wake up to the new reality that Central America and South America can become the new launching pad for countries like Iran in their pursuit to destroy the West?

Fraud in Nicaragua – Continuing Jimmy Carter’s legacy

Daniel Ortega came to power as a direct result of the Carter administration's funding of the Sandinistas during the Sandinista Revolution that ended 1979 against the dictator Anastasio Somoza Debayle. Somoza was an ally of the United States, but fragmented coalitions gained strength against the regime. President Carter thought it was a good idea to pull the U.S. government's aid from Somoza and help the Marxists-Leninists led by Daniel Ortega. Money from the U.S. coffers flowed in to supply the Sandinistas with the needed arms. As a result, in 1979, the Sandinistas entered Managua, and Somoza fled the country. Nicaragua quickly aligned itself with Castro's Cuba and Communist Russia. A former friend of the United States was now a bitter enemy. The stanza in the Sandinista hymn, says it all, "luchamos contra el yanqui el enemigo de la humanidad", "We fight against the Yankee the enemy of humanity".

In 1990, Ortega from pressure by the outside community held free elections for the presidency which he lost to Violeta Barrios de Chamorro. Ortega ran again twice to regain the presidency but lost both times. He then devised a scheme with former president Arnoldo Aleman (who had been indicted on corruption charges) to split the liberal party (the opposition party). He granted Aleman immunity from further prosecution. In 1996 and 2001, Ortega lost by about a two-thirds of the vote to Arnoldo Aleman and Enrique Bolanos respectively. With backroom deals, he was able to split the vote and win by almost the same percentage he lost the prior elections, 37%. Ortega was able to regain the presidency in 2006.

Ortega began to mollify his rhetoric on his Marxist-Leninist ideology in favor of a more moderate form of socialism. Ortega, however, never changed his radical Marxist ideology. Two congressmen Ron Klein and Connie Mack, both from Florida declared that Iran, Nicaragua and Venezuela are, "a Trio of Tyrants." This latest display of the FSLN's tactics in trying to steal the election is just more of the same for Daniel Ortega.

With municipal elections in the balance, Ortega is trying to hold on to power as he allies himself with Hugo Chavez. He effectively eliminated two opposition parties before the Municipal elections, and he did not allow outside observers to monitor the elections. Of course, there is a reason for this – Ortega is trying to steal the election.

The prize of course is Managua where the majority of Nicaraguans live. The Sandinistas have won Managua for the past eight years, but the opposition party's candidate Eduardo Montealegre was ahead of the Sandinista candidate and former boxer Alexis Arguello.

The following has been reported in the Municipal elections of November 9^th

1. Late openings of voting centers
   
2. Harassment of PLC, (opposition party) poll watchers
   
3. Utilization of concocted methods to eliminate votes of the PLC
   
4. Mobilization of mobs to intimidate voters
   
5. Intimidation and physical aggressions on PLC voters
   
6. Taking of voting centers by the CPC (Ortega's People's Power Council - Highest authority in Nicaragua)
   
7. Blocking of poll watchers of the PLC
   
8. Premature closings of voting centers
   
9. Acts of violence in various polling centers.
   

Fraud reigns supreme in Nicaragua

Deconstructing Obama

"It's not to say that there is already a revolution under way in the U.S. ... but yes, they are laying the foundations for a revolutionary change."
Daniel Ortega

Introduction

Last Friday, reverend Jeremiah Wright was on the Hannity and Colmes show trying to diffuse an explosive situation with respect to the reverend's comments. On the O'Reilly factor a member of Trinity Church, and another African-American woman appeared trying to defend Pastor Wright's comments. The parishioner went so far as to invite O'Reilly to the church. In my opinion, these guests only added to the controversy. Several times Reverend Wright mentioned black liberation theology. When I heard the words liberation theology, Daniel Ortega's Nicaragua came to mind. It had been years since I had heard those words.

Liberation Theology

I was married in Managua, Nicaragua in 1977, two years before the Sandinista revolution. My wife and I returned to Nicaragua in 1981. This was the first time we were to get a glimpse of the new Nicaragua run by the new dictator and leader of the Marxist-Leninist party, the Sandinistas Daniel Ortega two years after the Somoza regime was ousted in part by the support of President Jimmy Carter. We arrived in Managua on a hot and humid summer day at the Augusto C. Sandino International airport renamed to reflect the new revolutionary party's hero. The airport was too small for the bigger aircraft, so we had to stop in Guatemala to transfer to a smaller size aircraft. As we walked down the stairs from the airplane, which led to the tarmac, I couldn't help but notice a child about the age of 12 or 13 holding a submachine gun strapped over his shoulders standing guard. His youthful eyes were piercing as he checked me out from head to toe. He then ushered us to waiting relatives.

