610 GIGS! FARC had state of the art computers, no 20 GIG six year old laptops.
Even by Texas standards, that's a LOT of data. I wonder how much of it has been acted on. We know of the $480K in a safe in Costa Rica. Saber...
dulcito de lechoza anyone? Can I put to rest now Red Ken's accusation against me?
Well, dulce de lechoza it is alek!
BT, this cracked me up, "Even by Texas standards, that's a LOT of data..."
Alek, mosca, te va a dar diabetes con tanto dule de lechoza que has comido ultimamente.
How effective is this really going to be, though? At least internally this will only reinforce the chavista vulgo perception that the CIA is really, really desperate to bring Chavez down.
I have to agree with Jorge "Chavez Jr." Rodriguez: it would be comical if it weren't tragic.
Pepe,
Depends what you mean by "effective". If the goal is to topple Chávez, then no, this is not enough by itself. But if the goal is to increase his isolation, to make it expensive for him to cozy up to the FARC and to moderate his tone vis-a-vis his neighbor, then it may well be very effective.
I also think this can't help Chávez in terms of public opinion. Sure, it will galvanize his radical supporters, but they're galvanized by pretty much anything. His moderate supporters will surely be turned off by this. Or maybe not.
It's pay back time Katy. It feels good to have been proved right. Let me tell you something else: Chavez's continental hegemonic construct exists only in his head. His pupils in Bolivia and Ecuador are faring very badly indeed. Morales is the weakest link and his gamble will cost him big.
Inflation of nearly 15% in dollars in Ecuador is also diminishing Correa's popularity and the vote on the new constitution is not assured.
Opposition is very strong, mature and coherent in both countries. Chavez bolivarian dream tiene los dias contados. Asi que lo que viene no es joropo sino dulce de lechoza por co#azo!!
Alek, mijo!!! tómalo con calma, jejeje.. a mí me entró un fresquito.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The encrypted documents are like 800 or so. What did they hide? Imagine... if the other stuff was so juicy!
I know that there are over 7 or 8 thousand people really terrified right now. The ones who used to email Reyes and Co.
Multimedia files....oh, that could be good stuff. Nothing tells a story quite like a nice photograph or video.
Also intriguing -- the files that Interpol managed to decrypt. If FARC had not bothered to decrypt the jaw-dropping files we already know about, imagine what they deemed worthy of Top Secret status.
Well it is only logical that Reyes would carry all this data with him. After all, there isnt a FARC HQ, so the safest way to keep anything... is by carrying it.
This will really tarnish the reputation of Chavez & his revolution abroad. Also, lets not forget there are a few million Colombians in Venezuela (desplazados por la FARC).
Internally, this is another weapon that the opposition can use to persuade the population of why we need to get rid of Chavez.
Morales is facing the biggest crisis possible in Bolivia and Correa's opposition is getting organized...
Lets not forget that the Maletagate is still going on... 2008 will be a really bad year for Chavez.
If only we had an opposition!, I am not even asking for an organized one.
But all we have is a bunch of oportunistas waiting to have their turn at the wheel, waiting to administer the oil revenues to their interests.
I would love to be porved wrong by the "opposition" leveraging this blow constructivelly, while they fight for the municipios in a CNE controlled elecciones.
Como dicen en mi tierra, tanto nadar para morir en la orilla...
O se dirimen las opciones en elecciones limpias o se usa la violencia para eliminar al usurpador.
(ojo, se usa la violencia para alcanzar elecciones limpias tambien vale, pero desde la pespectiva del gordo en el palacio, ambas opciones significan lo mismo, ergo su actitud)
"They're real... and they're spectacular."
Great Seinfeld line, you made me laugh!
Miguel E
You win the prize for being the first to catch that!
Tank,
Really smart comment re. the displaced Colombians. I've always had the hunch that giving all these Colombians fake cédulas would come back to haunt Chávez some day. Could this be it?
Luis,
Boooo...
Oh Lucía, regarding videos, there's a fine line between incriminating and icky. I sure hope they don't make public any files named "Hugo_y_Piedad_cementan_la_revolución.wmv" ... guácala!
Boy, Chávez must be really desperate. He's in Caracas talkin' puppies and lollypops and hummingbirds...
http://www.eluniversal.com/2008/
...5A1580761.shtml
As someone once said to me, every time Chávez has a scandal, it ends up costing Venezuelan taxpayers millions. I wonder how much this is going to cost.
Yes Lucia,
One have to wonder what stuff they found out and they are not disclosing. :O
Question, r the political parties gonna take any action in regards this bomb?
I think this is the perfect time for the whole country united and ask for resignation.
Katy, r you trying to brag to the world that they r real and spectacular girl? 
I am sure he already have a big stash of coca leaves and sicurezza diapers handy :D
Will Venezuela remain in Interpol?
