Real Time Socialist Train Wreck (again) Happening Now in Venezuela

[Wilikon]

Thousands Of Venezuelans Flood The Streets For Third Time In Week, Calling For Recall Of Maduro

For the third time in a week, Venezuelan police clashed on Wednesday with thousands of protesters who took to the streets of Caracas demanding a referendum to recall President Nicolas Maduro.

The massive rally came days after the socialist president declared a state of emergency in the economically struggling country. He gave himself decree powers for 60 days.

Thousands of people tried to make their way through to the country’s electoral body, but police in riot gear blocked the route. A small group tried to break through and was turned back by tear gas.

On Tuesday, opposition leader Henrique Capriles called on the country to reject the extra powers granted to Maduro.

“If Maduro wants to apply this decree, he needs to start preparing tanks and war planes, because he’ll have to apply it by force,” Capriles said.



http://latino.foxnews.com/latino/news/2016/05/18/venezuelans-demanding-president-recall-take-to-streets-in-massive-caracas-rally/?intcmp=hplnws


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Next stop on the train wreck: Death & Destruction Station.

[Wilikon]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qbfzooUB8zo

[Wilikon]

The Taste Of Socialism: People In Venezuela Scrounging Garbage For Food, But No Shortage On Oppression…

http://www.weaselzippers.us/272699-people-in-venezuela-scrounging-garbage-for-food-but-no-shortage-on-oppression/

[Daniel91]

It's really sad what is happening in Venezuela now.
They are so rich with natural resources, specially oil, but because of their socialist government, they lost possibility for good life.
It's common knowledge that only thing which socialists know is to spend other people's money.
When all money is spend and there is nothing new to sell or spend, country collapse and we see it in Venezuela now.

[Wilikon]

It's really sad what is happening in Venezuela now.
They are so rich with natural resources, specially oil, but because of their socialist government, they lost possibility for good life.
It's common knowledge that only thing which socialists know is to spend other people's money.
When all money is spend and there is nothing new to sell or spend, country collapse and we see it in Venezuela now.

Venezuela produces two things: crude oil and Miss Universe winners. This is not an economical system that's viable in the long run...

[Wilikon]

Venezuela, where a hamburger is officially $170



Caracas (AFP) – If a visitor to Venezuela is unfortunate enough to pay for anything with a foreign credit card, the eye-watering cost might suggest they were in a city pricier than Tokyo or Zurich.

A hamburger sold for 1,700 Venezuelan bolivares is $170, or a 69,000-bolivar hotel room is $6,900 a night, based on the official rate of 10 bolivares for $1.

But of course no merchant is pricing at the official rate imposed under currency controls. It’s the black market rate of 1,000 bolivares per dollar that’s applied.

But for Venezuelans paid in hyperinflation-hit bolivares, and living in an economy relying on mostly imported goods or raw materials, conditions are unthinkably expensive.

Even for the middle class, most of it sliding into poverty, hamburgers and hotels are out-of-reach excesses.

“Everybody is knocked low,” Michael Leal, a 34-year-old manager of an eyewear store in Caracas, told AFP. “We can’t breathe.”



https://www.yahoo.com/news/venezuela-where-hamburger-officially-170-184605711.html?ref=gs

[Wilikon]

Magazine in 2013: Socialist Venezuela an 'Economic Miracle'
Today, the socialist state cannot feed itself.

A humanitarian crisis is unfolding in Venezuela. Inflation is rampant (700 percent, as of Tuesday) and there is not enough food to feed the nation's 31 million mouths. U.S. companies are pulling out.

One of the reasons the crisis in Venezuela is so tragic is that it was so predictable. Mary Anastasia O'Grady, writing in the Wall Street Journal, recently noted  the one obvious flaw in the late Hugo Chavez's economic policy:   

    In his craving for power, [Chávez] pledged to redistribute Venezuela’s wealth to the poor masses. The god-father of '21st-century socialism' seems to have been unaware that the resources he promised to shower on his people had to first be produced.

