Robertson takes the Hobbesian view

Religious broadcaster Pat Robertson 75, geriatric founder of the Christian Coalition of America has suggested that American agents assassinate Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez to stop his country from becoming "a launching pad for communist infiltration and Muslim extremism."

"We have the ability to take him out, and I think the time has come that we exercise that ability," Robertson told the Christian Broadcast Network's "The 700 Club." On Monday 22ns August.

"We don't need another $200 billion war to get rid of one, you know, strong-arm dictator," said Pat Robertson "It's a whole lot easier to have some of the covert operatives do the job and then get it over with."

"You know, I don't know about this doctrine of assassination, but if he thinks we're trying to assassinate him, I think that we really ought to go ahead and do it," Robertson said. "It's a whole lot cheaper than starting a war … and I don't think any oil shipments will stop."

As Tim Padgett in Time cogently points out, this only solidifies the view on the Latin street that the Yanqui imperialists are at it again.

Bantz Craddock will be scratching his head as the cocaine pours out of Columbia (plus the odd IRA bird watcher) ... just so loing as that 1.3 Mn bpd hits the shores of Texas, nothing is going to happen real soon.

Why, in the country they freed where oil pumping is below pre-war levels, it stopped altogether in Basra, where the hig quality, high value sweet crude is exported ...because of a power outage...why ? ... huge destruction of powerlines to the refineries.

Let's hope no-one suggests shooting Pat Robertson.