Nicaragua represented one of the last remnants of the cold war. The 1972 earthquake that leveled the capital of Nicaragua, Managua marked the beginning of the end for the Somoza regime in the country. A growing discontent among the Nicaraguan people prompted the then fragmented anti-Somoza factions to coalesce helping the Frente Sandinista Liberación Nacional, (FSLN) led by Daniel Ortega to gain strength and the populace to begin an active rebellion against the Somoza regime. The Sandinistas gained power as a direct result of the Carter administration's funding of the Sandinistas. In July 1979, the Sandinistas entered Managua, and Somoza fled the country. Nicaragua, a former ally of the United States, quickly aligned itself with Castro's Cuba and Communist Russia. A former friend of the United States was now a bitter enemy. The stanza in the Sandinista hymn, "luchamos contra el yanqui el enemigo de la humanidad", "We fight against the Yankee the enemy of humanity" reflects the anti-American sentiment felt by the Ortega government. Ortega views U.S. imperialism and U.S. capitalism as the evils of the world. The Sandinista regime destroyed any remnants of Nicaragua's economy. Part of Ortega's success and rise to power came from promoting and advocating a philosophy of Marxism-Leninism mixed in with a perverted form of Catholicism called "Liberation Theology."

Liberation theology has its roots in Latin-America and Catholicism, and it was used mainly as a tool to foment rebellion among the populace. "Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference: For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God." Romans 3:22-23. The Bible teaches that Christ came for everyone, the rich and the poor, the oppressor and the oppressed. However, this is not what liberation theology teaches. The message of liberation theology is Christ came for the poor, the economically dispossessed and the oppressed, and it is the duty of the oppressed to rise up against his oppressor. After all, Christ too was one of the oppressed. Liberation theology is about class warfare against the capitalist, and the oppressor. The Bible of course teaches nothing of the sort. The Bible teaches that the poor to whom Christ refers is actually the poor in spirit, "Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." Matthew 5:3. Liberation theology twists God's word in order to garner strength needed from the uneducated peasants for their own political end. Liberation Theology turns the gospel into a class warfare ideology. This is why Marxism-Leninism lends itself to liberation theology, and this is why Obama's church, Trinity Church can spew its anti-American rhetoric with such ease.

Black Liberation Theology

Black liberation theology is simply an extension of liberation theology and the black power movement of the 60s. It is a tool to help the suffering of the African-American as a result of slavery, segregation, the Jim Crow laws, and the poverty that came with these institutions to the exclusion of all else. James Cone, one of the architects of black liberation theology and mentioned by Wright on Hannity and Colmes March 15th stated it this way.

"A moral or theological appeal based on a white definition of morality or theology will serve as a detriment to our attainment of black freedom. The only option we blacks have is to fight in every way possible, so that we can create a definition of freedom based on our own history and culture. We must not expect white people to give us freedom. Freedom is not a gift, but a responsibility, and thus must be taken against the will of those who hold us in bondage."

Freedom will be taken against the will of those who African-Americans perceive are holding them in bondage. Jesus is a poor black man oppressed by the white man says reverend Wright. Racism is at the heart of black liberation theology, and the white capitalist is the cause of the continued oppression of the African-American. This is why you will hear the pastors at Trinity Church rail against the whites comparing the United States to Al-Queda, or accusing the United States of bringing in both the HIV virus and drugs to the African-American community. The United States is the one holding blacks in bondage, and we still keep the blacks oppressed no longer by slavery but by drugs, HIV, and the list goes on.

Trinity Church states as the following their ten point vision:

1. A congregation committed to ADORATION.
   
2. A congregation preaching SALVATION.
   
3. A congregation actively seeking RECONCILIATION.
   
4. A congregation with a non-negotiable COMMITMENT TO AFRICA.
   
5. A congregation committed to BIBLICAL EDUCATION.
   
6. A congregation committed to CULTURAL EDUCATION.
   
7. A congregation committed to the HISTORICAL EDUCATION OF AFRICAN PEOPLE IN DIASPORA.
   
8. A congregation committed to LIBERATION.
   
9. A congregation committed to RESTORATION.
   
10. A congregation working towards ECONOMIC PARITY.
    

Trinity Church's mission statement also states the following:

We are called out to be "a chosen people" that pays no attention to socio-economic or educational backgrounds. We are made up of the highly educated and the uneducated. Our congregation is a combination of the haves and the have-nots; the economically
disadvantaged, the under-class, the unemployed and the employable.

In fact, Trinity Church promotes education by giving out scholarships, and it is involved in a variety of charitable works. But, it has also in the past supported the radical Louis Farrakhan.

Trinity Church's Black Value System contains the following points on it's website.

The vision statement of Trinity United Church of Christ is based upon the systematized liberation theology that started in 1969 with the publication of Dr. James Cone’s book, Black Power and Black Theology.

Black theology is one of the many theologies in the Americas that became popular during the liberation theology movement

You can read the entire Black Value System upon which Trinity Church is based by clicking here.

