Today erphschwester noted the passing of Augusto Pinochet, how he had a long life, and how he was never brought to justice for his crimes against the Chilean people. She also mentions the ignominious role played by the United States in his ascension to, and maintenance of, dictatorial power in Chile through terror.
I think it is fitting that Pinochet died the same week as Jeane Kirkpatrick – Ronald Reagan’s envoy to the United Nations. The US press has been full of euologies to this "champion of freedom"; but it was Jeane Kirkpatrick who provided the ideological framework for the US to champion the regime of Augusto Pinochet. The Kirkpatrick Doctrine basically tried to differentiate between "totalitarian regimes" (i.e. the evil Soviet empire) and "authoritarian regimes" (i.e. right-wing military Juntas), maintaining that the latter were preferable and should be supported as bulwarks against Communism. Thus the US embraced murderous regimes in Argentina, Guatamala, and the Philippines. It led to the US supporting death squads in El Salvador – and most fatefully – the Mujahideen in Afghanstan, paving the way for the Taliban.
So this "champion of freedom" was in fact a "champion of death", supporting murderous regimes throughout the world. It is fitting that she can now spend eternity with her soul mate Augusto Pinochet.
