CHAVEZ AND AL QAEDA

Insight has a startling, if true, account of Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez and his drive to establish an al Qaeda beachhead in his country. I remain somewhat skeptical, but Chavez has in recent days resorted to true strong-man tactics, arresting and detaining strike leaders and such, that lends credibility to the idea that he would join up with our enemies.

Whether it's true or not remains to be seen, but it does provide another angle from which to refute the ridiculous notion that the war in Iraq is about oil or empire. Baltimore radio talk show host Ron Smith, normally a reasonable conservative, has been beating this drum for months. But if he and those who agree with him are right and the war really is all about oil and establishing an American empire, why are we leaving Venezuela alone? Venezuela has oil, is run by a thug, and because of that thug is aligning itself with our enemies. Its people seem to want Chavez out. Venezuela is also much closer to the US than Iraq, and if you're building an empire, it tends to be strategically smarter to start close to home and work your way out. Why start with Iraq, half a world away, when Venezuela is just a short flight away from most of our domestic military bases? If we overthrew Chavez and returned Venezuela to democracy, we would probably be welcomed as liberators. And Venezuela's vast oil reserves would be within our grasp.

But instead, we're going after Iraq. If it's all about oil and empire, why?