The irony is that just a few short years ago, many were citing Venezuela as one of the great triumphs of socialism. In a 2012 New York Times op-ed, Mark Weisbrot of the Center for Economic and Policy Research gushed about the gains Venezuela had experienced under Chavez after the strongman seized the assets of oil contractors in 2009:   

    Since the Chávez government got control over the national oil industry, poverty has been cut by half, and extreme poverty by 70 percent. College enrollment has more than doubled, millions of people have access to health care for the first time and the number of people eligible for public pensions has quadrupled.

In 2013, left-leaning Salon (citing Weisbrot in the New York Times) claimed that Chávez had performed an "economic miracle." Writer David Sirota even chided those who refused to acknowledge Venezuela's economic "success":

    Chavez became the bugaboo of American politics because his full-throated advocacy of socialism and redistributionism at once represented a fundamental critique of neoliberal economics, and also delivered some indisputably positive results. Indeed, as shown by some of the most significant indicators, Chavez racked up an economic record that a legacy-obsessed American president could only dream of achieving....

    When a country goes socialist and it craters, it is laughed off as a harmless and forgettable cautionary tale about the perils of command economics. When, by contrast, a country goes socialist and its economy does what Venezuela’s did, it is not perceived to be a laughing matter – and it is not so easy to write off or to ignore. It suddenly looks like a threat to the corporate capitalism, especially when said country has valuable oil resources that global powerhouses like the United States rely on.

Sirota is correct that nobody should “laugh off” the cratering of Venezuela’s government. No pleasure or amusement can be found in the pain of the people of Venezuela.

That said, is it too much to ask that the failures of socialism are recognized as such? Is it wrong to point out that confiscating private property and entire industries for "redistributive" purposes is not just morally dubious, but destructive?   


http://www.intellectualtakeout.org/blog/magazine-2013-socialist-venezuela-economic-miracle


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The definition of madness: expecting a different outcome over, and over, and over...

[bryant.coleman]

I don't know why the governments in all these oil producing nations are so stupid. It is the same case everywhere - Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Venezuela, Brazil, Angola, Nigeria, Norway.... They were thinking that the $100 per barrel crude oil price was going to stay for ever? Even Qatar (regarded as the richest country in the world) is issuing treasury bonds....

[Daniel91]

No electricity, no antibiotics, no beds, no soap: A devastating look inside Venezuela's crisis-hit hospitals where 7 babies die a day, bleeding patients lie strewn on the floor, and doctors try to operate without tools



    President Nicolas Maduro claims Venezuela has the best healthcare in the world after Cuba
    But death rates are soaring and hospitals are filthy as supplies run low and electricity is shut off
    The nation is in economic crisis after price of oil - their main monetary reserve - plummeted
    Images taken by the New York Times show patients lying on the floor covered in blood and babies dying

The impact of Venezuela's economic collapse on its people is almost impossible to put into words.

But these images inside calamity-hit hospitals go some way to communicating the devastation.

Since oil prices plummeted, all aspects of everyday life - electricity, food, paper - have been rationed.

Critically, medical centers are in crisis.

Without soap, antibiotics, power, gloves and x-rays, surgeons are struggling to keep patients alive.

Pictures taken by New York Times photographer Meridith Kohut offer a glimpse inside some of the most notorious centers - while President Nicolas Maduro claims the socialist nation has the best healthcare in the world.




http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3595946/No-electricity-no-antibiotics-no-beds-no-soap-devastating-look-inside-Venezuela-s-crisis-struck-hospitals-7-babies-die-day-bleeding-patients-lie-strewn-floor-doctors-try-operate-without-tools.html

It's really shocking to see something like this in the modern age, in country so blessed and rich with their natural resources, specially oil.
It's really sad to see what happened to this country and its people because of their government and social utopia they proclaimed.
It seems such crazy ideas can live until all money run away.
After that everything collapse.
Venezuela don't have future if they don't get rid from current dictator Maduro.

[bryant.coleman]

It's really shocking to see something like this in the modern age, in country so blessed and rich with their natural resources, specially oil.
It's really sad to see what happened to this country and its people because of their government and social utopia they proclaimed.
It seems such crazy ideas can live until all money run away.
After that everything collapse.
Venezuela don't have future if they don't get rid from current dictator Maduro.

