Thousands Mark 34 Years Since U.S.-Backed Chile Coup

[Laurencius]

In Chile, thousands of people marched through Santiago on Sunday to begin marking the thirty-fourth anniversary of the U.S.-backed overthrow of the elected President Salvador Allende. Scores carried pictures of loved ones killed or disappeared after the coup that brought the late dictator Augusto Pinochet to power.

Upholding freedom and democracy by killing a democratically elected president, promoting a dictator, and dissapearing thousands of people.

 

[bhsup]

I'm getting a little tired of the USA getting blamed for all of this. Notice the Chilians themselves were more than happy to instigate this to begin with. Like that so-called CIA-backed overthrow in Iran. Come on. A few paltry thousand to stage a demonstration, then it took a life of its own.

But nooooo, nothing bad happens in the world uinless the USA is behind it.

 

[Masquerouge]

I'm getting a little tired of the USA getting blamed for all of this. Notice the Chilians themselves were more than happy to instigate this to begin with. Like that so-called CIA-backed overthrow in Iran. Come on. A few paltry thousand to stage a demonstration, then it took a life of its own.

The US did back the coup, though.

 

[.Shane.]

I'm getting a little tired of the USA getting blamed for all of this. Notice the Chilians themselves were more than happy to instigate this to begin with. Like that so-called CIA-backed overthrow in Iran. Come on. A few paltry thousand to stage a demonstration, then it took a life of its own.

But nooooo, nothing bad happens in the world uinless the USA is behind it.

Surely both bare responsibility. But, if you're trying to absolve the US of its guilt, that's impossible. "so-called CIA-backed overthrow in Iran"? If you're referring to the coup that brought the Shah to power, the fact that it was CIA-backed is part of the historical record (ditto Chile).

You're final sentence is a mystifying leap into the absurd.

 

[Mango]

We also backed the coup in Cuba that put Castro in power. I wonder how many people didn't learn about that in school. I sure as hell didn't.

 

[Stewbert 08]

a mystifying leap into the absurd.

That's how I would classify most right-wing responses when you point out the fact that every CIA-planned (repeat: not CIA-backed, CIA-planned) attempted coup has either installed a right-wing dictator or backfired into an Islamist/Communist regime.

In the case of Iran we even got a twofer.

GREAT TRACK RECORD GUYS!

No wonder some wingnuts try to deny the CIA's responsibility in these coups... honestly, who'd WANT to take responsibility?

 

[Che Guava]

We also backed the coup in Cuba that put Castro in power. I wonder how many people didn't learn about that in school. I sure as hell didn't.

I sure hope not! As far as I know, that isn't true.

IIRC, Castro et al got thier revolution started on thier own without much (if any) foreign support. Once in power, Castro and the US had a brief honeymoon (long enough for Castro to visit and get a street named after him), but htings soured once he decided to expell Spanish and american dignitaries from Cuba...

 

[.Shane.]

That's how I would classify most right-wing responses when you point out the fact that every CIA-backed attempted coup has either installed a right-wing dictator or backfired into an Islamist/Communist regime.

Well, I'm not gonna devolve into stereotyping. I was merely saying that extrapolating the fact that the US has a mixed record in terms of our policy choices (with many horrible decisions in there) doesn't somehow mean that OMG THE US DOES ALL WORLD EVIL.

 

[Stewbert 08]

Mixed? :roflmao:

 

[Mango]

I sure hope not! As far as I know, that isn't true.

IIRC, Castro et al got thier revolution started on thier own without much (if any) foreign support. Once in power, Castro and the US had a brief honeymoon (long enough for Castro to visit and get a street named after him), but htings soured once he decided to expell Spanish and american dignitaries from Cuba...

Pretty sure we supplied arms to Castro's army while imposing an embargo on Cuba to cut off supplies to Batista. I'm not too well-read on the whole story though.

 

[Che Guava]

Pretty sure we supplied arms to Castro's army while imposing an embargo on Cuba to cut off supplies to Batista. I'm not too well-read on the whole story though.

According to wiki, the US gov't did not actively support Castro, but did cut off arms sales to Batista in 1958, once the revolution was already on the roll.

 

[JohnRM]

Where haven't we backed a coup?

 

[Bugfatty300]

The rebellion against Batista was American supported but it was a private endeavor by individuals. Some Americans even went to Cuba to fight beside Castro and Che. That of course was all before it became a Communist coup.

 

[.Shane.]

According to wiki, the US gov't did not actively support Castro, but did cut off arms sales to Batista in 1958, once the revolution was already on the roll.

IIRC, we wanted to get rid of Batista, but where couldn't get Castro to make the promises we wanted to here, so we hedged. Again, IIRC, Castro was willing to "play ball" with the US originally but the cost was that the US would have to back off of a lot of industries that we owned and that was not going to happen.... and here we are ~50 years later.

I stand very willing to be corrected on this one because, unlike a lot of these other areas, I'm not as well-versed on this one.

 

[Cheezy the Wiz]

I read the title as "Thousand 34 years mark US bkac Chile soup." I'll go back to my bottle and rocking chair now.

 

[luiz]

The coup was US-backed. But it was a chilean coup.

Allende was a terrible ruler who brought chaos to Chile. No democracy can possibly survive the state of things that he provoked, so he is the main responsible for what happened afterwards.

 

[QuoVadisNation]

You guys wanna see CIA backed coups? See Guatemala.

 

[Godwynn]

I like Pinochet.

 

[ParadigmShifter]

Probably a sensible plan, saying you like Pinochet.

"The "caravan of death" was run by a group of officers who travelled around Chile by helicopter, seeking political opponents who had been earmarked for execution.

Some of the victims are believed to have been thrown into the sea tied to concrete blocks, while others were thrown from the helicopter over the mountains."

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/668478.stm

 

[skadistic]

Is there a coup that the CIA didn't have its hands in?