How soon before we hear the first incantations from the high neocon priesthood decrying "Evo Morales and his terrorist allies"? Among other great things that happened on May Day this year, South America's newest populist president moved to nationalize Bolivia's natural gas and petroleum resources, proclaiming "an historic day has arrived. Now the gas and oil that flows from our land will no longer belong to foreigners." Later the same week, Morales signed a new trade agreement with---gasp---Venezuela and Cuba.

Two thoughts surely came to the minds of many who've been joyfully following South America's fantastic populist transformation in recent years upon hearing of Evo's May Day decree. One: "Power to the People!" (Music provided by John and Yoko.) Two: Someone just painted a target on his own back!

Indeed, the next day's front page of The Wall Street Journal, that unfailing organ of modern colonialism, reported Evo's decree not as democracy in action, but as a daring challenge to foreign extractors and investors. On May 3, ZNet posted a sharp analysis by commentator Stephen Lendman, who deftly dissected the WSJ's framing of the story (see zmag.org/content/showarticle.cfm?sectionid=20&itemid=10198). Noting the WSJ's utility for progressives as a means to divine "useful information and clues about what future US policy is likely to be," Lendman samples the recent history of US political and military responses to uppity populists in resource-rich regions, and concludes that Evo Morales is now officially a magnet for the same sort of US interventionist hijinx behind the failed April 2002 coup attempt against Venezuela's Hugo Chavez. According to Lendman, "plans are well underway now for a fourth attempt to oust Hugo Chavez that may include assassinations and possibly an armed assault by US invading forces." And perhaps Morales, the indigene elected by the indigenous, will soon be declared, in the deathless quisling words of Condoleezza Rice, "very deeply troubling" to the flamekeepers of democracy (or at least to Chevron, the corporation whose tanker bears her name).

Wild claims perhaps, but none other than Noam Chomsky himself is on record expressing the same opinion, and personally told Lendman so on April 29 in an e-mail responding to Lendman's recently published review of Chompers' latest book, "Failed States." Chomsky said he "wouldn't be surprised to see (US inspired) secessionist movements in the oil-producing areas in Iran, Venezuela and Bolivia, all in areas that are accessible to US military force and alienated from the governments, with the US then moving in to 'defend' them and blasting the rest of the country if necessary."

In the meantime, stay tuned to White House rhetoric regarding Bolivia to see if, to paraphrase Joe Strummer, you have the right to genuine democracy, as long as you're not dumb enough to actually try it. --Jeff Stevens

To celebrate the anniversary of his infamous and increasingly embarrassing May 1, 2003 "Mission Accomplished!" proclamation, President George W. Bush's speechwriters decided that rather than acknowledge the utter failure of the Empire's mission to annex the site of the world's first great civilization for American corporate interests, our little Napoleon of Texas should declare May 1, 2006 a "turning point" in this venture (which Bush now publicly admits will outlast his presidency unless, of course, the Triumvirate can manage to start WWIII with a nuclear bombardment of Iran, declare a state of emergency, flush what is left of the Constitution down the toilet, and retain power indefinitely). After months of post-election stalemate and back room arm-twisting, Ibrahim al-Jaafari, the Shia bloc's returning nominee for Prime Minister of Iraq, was "stepped down" and replaced with fellow pro-Iranian Dawa Party member Jawad al-Maliki.

Jaafari, strongly backed by the anti-US "radical cleric" Muqtada al-Sadr, is a literate, soft-spoken thug with socialist inclinations and an alarming interest in the work of Noam Chomsky. Maliki is also a thug, but is seen as being much more favorable to the invader's plan for a free (market) Iraq. Hence Bush: "We believe this [Jaafari's ouster] is a turning point for the Iraqi citizens and it's a new chapter in our relationship."

This, of course, is not the first, nor will it be the last, "turning point" in this immoral and illegal invasion and occupation of a sovereign state. The June 2004 "transfer of sovereignty" from US Viceroy Bremer to the jackals--as exiled Iraqi poet Saadi Youssef calls the US-appointed Governing Council charged with fashioning our date-palm republic--was one of Bush's first "turning points." The 2005 election--has anyone ever heard of a democratic election held in a country under military occupation?--was another. Each successive right turn tightens another screw on the lid of the coffin called Iraq. We have been turning these screws for 16 years: from Daddy Bush's made-for-TV fireworks display, through Bill Clinton's massive bombing campaigns and genocidal sanctions, to the butchery of the current "operation"--originally dubbed Operation Iraqi Liberation until someone, presumably in the State Department where reading beyond a fourth-grade level is still required, noticed what the acronym spelled out, With every season, turn, turn, turn. --Steven Jones

"They're in the area around Tikrit and Baghdad and east, west, south, and north somewhat."

Why, that sounds like a description of pretty much the entire geographical area of Iraq. Whatever, or whoever, "they" are, sounds mighty frightful!

Followers of neocons, blogs, and other noted hosts of bees in bonnets might recognize the quote above as coming from none other than Rummy, our ever-mumbly-bumbly Secretary of Defense, claiming on March 30, 2003 that he had personal knowledge of the location of Saddam's now-legendary WMDs. On Thursday, May 4, Rummy got an authoritative earful about that deathless mouthful from Ray McGovern, the former CIA analyst and Presidential Daily Briefer for George H.W. Bush, now a leading critic of the Iraq debacle. During a Q&A session following an ill-advised public speech by Rummy in Atlanta (itself notably punctuated by heckling antiwar protesters), McGovern called out Rummy over his infamous WMD claim. Rummy initially denied it all, but when McGovern quoted the SecDef's well-known geographic litany, a visibly-startled Rummy's legendary linguistic incontinence went into sublime hyperdrive. In reactionary times, progressives need comic relief. Thank you, Ray, and thank you, Rummy!

Crooks and Liars, just about my favorite blog these days, has, as always, the video: crooksandliars.com/2006/05/04.html#a8164. Rummy's original fib can be viewed at abcnews.go.com/Video/playerIndex?id=1924979. Listen once again as mumbly-bumbly Rummy inadvertently describes the location of what the Iraqi people had plenty to be anxious about in March 2003--namely, hostile foreign invaders:

"They're in the area around Tikrit and Baghdad and east, west, south, and north somewhat."

A scary scenario, indeed. --J.S.

A broad-based coalition of businesses, environmental organizations, labor and concerned citizens in Washington state has launched a campaign to place the Washington Energy Security initiative on the November ballot. Initiative 937 would guarantee that at least 15% of the electricity from the state's largest utilities must come from local renewable energy sources by 2020. Wind, solar, and other sustainable energy sources will be developed to meet this need. The initiative would require utilities with 25,000 customers or more to meet designated targets for energy conservation. Utilities not meeting the requirements would pay penalties to the state, but they would be allowed to purchase renewable energy credits.

Initiative 937 is being touted by the group Washingtonians for Energy Security as an alternative to the state's current plans to exploit coal and other fossil fuels. According to the initiative backers, regional utilities are struggling to meet the increasing demands for energy in the Northwest. They say I-937 would provide cleaner energy at lower costs to consumers. According to Washingtonians for Energy Security, renewable sources are insulated from the volatile price swings associated with fossil fuels, providing for long-term rate stability.

I-937 backers claim that investment in local energy efficiency and renewable energy projects will create thousands of new living wage jobs in engineering, construction and building design.Farmers hosting wind projects earn up to $5,000 a year per wind turbine, helping to keep family farms alive.

To qualify the Energy Security Initiative for the November ballot, 160,000 volunteer signatures from registered Washington voters need to be collected by June 30. --Mark Taylor-Canfield