Th problem is that Maduro was not as good as Chavez. The latter almost eradicated poverty in Venezuela, and revolutionized the healthcare system. Unfortunately, Maduro could not build on the good work done by Chavez. And I am not sure whether getting rid of Maduro will do the job, as the alternatives are even worse.

[Wilikon]

What is a mono economy?


a mono-economy is a economy relying on one major export or natural resource to bring most of the currency into the country.



A.K.A. a really, really, really bad idea.

[bryant.coleman]

What is a mono economy?


a mono-economy is a economy relying on one major export or natural resource to bring most of the currency into the country.



A.K.A. a really, really, really bad idea.

Dozens of nations around the world are actually mono economies. Look at the GCC nations (Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait.etc). All of them are dependant on the exports of petroleum products. The same with Venezuela, Angola, Nigeria, and Azerbaijan as well. Now look at Central Asia. There are countries such as Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, which are entirely dependant upon the export of blue-collar workers. There is Uzbekistan, which is heavily dependant on the export of cotton. It is not possible to change the system overnight.

[Wilikon]

What is a mono economy?


a mono-economy is a economy relying on one major export or natural resource to bring most of the currency into the country.



A.K.A. a really, really, really bad idea.

Dozens of nations around the world are actually mono economies. Look at the GCC nations (Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait.etc). All of them are dependant on the exports of petroleum products. The same with Venezuela, Angola, Nigeria, and Azerbaijan as well. Now look at Central Asia. There are countries such as Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, which are entirely dependant upon the export of blue-collar workers. There is Uzbekistan, which is heavily dependant on the export of cotton. It is not possible to change the system overnight.

A mono economy is fine when you are controlling the demand and market price, when you are the master.

[practicaldreamer]

What is a mono economy?


a mono-economy is a economy relying on one major export or natural resource to bring most of the currency into the country.



A.K.A. a really, really, really bad idea.

Dozens of nations around the world are actually mono economies. Look at the GCC nations (Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait.etc). All of them are dependant on the exports of petroleum products. The same with Venezuela, Angola, Nigeria, and Azerbaijan as well. Now look at Central Asia. There are countries such as Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, which are entirely dependant upon the export of blue-collar workers. There is Uzbekistan, which is heavily dependant on the export of cotton. It is not possible to change the system overnight.

A mono economy is fine when you are controlling the demand and market price, when you are the master.

Strictly speaking no - its not fine just because you are bigger. Just means you are a) even more dependant  and  b) temporarily riding the crest of the wave.

[bryant.coleman]

A mono economy is fine when you are controlling the demand and market price, when you are the master.

Controlling the demand is out of question. The market price can be manipulated, if you are the sole producer. Look at the rare earth elements (REE). The Chinese supply more than 97% of them, and they usually indulge in manipulating the market prices. It is not possible with crude oil, as there is fierce competition between various producers.

[Wilikon]

Police Fire Tear Gas As Hundreds Of Venezuelans Chant Outside Presidential Palace, “We Want Food!”

CARACAS Venezuelan security forces fired teargas at protesters chanting "We want food!" near Caracas' presidential palace on Thursday, the latest street violence in the crisis-hit OPEC nation.

Hundreds of angry Venezuelans heading toward Miraflores palace in downtown Caracas were met by National Guard troops and police who blocked a major road.

President Nicolas Maduro, under intense pressure over a worsening economic crisis in the South American nation of 30 million, had been scheduled to address a rally of indigenous groups nearby around the same time.

The protest spilled out of long lines at shops in the area, witnesses said, after some people tried to hijack a food truck.

"I've been here since eight in the morning. There's no more food in the shops and supermarkets," one woman told pro-opposition broadcaster Vivoplay.

"We're hungry and tired."

The government accused opposition politicians of inciting the chaos but said security forces had the situation under control.

Despite their country having the world's biggest oil reserves, Venezuelans are suffering severe shortages of consumer goods ranging from milk to flour, soaring prices and a shrinking economy.

Maduro blames the fall in global oil prices and an "economic war" by his foes, whom he also accuses of seeking a coup.

"Every day, they bring out violent groups seeking violence in the streets," he said in a speech at the indigenous rally, which went ahead near Miraflores later in the day. "And every day, the people reject them and expel them."

Critics say Venezuela's economic chaos is the consequence of failed socialist policies for the last 17 years, especially price and currency controls.