The Church Service

On Palm Sunday, I decided to watch Trinity Church's service via the web. I was quite impressed with the talent of the church.

Young girls donned in purple African garb entered towards the front of the pulpit. They swayed in front of the congregation in an undulating motion dancing with an ethnic fusion to the beat of African gospel music. The dancers were beautifully choreographed. When the dancers stopped, the music continued, and the Reverend Otis Moss lll began to preach. The Reverend shouted, "I trust God is going to hook you up." He continued by making indirect comments about Obama saying how he had been reduced to a sound bite. The congregation began handing out palms in honor of Palm Sunday. The music never stopped. Palms began to sway to and fro. The music continued and the reverend continued preaching on salvation. The choir sang in the African tradition, "He is the great I am." The music was beautiful and emotional. There were a couple of solos sung by one of the members of the choir.

After the music part of the service, Reverend Moss came to the front and delivered his fiery sermon. At times his sermon, "Why the black church won't shut up" reached such frenzy; his words would rile the crowd. The parishioners would stand up and begin clapping their hands. Reverend Moss bellowed, "They are trying to shut us up, but we will not shut up. God is going to hook it up. We cannot shut up because God has called us to speak the truth of Jesus" Moss continued defending his church. He never explicitly mentioned Obama, but he asked for walls to be broken down.

Following the sermon, Reverend Moss conducted an altar call. The dulcet tones of the choir began to echo through the packed church. Reverend Moss began to call out, "If you do not have a relationship with Jesus Christ I want you to squeeze your neighbor's hand. If you do not have a church home, if you felt someone squeeze your hand, I want you to walk down with that person. This is your opportunity." The front began to overflow with a stream of people hearing the call, mostly youth. "This is your moment, this is your time. Do you see what God is doing? To build a relationship with Jesus Christ, this is where it begins… " intoned Reverend Moss. The music continued until the close of the service.

The talent of the African-Americans at Trinity Church was undeniable. Their charitable acts are also undeniable. The undercurrent of black liberation theology pervades the teachings at Trinity Church. If you did not realize what Trinity Church actually taught, the service may have been like any other service one might attend except for the political rhetoric. The service did seem to mainly center on Christ.

I have no problem with African-Americans getting back to their culture or their roots. In fact, it was enjoyable to watch. I even saw white faces among the multitude. The music and choreography of the dancers were superb. But, Jesus came for all. His was an inclusive gospel. Black liberation theology is about racism, it is about the exclusion of those who the African-Americans perceive as the oppressors, it is about an oppressed black messiah. Black liberation theology is the central part of Trinity Church, and this is troublesome to say the least.

Obama's Statement

In the Huffington Post, Barack Obama wrote the following in an attempt to defend himself.

The statements that Rev. Wright made that are the cause of this controversy were not statements I personally heard him preach while I sat in the pews of Trinity or heard him utter in private conversation. When these statements first came to my attention, it was at the beginning of my presidential campaign. I made it clear at the time that I strongly condemned his comments. But because Rev. Wright was on the verge of retirement, and because of my strong links to the Trinity faith community, where I married my wife and where my daughters were baptized, I did not think it appropriate to leave the church.

This is somewhat puzzling. I knew of Wright's rhetoric a year ago yet Obama didn't. But it goes further than that. Trinity Church's doctrinal basis is on black liberation theology, and what Reverend Wright said is nothing more than espousing a belief system based on the doctrinal teachings of Trinity Church, a black nationalist church that has more patriotism towards Africa than the United States. Reverend Wright was also like an "uncle" to Obama. Obama sat in this church for twenty years. Obama not only had to know, but he must have approved of its teachings also. No one stays a member of an organization with which they disagree unless he/she has some other nefarious reason for doing so (i.e.: a stepping stone for his political ambitions.)

If Obama were white, and he brought his children every week to hear the rantings of David Duke or someone of the Aryan brotherhood, would he be villified? Yet, for some reason, there seems to be no problem when he, as a black man, brings his children to hear the rantings of a preacher spewing anti-American rhetoric. Moreover, Obama's mother is white yet Obama seems to only be interested in his black half. Something doesn't make sense.

President Obama

So what are we to think? Obama continuously tries to say this is not about race, but Trinity Church is all about race. Religious faith lies at the core of who we are. Trinity Church's teaching should also lie at the core of who Obama is. Does it? I don't know. What are we to make of the judgement of a candidate for president who attends a church that is ostensibly racist? What are we to make of a man who is trying to cross the racial divide, but then we find out he attends a church that espouses racism based in a false ideology called black liberation theology? We do know that his far-left socialist ideas had to come from somewhere. Maybe he doesn't believe in black liberation theology, but I for one don't want to take the chance. Do you?


Note: Barack Obama appeared to distance himself in the speech he gave in Philadelphia on whether he knew about the divisive comments of his pastor. His assertion that he had never heard these comments from Reverend Wright did lack credulity.