The Venezuelan Circus Continues...
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This has nothing to do with my travels, but rather with my interest in international politics. Particularly in Venezuela: "8 Injured After Anti-Hugo Chavez March" Of course, the real story--to me--is not people being injured, but what they are protesting. According to the article: The violence broke out after anti-Chavez demonstrators—led by university students—marched peacefully to the Supreme Court to protest constitutional changes that Venezuelans will consider in a December referendum. The amendments would abolish presidential term limits, give the president control over the Central Bank and let him create new provinces governed by handpicked officials. I can't imagine any underhanded reason why a politician--particularly a president--would want control of all the money. Removal of the term limits? Yeah, that still means he has to get re-elected...and I'm sure creating "new provinces" governed by handpicked officials has nothing to do with that. I'd keep an eye on this one. Hugo is not a big fan of the 'States. Ironically, the U.S. is currently the biggest customer for their oil--a tool Chavez has long threatened to use against us. Of course, while we purchase 65% of their oil, they only provide approximately 12% of our annual consumption. With 30% of their GDP being oil, and the United States being 65% of that, one could say that the U.S.-- without batting an eye--successfully contributes approximately $28.6 billion to the Venezuelan economy. Desperate to turn the tides on this, Chavez is shopping for new customers...customers who may be construed as being ideologically opposed to the U.S. Nice. Ricardo_emp/REQ...any thoughts? |
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De hecho, the cover story of the New York Times Sunday Magazine this past Sunday (11/4) was a lengthy article about Venezuela and the effects of nationalization of the oil industry. Whatever your political leanings, it was a pretty interesting article... a kind of superficial crash course (fairly, but barely, neutral) about Venezuela/oil/contemporary politics.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/04/magazine/04oil-t.html?ref=magazine&pagewanted=all
With Chavez's interference in the Colombian situation, all eyes here are on Venezuela. If, somehow the Venezuelan President can pull off a humanitarian exchange of hostages for FARC prisoners then he will have performed the unimaginable - reuniting people with their families after countless years. And for this I will applaud him. The only problem, and a contact of mine allied to the guerrilla has said, is that the FARC love Chavez and he loves them right back. So, in truth how does this affect the negotiations? I don't know. But for certain the recent meeting between the FARC high command and Chavez in Venezuela was likely a big love in. I watch events in Venezuela with more than a passing interest, I just cannot predict which way things are going to go. As for Chavez abolishing presidential term limits and taking complete control of the central bank - that's just dangerous. Despite whatever rhetoric he spouts about the Bolivarian revolution his actions are nothing less than dictatorial. Cutting several zeros from a currency that is reaching record levels of inflation solves nothing and is childlike in economic theory - we have seen it all over the world - the economy stretches and fill this gap once again and the problem does not go away. Chavez has a supreme wealth in his coffers in the form of oil and he knows it, so for the timebeing and the forseeable future he will spend as he sees fit.
Wasn't it Mugabe who had the ultimate dictatorial answer to inflation? Make it illegal. :)
That's certainly the weird thing about him: his goals seem to be well meaning. You had the whole heating fuel crisis in the Northwest U.S. that he (by way of Citgo) stepped up to the plate on. He wants people to pay decent prices for food and he doesn't want criminal investments--you know, all that stuff that every political campaign is built upon.
Unfortunately (or perhaps fortunately), it seems like when he goes to live up to those claims, he comes across as an illiterate thug.