Evo Morales has done the right thing today by kicking out the US ambassador to Bolivia, Philip Goldberg. In his speech today, Evo kicked out the US diplo by saying, "We do not want separatists or divisionists who conspire against unity, we do not want people who attack democracy (here)". He also told his people to go tell Goldberg immediately that he is on the next plane out.
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The root of all this (aside from the case of Fulbright scholars being recruited as spies by the US embassy in La Paz) is Goldberg's recent secret meeting with Santa Cruz officialdom. Goldberg's visit and 90 minute closed door conversation with Santa Cruz prefect and racist shit Ruben Costas (documented in this post) would never have come to light if local TV hadn't caught Goldberg on candid camera. Only after the images showed up on TV did Goldberg even admit to meeting Costas.
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Since that visit, violence has increased in the Santa Cruz area. Not content with simply attacking police or raiding government buildings in "symbolic" protest, the racist thugs now taking over Santa Cruz have in the last 48 hours stormed gas pumping installations and reportedly turned off supplies to Argentina and bombed the pipeline running to Brazil.
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You think it coincidence that violence escated after Goldberg's visit to Costas? Well, could be, but do you suppose it's also coincidence that Goldberg was the diplo in Kosovo when that small state imploded too? And last week's flying and low profile visit of Branco Marinkovic (rich landholder and the other racist pig in charge of Santa Cruz) to Miami is coincidence too?
The USA's days of mischief-making in Bolivia are certainly not done with, but from now on they'll have to use more clandestine communications lines than ambassador Goldberg. Today's decision by Evo is not something to celebrate, but it was necessary.