Almost the entire nation of Venezuela is too broke to eat

[Yukari Yakumo]

Source: quartz

Venezuelans are starving, and they are tired of waiting in line.

In a revolt against president Nicolás Maduro’s flailing government, they are increasingly turning to rioting and looting to feed themselves. In the city of Cumaná they raided more than 100 supermarkets other food stores last week. Hundreds were arrested; one died.

The situation is desperate. Price controls combined with the scarcity of goods have resulted in skyrocketing inflation. At current prices, it would take more than 20 times the minimum wage to buy basic foodstuffs for a family of five, according to the research arm of a teacher’s union.

Nearly 90% of the population can’t afford to buy enough food, according to a living-standards assessment by Simón Bolivar University. Even those with money can’t find basic products amid empty supermarket shelves.

Read more: http://qz.com/712177/almost-the-entire-nation-of-venezuela-is-too-broke-to-eat/

[elleng]

1. Right.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/1017387431

[RobertEarl]

2. US sanctions are working!

For years the US official policy has been to financially squeeze Venezuela.

For some reason they are on our enemy list. Anyone know why?

[elleng]

3. Dunno.

Any info here?

Confessions of an Economic Hit Man: How the U.S. Uses Globalization to Cheat Poor Countries Out of Trillions
http://www.democracynow.org/2005/5/17/confessions_of_an_economic_hit_man

Meet the Academic 'Hitman' Who Infuriates Venezuela's President
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2014-09-12/meet-the-academic-hitman-who-infuriates-venezuelas-president-hzzw7hgg

[Gabi Hayes]

4. uhhhh, where you been all these years?

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2002/apr/21/usa.venezuela

The failed coup in Venezuela was closely tied to senior officials in the US government, The Observer has established. They have long histories in the 'dirty wars' of the 1980s, and links to death squads working in Central America at that time. Washington's involvement in the turbulent events that briefly removed left-wing leader Hugo Chavez from power last weekend resurrects fears about US ambitions in the hemisphere.

It also also deepens doubts about policy in the region being made by appointees to the Bush administration, all of whom owe their careers to serving in the dirty wars under President Reagan. One of them, Elliot Abrams, who gave a nod to the attempted Venezuelan coup, has a conviction for misleading Congress over the infamous Iran-Contra affair.

The Bush administration has tried to distance itself from the coup. It immediately endorsed the new government under businessman Pedro Carmona. But the coup was sent dramatically into reverse after 48 hours.


these scum on earth have finally gotten their way, ever since Chavez, say what you will about him, tried to allow his PEOPLE the right to enjoy the fruits of their own natural resources, instead of meekly bow/cooperate with the unspeakably brutal colonialism foisted upon South America for the last, oh, say, FIVE HUNDRED years!

how DARE they show such effrontery? how DARE they think they had the same rights as, oh, say, the likes of Jefferson, Washington, Adams....you know, those terrorists.

[elleng]

5. No, REALLY???

[scottie55]

6. Gabi My Wife Is From Venezuela

And you don't know a god damn thing.

Yes we help our corporations plunder the powerless.

Venezuela on the other hand is simply corrupt, and Maduro's friends are stealing everything in sight.

Just like Chavez did.

Thieves are not good at running a government.

[Hortensis]

9. Thanks. I wasn't going to bother answering.

That this could happen in a nation like Venezuela, industrialized and with its oil wealth, is shocking, though.

Because of BritEx, it's actually reminding me of the mess economic mismanagement has made of the EU economy, even though the incompetents in that disaster are conservative ideologues.

[DetlefK]

7. Do you have more to offer than guilt-by-association?

What is the actual connection between the US and Venezuela's current problems?

Is the US responsible for
... Venezuela's monopolistic reliance on selling oil?
... Venezuela not putting up monetary reserves?
... Venezuela keeping financial policies in place that no longer make sense?

[FLPanhandle]

12. Confessions of an Economic Hit Man?

That book has been so thoroughly debunked and trashed. Anyone with an IQ laughed their way through it.

You lose all credibility by siting that one.

[forjusticethunders]

13. By who and where?

I'd love to know.