Will more people distance themselves from FARC when they know their emails are now in possession of Colombia's securities?
Katy
and you are missing the Chavez press conference... the discomfiture is spectacular. You should see the forced grin of Rodriguez Chacin and the desperately bored looks of the journalists convoked.
But all we have is a bunch of oportunistas waiting to have their turn at the wheel, waiting to administer the oil revenues to their interests.
Por favor Katy dime que estan proponiendo para cambiar el rasgo tan percnicioso de nuestra sociedad de mendigos y vividores de la renta petrolera?, dime por favor que van ha hacer para mostrar resultados y costos de sus gestiones, repondeme a estos dos puntos unicamente.
De donde sale la plata que paga tanta campana? si sabemos que chavez estrategimcamente elimino el financiamiento publico de partidos politicos.
I will hold my judgment and wait to see what the oposicion stablishment does with this piece of news for a few days! then I will get back to this point.
Meanwhile in Washington, Goicochea is dotting the i's and crossing the t's (llamando a cada cosa por su nombre, pues)
Saludos,
Y disfrutemos el dulce de lechoza, y saquemosle proveho a esta coyuntura co..
Now that Interpol has made it's report the computer geeks can unlock the rest of the computer. Anyone know what OS was being used?
It is doubtful that most of the instructions and operational ideas came out of Venezuela. All that encrypted stuff......is this Fidel's last roundup?
[i] "Hot off the press from the Ven Embassy in Washington
Embassy of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela
to the United States of America
Statement
The Embassy of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela in Washington , DC , would like to warn the international community with regards to the serious manipulation that a number of political sectors and news outlets have spread due to the report issued by INTERPOL on Thursday, May 15, 2008.
It is of public knowledge that the only aspect the report issued by the International Criminal Police INTERPOL acknowledges is that the alleged computers found by the Colombian Armed Forces had apparently not been altered.
A different matter is the alleged content of these computers. This supposed content, and without previous authorization from INTERPOL, has been manipulated, widespread and turned into propaganda by the Colombian government, as well as officials from the United States and Colombia, who have spread the most reckless and irresponsible accusations against the government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.
It is with utter concern that we question the intentions of these sectors that, without any substance, have become accessories in this evident campaign against the government of Venezuela . Do these sectors hope to end any possibility of a humanitarian agreement in Colombia ? Are they hoping to internationalize the conflict in Colombia and spread it in order to destabilize Latin America ? Or do they intend to use these alleged arguments in order to fulfill the old intention of including Venezuela on the list of countries that sponsor terrorism? Even more worrisome is how evident this campaign articulation is and which closely resembles the steps usually taken by the Bush administration in order to generate - even without any proofs - instability and wars in other countries.
Washington, DC, May 15, 2008
Democratic Deficit | 05.15.08 - 7:04 pm | #
--------------------------------------------------
------------------------------
OW
please check your email. First full draft ready
Democratic Deficit | 05.15.08 - 7:27 pm | # "[/i]
[b]Does this mean that DD works for the Venezuelan Embassy since he has access to a draft copy?[/b]
Anon,
DD is Calvin Tucker, an Englishman who works for the Venezuela Information Centre in London. He's also associated with outgoing mayor of London Ken Livingstone, as we all know a close ally of Chávez.
Thanks, GP.
Has he admitted to it?
he does not have to admit to it ... the comment is proof enough. Venezuelan propaganda machine needs a few good men and volunteers are always welcome. This is where blokes like Calvin Tucker come in who get to stroke their egos by participating in the disinformation war by penning, revising or proofing official communiques.
Some do it for the thrills and others do it for the access it provides as they seek to feed of la teta de PDVSA.
good aggregator blog featuring some of the best on the Web in english and spanish
http://notilat.com/ve/blogs/
As communiques go, that one is really poor. Poor spelling, poor logic, poor writing. I'm embarassed this is the best our petro-dollars can buy.
Anon,
Tucker claims he isn't paid by the Venezuelan government and that the Venezuela Information Centre receives no funds from the Venezuelan government.
That could be true but nevertheless he promotes the Venezuelan government vociferously (if, might I say, in a pretty mediocre manner) in the UK. He occasionally writes at the Comment is Free section of The Guardian and the theme is almost always the wonders of the "revolution" & so forth.
Here's an indicative recent comment of his (from a pro Chávez blog) that shows the type of political tourism (I would actually call it "mercenary") and opportunism that Phil Winfield describes so well above:
"Just popped by to say well done for putting together an interesting blog. The CANTV chicas are cute, but they do a very silly job. Mind you, the silliness goes way beyond Caracas - you can hardly move in Cuidad Bolivar because of armies of 16 year old “promotoras” trying to entice inside the shops ( I was surrounded, but I did not surrender! )
Best wishes
Calvin Tucker"
Tucker has also written about his admiration for Fidel Castro, so, you can imagine the rest. The guy's a gem.
