Hugo Chavez at the United Nations: Where's the Punchline?

“The devil came here yesterday… talking as if he owned the world. As the spokesman of imperialism, he came to preserve the current pattern of domination, exploitation and pillage of the peoples of the world.”

Those are the words that Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez used to describe United States President George W. Bush at the United Nations General Assembly in New York last month. They were harsh words, unapologetically critical words. They were serious words.

So why isn’t the United States taking it seriously? If you saw the Chavez speech on television, you heard the laughter in the background as Chavez repeatedly likened Bush to “the devil.” You heard the enthusiastic applause from other world leaders as Chavez demanded to know, “What type of democracy do you impose with marines and bombs?”

When the leader of an up-and-coming modern power lays such grim accusations on the U.S. government, what sort of reply should be expected? Maybe a mediocre one-liner from the United States U.N. Ambassador John Bolton? How about the only assurance the Ambassador gives is an assurance that the U.S. won’t bother to deal with Chavez’ “comic-strip approach” to diplomacy? Is that supposed to be comforting? Are the American people supposed to laugh along with the Ambassador?

Consider this: Venezuela is the fourth-largest oil producer in the world, and the oil is owned by the nation itself—not private companies. It doesn’t take a PhD in economics to realize that the Venezuelan Government has substantial capital at their disposal. And we must also consider Venezuela’s formidable allies: Cuba, Bolivia, and even—thanks to their mutual taste for the Bush regime—Iran. Still laughing?