[FLPanhandle]

14. Here is a quick start

Columnist Sebastian Mallaby of The Washington Post reacted sharply to Perkins' book:"This man is a frothing conspiracy theorist, a vainglorious peddler of nonsense, and yet his book, Confessions of an Economic Hit Man, is a runaway bestseller." Mallaby, who spent 13 years writing for the London Economist and wrote a critically well-received biography of World Bank chief James Wolfensohn, holds that Perkins' conception of international finance is "largely a dream" and that his "basic contentions are flat wrong". For instance he points out that Indonesia reduced its infant mortality and illiteracy rates by two-thirds after economists persuaded its leaders to borrow money in 1970. He also disputes Perkins' claim that 51 of the top 100 world economies belong to companies. A value-added comparison done by the UN, he says, shows the number to be 29.
Other sources, including articles in The New York Times and Boston Magazine as well as a press release issued by the United States Department of State, have referred to a lack of documentary or testimonial evidence to corroborate the claim that the NSA was involved in his hiring to Chas T. Main. In addition, the author of the State Department release states that the NSA "is a cryptological (codemaking and codebreaking) organization, not an economic organization" and that its missions do not involve "anything remotely resembling placing economists at private companies in order to increase the debt of foreign countries". Economic historian Niall Ferguson writes in his book The Ascent of Money that Perkins's contention that the leaders of Ecuador (President Jaime Roldós Aguilera) and Panama (General Omar Torrijos) were assassinated by US agents for opposing the interests of the owners of their countries' foreign debt "seems a little odd" in light of the fact that in the 1970s the amount of money that the US had lent to Ecuador and Panama accounted for less than 0.4% of the total US grants and loans, while in 1990 the exports from the US to those countries accounted for approximately 0.4% of the total US exports (approximately $8 billion). According to Ferguson, those "do not seem like figures worth killing for"

Wikipedia has a good summary too.

Even before all the debunking started, I had to laugh through sections of the book as anyone with an Economics background knew he was writing bullshit.

[elleng]

17. Second edition, NOT a debunk:

https://www.bkconnection.com/books/title/the-new-confessions-of-an-economic-hit-man

[elleng]

16. Right, that's why there's a second edition.

https://www.bkconnection.com/books/title/the-new-confessions-of-an-economic-hit-man

"Nothing to see here."

[FLPanhandle]

18. So he had to rewrite 40% of the outright lies

Last edited Wed Jun 22, 2016, 12:54 PM - Edit history (1)

I'll give the author credit though. He rewrites a discredited book and fools still buy it up and believe it. PT Barnum was right.

[hack89]

11. There are no sanctions against VZ

Just sanctions against a handful of individual government officials. The US is by far and away their largest trading partner.

[COLGATE4]

19. What "US sanctions" are you talking about?

The only sanctions in place are those which don't permit 5 members of the Maduro administration to get visas to the U.S. Hardly an economic death thrust.

[leeroysphitz]

8. That's what you get for not playing ball.

South America knows all too well what the word of Wall Street imperialists is worth.

[COLGATE4]

20. Yep. It's obviously all Wall Street's fault. But you have to remember

that they're just cover for the real power, the Illuminati. That group, ably aided by the CIA, NSC and DOD as well as the NWO and the Biderberg Group are the real players here. I know it's true. Alex Jones told me so.

[leeroysphitz]

23. I see, so the IMF's austerity plans had NOTHING to do with it. It's tinfoil hat. Got it.

I suppose the U.S. backed coup is an Alex Jones conspiracy theory as well...

[COLGATE4]

24. Christ, the 'coup' was in 2003. The Chavistas have had plenty

of time to fuck things up all by themselves, and they've done a perfect job of it. BTW, what IMF austerity plans was Venezuela subject to?

[FLPanhandle]

10. This is what happens when you put idiots in control of the economy

Anyone who took Economics 101 at University could see this coming years ago.

[SoLeftIAmRight]

15. lol

Economics 101

[COLGATE4]

21. Idiots and thieves. nt

[CrispyQ]

22. Is the US media reporting on this?

All I've heard is trumptrumptrumpclintontrumptrumptrumptrump.