"You Scare Us:

Bush Is Giving Latin America the Willies"

Carlos Fuentes, Los Angeles Times

[Carlos Fuentes is the author, most recently, of "Contra
Bush," which will be translated into seven languages.]

LONDON — The United States is strong. Latin America is
weak. This is the basic truth that shapes their
relationship. There is no irrational animosity toward
the U.S. in Latin America. There is a measure of
suspicion balanced by enormous admiration for the
culture of Herman Melville to Walt Whitman to William
Faulkner, of Hollywood and jazz, of Eugene O'Neill to
Arthur Miller. Nor is there envy of the United States.
Latin America is deeply aware of its cultural values.
Our personality is not assailed by gringo fashions. We
absorb and adapt to the cultures of the world,
including that of the U.S.

"U.S. Could Scale Back Troops in Iraq, Rumsfeld Says"

Paul Koring, Toronto Globe and Mail

WASHINGTON — Some U.S. troops could be ordered home even if they fail to quash the mounting insurgency in Iraq, Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said yesterday, admitting for the first time that the "heavy footprint" of American tanks, soldiers and warplanes might be fomenting more opposition than it quells.

After talks at the Pentagon with Iraq's interim Prime Minister Ayad Allawi, the hawkish Mr. Rumsfeld signalled a shift in U.S. priorities from aggressively stamping out the insurgency to taking an increasingly back-seat role to Iraqi forces. He said U.S. troops might be part of the problem, rather than the solution.

Nader 2000 Leaders United To Defeat Bush

We, the undersigned, were selected by Ralph Nader to be members of
his 113-person national "Nader 2000 Citizens Committee." This year,
we urge support for Kerry/Edwards in all "swing states," even while
we strongly disagree with Kerry's policies on Iraq and other issues.
For people seeking progressive social change in the United States,
removing George W. Bush from office should be the top priority in the
2004 presidential election. Progressive votes for John Kerry in swing
states may prove decisive in attaining this vital goal.

CIA Executives Gathered in Santiago de Chile Revealed in Contingency Plot to Overthrow Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez Frias

Venezuela state-owned news agency VENPRES is quoting an El Mundo de Madrid (Spain) report that the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) is set to put a contingency plan in motion in the (likely) event that President Hugo Chavez Frias wins next weekend's Recall Referendum.