Resistance in Colombia

Colombia has experienced what is essentially a civil war between 3 factions for many years now. These days the picture is this: on one side of the trifecta is the U.S. backed Uribe government, recipient of the largest amount of U.S. military aid in the world; a second prong is composed of the right-wing paramilitary group - ex-military outside of the control of the gov't and sowing terror throughout the countryside (they have been some of the biggest players in the drug trade). According to AP reports, they have reportedly begun to disarm; Finally, completing the group is the FARC, a supposed communist/socialist group of rebels that control parts of the country, and have recently stepped up their pressure on the government.
My story here connects to the previous posts about the swing to the left in much of Latin America. The above linked BBC article notes that the FARC wants to ensure that the Uribe administration meets defeat in the next election. They hope for a more sympathetic group to gain office, which would definitely be a left leaning party. This would fall in line with much of the rest of Latin America, a major blow to the U.S. especially if combined with a leftist victory in Mexico.
The other story here, of course under-reported, is the civil war. The above picture (from a site called ConflictPics) shows members of the military that have been hit by a FARC-planted bomb device. War is ugly. It affects real human beings. Sadly, this war has been made possible by the huge amount of military aid provided by the U.S. government. Things might be very different, although admittedly not necessarily better (but maybe), if the U.S. would step back and let the people of Colombia decide what is best for Colombia, as it is happening non-violently in much of the rest of Latin America.