Latin America File: Venezuela training civilian militias to repel hypothetical US invasion

The creation of a civilian militia and the importation from the USSR2 of 12 Mi-17 helicopters and 100,000 AK-103 assault rifles to defend Comrade Chavez's neo-Bolshevik Bolivarian Revolution from some hypothetical US invasion is a ruse. The White House might be inclined to rub out Cindy "Peace Mom" Sheehan's mentor, but the United States Armed Forces are stretched way too thin around the world and public opinion would probably choke on the mere thought of sending troops across the Gulf of Mexico.

Taking into account news reports over the last two years regarding Caracas' intention to purchase Soviet warplanes, it is clear that Venezuela's democratically elected (?) neo-communist regime is either planning to deploy these new assets against domestic opposition forces, or indirectly support the communist insurgency in adjacent Colombia by releasing the communized regular armed forces of Venezuela to do their job in toppling the pro-Western regime in Bogotá. Patriotic Venezuelan military officers have long since defected from the regular armed forces in protest against the communization of their country, only to be replaced by Comrade Chavez's ideological henchmen.

We may even see Comrade Chavez's Bolivarian liberators, meaning the communized regular forces, futher afield in the Western Hemisphere one day . . . with a little help from COSCO container ships . . . Chinese special forces are already training Chavez's personal security detail. (See earlier blog.)

So while Caracas transforms giggling housewives into a twenty-first-century "People's Army," Mexico City sues and Washington disarms American civilian border patrols for reporting illegal aliens, human traffickers, drug smugglers, terrorists, spies and saboteurs sneaking into the USA . . .

Venezuelans Train for Civilian Militias
By NATALIE OBIKO PEARSON, Associated Press Writer
Mon Apr 3, 4:21 AM ET

The women, some trembling, grasp the assault rifles and awkwardly lower themselves into sniper positions as they take aim and fire at white targets in the distance. Dressed in jeans and sneakers, the women are the unlikely heart of a new civilian militia being trained as Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez warns his country must be ready for a "war of resistance" against the United States.

The U.S. government dismisses Chavez's claims of a possible invasion as ridiculous. But Chavez insists Venezuelans must be prepared for anything, citing a short-lived 2002 coup that briefly unseated him.

Housewives, students, construction workers, social workers and many unemployed have signed up for the Territorial Guard. Lt. Col. Rafael Angel Faria Villalobos, who led the training for 900 volunteers on their first day of bootcamp Saturday, said 20 weeks of instruction will turn them into resistance fighters prepared to defend their communities in the event of a conflict.

"Those who come here have never fired a shot in their lives," he said.

Ten at a time, the volunteers lined up as officers coached them to fire the military's standard-issue Belgian FAL assault rifles from standing, kneeling and prone positions at numbered targets in an open field. Territorial Guard volunteers aren't issued weapons, but commanders said guns would be made available in emergency situations.

"It was exciting, too good," gushed Yomaira Alas, a 28-year-old housewife, after firing the gun for the first time.

Officials say the force will be capable of defending communities, protecting hospitals and schools, keeping order and preventing looting. Some Chavez opponents have expressed concern the force could be used to quell internal dissent.

But soldiers who led Saturday's drills made clear U.S. troops were the hypothetical enemy as men and women swarmed across an obstacle course of barbed wire, burning tires and concrete fortifications.

"Kill the gringo! That gringo is taking away your women," yelled a soldier as he tossed a man a rifle to butt a target — a military uniform stuffed with straw. A siren wailed while the acrid smell of smoke hung in the air.

Besides the Territorial Guard, Chavez also has called for an army reserve of 1 million fighters and has sealed arms deals to supply regular soldiers with 100,000 new Kalashnikov assault rifles and helicopters from Russia.

Despite Chavez's warnings of a possible U.S. invasion, many trainees said they feel it's a remote possibility. There were light moments during the drills as some snapped photos, stumbled on the obstacle course amid laughter and talked excitedly after target practice.

"I'm having a great time," said Sujeidy Pereira, 25, through smiles. Giggling, she added: "Fatherland or death."

Link: Yahoo.com