John Hussey to answer your question it seems like they used Windows XP Pro on 2 Toshiba Satellite M55-5331's and Windows XP Home on a Toshiba Satellite U205-S5057.
Jeez... you people are really barking mad. the "draft" i was referring to was not a draft press release for the Venezuelan embassy in Washington!
If this is an example of your investigative skills, I don't think that anyone need worry too much about the contents magic laptop.
"If this is an example of your investigative skills, I don't think that anyone need worry too much about the contents magic laptop."
Democratic Deficit | 05.15.08 - 10:29 pm
Thing is, none one here is making any claims to represent a movement or government. No one has claimed to be an investigator. However, as a member of the Venezuelan Information Centre in London, it's your job to investigate and promote.
GP
How kind of you to say that it "could be true" that I am not paid by the Venezuelan Government. I don't mean to rain on the paranoia that infects this blog, but in the normal world you would first present the evidence that I am. Still, who knows what might come outta that laptop, eh?
Again, it's not my job to provide evidence of any kind. I don't work on behalf of any government at home or abroad.
Paranoia? Chávez is a fascinating study in what that affliction can do to a mind.
What might come out of the Laptop?
We have no clue... But apparently Chavez and Correao do.. as evidenced by the 3 cadenas in 3 days and all their anti-Interpol remarks.
GodDAMN, it is so much fun watching Chávez, Ecuador and Piedad Córdoba grasp at any straw they can possibly think of:
Chávez:
'Ronald K. Noble, more like 'Ignoble', amirite guys?'
http://www.noticias24.com/actual...alidad/?
p=14234
Ecuador:
'We don't care, it's all FAAAAAAAKKKKKE'
http://www.elcomercio.com/notici...43&
id_seccion=4
But really I like Piedad Córdoba's reaction best: according to her, we are all a bunch of pendejos.
http://www.eltiempo.com/politica...OR-
4166873.html
I don't get it why journalists did not ask her whether she thinks the information NASA recovered from the shuttle that exploded was also tampered with.
As for the attack on the FARC camp:
3 people survived the attack. The bombs killed almost everyone, but Reyes apparently died when he stepped on a land mine of his. A person can be killed more easily than a hard disk can be destroyed.
kepler. interesting detail about the land mine that isn't mentioned much. so if reyes survived the bombing long enough to run, why is it so hard to believe that his computer equipment survived? Chavez and his sad collection of Andean buffoons coming unraveled in such spectacular, obvious, and public fashion. i love how interpol makes a statement and chavez lashes out at colombia. the man has some seriously disconnected synapses misfiring.
That is what I read (forgot where), but even if he had not: the photos showed it was not a total destruction. If you saw how the space shuttle burnt when it exploded and how still a part of the hard-disk could be recovered, you would see it is not such a wonder that the laptops were recovered.
or black boxes on planes, etc etc
"INTERPOL acknowledges...that the alleged computers found by the Colombian Armed Forces had apparently not been altered"
"This supposed content, and without previous authorization from INTERPOL, has been manipulated"
Huh?!??!? Content was manipulated, witthout the computers being altered? DemDef, if you want us to take this seriously, you might start by explaining this in a way that at least makes sense. I know they aren't your words, but you seem to be presenting them as evidence, and to me they're evidence of nothing but confusion on the part of the writers.
yes sir
Usually, if you and I drop a laptop or an external hard drive, it’s broken because the machinery that composes the whole of the disk drive is out of synch. But the data recorded on the hard drive’s platters is still there. Unless the drive with data had fallen near a refrigerator magnet, the information is still in place. Only the total annihilation of these platters would have prevented specialists from reading the data, like melting them into an amorphous mass.Remember the Space shuttle hard drive that fell over 100,000 feet in 2003.The hard drive had no heat proof coating and was cracked/burned etc but still 90 % of the data was retrieved.
from globovision. really, could this guy be more deranged. pathetic. http://www.globovision.com/news....s.php?
nid=87617
Caramba despues que la llama Nazi...
Calvin Tucker, you are a Sexual Revolutionary Tourist first and foremost. That is why you used to go to Cuba before you discovered Venezuela.
or is it Revolutionary Sex Tourism? Bring it on Calvin ... I look forward to your legal threats for slander and defamation. You may sue me in a Venezuelan court of law ... do you know what an oxymoron is you moron?
You are a predator of the very worst kind.
Calvin works as a headhunter / recruiter - fits your profile perfectly.
I gather too that much of the information would be found inside the external USB drives found there. From the look of them, they seem La Cie Rugged 2.5in Hard Drives,
http://www.amazon.com/LaCie-Rugg...0/dp/
B000J4J6X4
These are expensive, shock and weather resistant mobile hard drives. Regarded as really tough. Surely much more than any standard hard drive inside a laptop
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