Ruddy: What Really Happened in Venezuela***The Venezuelan coup and the seemingly easy return of Chavez to power smacked of a Soviet-style provocation. During the Cold War, the KGB perfected this technique. A new communist leader, not firmly in power, would pretend that he was being ousted in a coup. As word was announced that the leader was indeed ousted, his opponents, some of whom had been working quietly behind the scenes, would reveal themselves. Soon, the "coup" would be crushed by forces friendly to the "ousted" dictator.***
Venezuelans Draw Ire for Violence***But Caracas police, who have arrested at least three people, say some of the shooters belonged to the circles -- neighborhood committees that were created after Cuban President Fidel Castro urged Chavez's followers to organize themselves to defend Chavez's leftist revolution. Castro made the appeal during a 2000 visit. Reinstated Sunday after the coup, Chavez said the Bolivarian Circles weren't armed groups and that if anyone belonging to them had committed "errors," they would be punished. The circles -- named after South American liberator Simon Bolivar -- bear similarities to Cuba's Committees for the Defense of the Revolution, who watch over their neighborhoods and maintain socialist principles. Chavez says he formed the circles to improve their communities. Despite their country's oil riches, 80 percent of Venezuela's 24 million people live in poverty. Circle members say Chavez is the first leader in memory to show concern for the poor. Circle members pledge "loyalty to the thinking of the Liberator Simon Bolivar." A government pamphlet says the groups are involved in "social and political struggles" and "defend the Bolivarian Revolution to maintain and consolidate its values." ***