Bernard Aronson Quotes
The most damning indictment of the United States in Central America is that we have allowed the sterile voices of Marxism-Leninism to claim falsely the mantle of economic justice and hope for ordinary people when it should be carried by the heirs of Thomas Jefferson.
Bernard Aronson, Assistant Secretary of State (Democrat), Quoted in The Washington Post, February 26, 1989
Sourced by: Eigen's Political and Historical Quotations
The 40 Committee was a secret committee of officials to deal with major national security covert operations possibilities. Chile had democratically elected Salvador Allende, a strong socialist, as President. He then, as he had promised in his campaign, begun to nationalize mining and other heavy industry and nationalized the very large farms. Kissinger and some others thought that Allende might probably transform Chile to communist state. The committee was discussing whether or not the United States should, via covert operations, try and destabilize or overthrow the Allende government. There was a strong minority aristocracy of the wealthy who would definitely support such an activity. Kissinger argued for intervention and some others observed that Allende had been fairly elected as a leftist by the people. Kissinger made this famous statement, and America covertly though the CIA worked with the Chilean right wing and fascists to overthrow Allende. The military, having been given the “green light” started attacking the Presidential Palace. Allende made a radio speech to the nation. A few hours later, the military seized the palace and reported that Allende had committed suicide.
Kissinger stating that the US should “correct” the election “mistakes” of other countries was of course Top Secret and the official US position was to support the right of any people to elect their preferred leaders. Normally, the public would never have seen the transcript of the meeting until many decades had passed but part of the transcript found their way to a manuscript of a book about the CIA. That agency went to the courts to block the publication and Kissinger’s statement. However, although the quote was removed from the book, enough people had now seen it, and the quote was leaked.
The quote is historically important for the real story of what really happened in Chile as General Pinochet who seized power turned out to be guilty of Crimes Against Humanity and Allende is today a national hero and martyr. In addition, it is a wonderful example of “overclassification”. After the action was completed, why should the American Public not know that its Secretary of State did not believe in democratic elections if the people would elect communists? --especially when the official stated policy he was presenting was just the opposite. The argument faded when the Watergate Scandal broke and consumed America’s attention.
Vladimir Lenin
Many of the far left grew disillusioned with the British Labor Movement and how it was relating to the capitalist companies, the government, and the workers. The Unions had become very undemocratic and controlling with the government pressuring both labor and companies to the degree that many felt that the institutions themselves were no longer free institutions. Ironically, they preferred the open competition of the American system at the time where unions and companies were free to fight out their differences.
Some on the extreme left of the Labor Party at the time were extolling Soviet Russia while denigrating the United States. Crossman, an avid socialist thought that was absurd and said so at every opportunity. The pro Soviet wing of the Labour party got smaller and smaller. He and many others thought that Russian Communism was a very poor implementation of socialist ideas.
Bernard William Aronson was United States Assistant Secretary of State for Inter-American Affairs from 1989 to 1993.