The opposition wants a referendum this year to recall Maduro. Protests over shortages, power cuts and crime occur daily, and looting and lynchings are on the rise.

Several local journalists said they were robbed during Thursday's chaos in downtown Caracas.

The government's top economic official, Miguel Perez, acknowledged the hardships Venezuelans were undergoing but promised the situation would improve.

"We know this month has been really critical. It's been the month with the lowest supply of products. That's why families are anxious," he told local radio.

"We guarantee things will improve in the next few weeks."


http://www.reuters.com/article/us-venezuela-politics-protest-idUSKCN0YO2M9


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A surprising and unexpected development from this socialist paradise...

[Wilikon]

Venezuelan Woman Shot In The Face After 500 Looters Storm Food Warehouse



Several weeks ago, when we showed dramatic scenes from a Venezuela looting in which countless people were wounded after 5,000 looters stormed a supermarket, looking for food...


... we said that at this rate it is only a matter of time before we get the first casualty of Venezuela's "social apocalypse."

Unfortunately this prediction came true today when Reuters reported that a Venezuelan woman died on Monday after being shot in the face when looters raided state food warehouses in the latest unrest in the crisis-hit OPEC nation. Relatives of hotel worker Jenny Ortiz, 42, said she died in hospital after being shot during the melee late on Sunday in San Cristobal, a town near the border of Colombia, where looting and anti-government protests have been occurring in recent months.

What makes this tragedy worse is that according to the victim's family, including her mother-in-law Carmen Rosa, 58, who said she saw the incident, that a policeman shot Ortiz.Authorities did not comment on that accusation, though local police said armed criminals had fired on police and an investigation was underway.

"The warehouses were supposedly full of food and the people need food," Rosa told Reuters at the morgue where her daughter-in-law's corpse was taken, saying about 500 local residents had descended on the premises. When security forces chased some of the crowd after they broke in, "they jumped down a bank to protect themselves, and a policeman who was pursuing them shot her. They shot her in the face," she added.

As we have reported over the past month, Venezuela has seen a rise in looting, lynchings and violent protests this year during a deepening economic crisis. There are shortages of food and other basics across the nation of 30 million people, and inflation is the highest in the world. While the opposition coalition blames socialist President Nicolas Maduro and is seeking a referendum to recall him, the government says political foes are fanning the crisis with an "economic war" and seeking a coup against him.

Vielma Mora, a ruling Socialist Party member who governs the state including San Cristobal, confirmed the woman's death and said it happened after several days of looting. "These are plans orchestrated by the right wing," he said. "We hope to capture the person responsible." Of course, if the person responsible is a police officer, the government will simply blame an innocent, starving scapegoat among the looters and that will be the end of it.

As Reuters adds, Venezuelans' patience is wearing thin as they skip meals, survive off yucca or mangoes, and grapple with supermarkets unable to provide food for lines that can stretch into the thousands.

There is no official data, but non-governmental group Venezuelan Observatory for Social Conflict reported 107 episodes of looting or attempted looting in the first quarter.


As long as Maduro's government remains in power, this tragic trend is unlikely to change, although in reality even with a government replacement, one fails to see just how the economic situation will rebound even over the medium term as a result of not just chronic corruption and crime at the highest levels of political power, but because the nation's coffers have effectively run dry which is paradoxical for the country which supposedly has the world's largest oil deposits.


http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2016-06-06/venezuelan-woman-shot-face-after-500-looters-storm-food-warehouse

[bryant.coleman]

I thought by now the situation would have improved. The Brent crude prices are hovering around $50 per barrel for the past few weeks, and the Venezuelan government must be getting quite good amounts of Forex now. Seems like the governing elite is diverting the money to tax havens, and planning to escape from the country.

[Wilikon]

I thought by now the situation would have improved. The Brent crude prices are hovering around $50 per barrel for the past few weeks, and the Venezuelan government must be getting quite good amounts of Forex now. Seems like the governing elite is diverting the money to tax havens, and planning to escape from the country.

Empty pockets. Will take quite a while for the refill, unfortunately people are starving now.

[Wilikon]

States Of Undress - Venezuela

https://youtu.be/rIcjVOCyepk