More from Roger Noriega

Just yesterday I referred to Roger Noriega, and by coincidence today saw this short paper he just published about Hugo Chávez. There is so much wrong in so few pages that I hardly know where to start.

First, he cites anonymous sources, which he's done in the past with truly ridiculous claims. Why should we trust these supposed sources? Because, he says, they have given him "reams of documents." Make of that what you will.

Second, he claims that in 2003 he started the policy of not antagonizing Hugo Chávez. That is frankly laughable. The early part of the Bush administration was a disaster in that regard until Thomas Shannon took over. You will not find many people outside Roger Noriega who think it was due to Roger Noriega.

Third, he claims that Venezuela is at war with the United States. That is too absurd to comment on, really.

Fourth, he claims that both China and Russia are in a "conspiracy" (Noriega's term, not mine!) against the United States. He does not explain what this conspiracy is all about, but says they want to do "bad things." That is a direct quote. What these "bad things" consist of is left to our paranoid imagination.

It seems the main idea for the article was to discuss the political implications of Chávez's cancer, which is a good topic, but Noriega spins out of control within the first few sentences.