Venezuela's economic collapse has led to mass hunger in the country.
In a bombshell New York Times report, Nicholas Casey notes that, according to the most recent assessment of living standards by Simón Bolívar University, a whopping 87% of Venezuelans now say that they don't have money to buy enough food.
Moreover, he reports that 72% of monthly wages are being allocated just to food, according to the Center for Documentation and Social Analysis.
And these numbers are translating into action. Casey reports that, over the last two weeks, there have been over 50 food riots, protests, and mass lootings in the country.
"During Carnival, we used to throw eggs at each other just to have some fun," 24-year-old Gabriel Márquez told The Times. "Now an egg is like gold."
The Times report comes at a time when Venezuela continues to struggle with an economic crisis resulting from a deadly cocktail of a mismanaged economy and lower oil prices.
Venezuela, an OPEC member and keeper of the largest oil reserves in the world, heavily relies on the commodity for its export revenues. Things went south after oil prices collapsed in 2014, especially because higher prices previously funded many of the government's social programs.
Over the last few months, President Nicolás Maduro has tried out some unorthodox things in response to the economic catastrophe, including changing the time zone to make more favorable daylight hours, urging women to cut use of hair dryers to save electricity, and forcing holidays for state employees.
He also declared a 60-day state of emergency in mid-May because of "what he called plots from Venezuela and the United States to subvert him," according to Reuters.
Notably, Venezuela's economic future is not looking very bright. Central-bank data suggests that Venezuela's gross domestic product contracted by 5.7% in 2015, and International Monetary Fund figures forecast that it will shrink by 8% in 2016.
Inflation is around 180.9% the second highest in the world and is expected to rise to a mind-blowing 720% in 2016, according to a January estimate from the IMF.
Plus, RBC Capital Markets' Helima Croft previously noted that the country is also flirting with a potential debt crisis.
"Perhaps no country in OPEC has suffered such a severe economic shock amid the collapse in oil prices as Venezuela," she wrote in February.
"Political challenges and mounting debt continue to stress an already challenging situation and there appears to be no end in sight," she added later in May.
#1: Justified To: All (#0)
Socialism is just a game played on simple minded people. When government has no money to steal they blame others for their problems. When reality sets in socialism always collapses into dictatorship or communism. Not that there is a real difference!
You can not fix what could never work!
If people can keep most of what they earn and save for the future with real property rights people work hard and help others. Capitalism works every time its tried!
Justified posted on 2016-06-20 21:50:05 Reply Private Reply
#2: paraclete To: Justified (#0)
I also think it is time for the failed idea of capitalism to get a major overhaul becuase it is capitalism that caused the problem in Venezeula
paraclete posted on 2016-06-20 22:07:22 Reply Private Reply
#3: Dead Culture Watch To: paraclete (#2)
Snicker.....
Dead Culture Watch posted on 2016-06-21 09:32:31 Reply Private Reply
#4: Justified To: paraclete (#2)
Yes socialism on roids fails faster than socialism not on roids.
I also think it is time for the failed idea of capitalism to get a major overhaul becuase it is capitalism that caused the problem in Venezeula
What happen was someone promised them socialism and they did not understand socialism. Now they are paying a heavy price. If you steal all the money from the productive they leave and now you have nothing but wanting hands full of needs with no ability to fill them.
Yes capitalism needs tweaking but on its own it works and with a little tweaking it still works unlike socialism/fascism which requires money to be stolen from the productive and filtered through the corrupt and spoon fed to those that suck up to the corrupt.
Will not be long before socialism causes the American golden goose to collapse due to its irrational desires. Socialism destroys all in its way. The devil could never be so happy as to see socialism being pushed my the naive!
Justified posted on 2016-06-21 20:02:03 Reply Private Reply
#5: no gnu taxes To: Justified (#4)
That's what these leftards just don't get.
True, nobody wants monopolies or huge collusions among companies, but capitalism does work.
You can go to the market and buy bread and meat and milk because people make money providing it for you. You say thank you to the provider because you are happy to purchase it, and it is very easy to purchase.
The leftards think magic gremlins make these items magically show up on the shelves.
no gnu taxes posted on 2016-06-21 20:33:58 Reply Private Reply
#6: Justified To: no gnu taxes (#5)
Whereas socialism nobody is happy but the corrupt.
Justified posted on 2016-06-21 20:44:34 Reply Private Reply
#7: paraclete To: Justified (#6)
But the very poor overwelm the available resources of the church and charities becuase capital has migrated to lower cost countries, so government has to step in and be accused of socialism in order to avoid disorder, when the problem is that capitalist rorted the system and took all the resources for themselves. This si what happened in Venezeula, and so, the leftist gained power and removed private capital from the system, destroying the inferstructure of the stste in the process
paraclete posted on 2016-06-21 22:51:16 Reply Private Reply
#8: BorisY To: paraclete (#7)
is
English
your
third
language
were
you
a
battered
fried
baby
in
a
car
wreck
stroke
victim
prison
shoe
shine
boy
I
don't
have
pity
for
a
wise
guy
like
you
get
lost
boris
BorisY posted on 2016-06-21 23:08:44 Reply Private Reply
#9: BorisY To: paraclete (#2)
on
this
one
thanks
for
the
eloquence
you
got
everything
else
ass
back
ward
shit
head
wipe
your
face
head
no
thanks
boris
ps
you
should
go
back
to
kiting
notes
under
prison
doors
pss
you
are
a
neocom
fag
glory
hole
psss
put
your
3rd
way
way
up
your
you
know
where
where
we
don't
see
what
stupid
filthy
ass
hole
you
are
bitch
comprende
BorisY posted on 2016-06-21 23:22:44 Reply Private Reply
#10: GrandIsland To: Justified (#0)
Sucks to be a Venezuelan... maybe some of LF's bleeding heart posters can start a tree hugging fund raiser... because they can't cope that someone, somewhere, has less then them.
GrandIsland posted on 2016-06-22 06:43:40 Reply Private Reply
#11: Justified To: paraclete (#7)
Now for Venezuela its screwed and now it must pay for its sins so to speak. It can allow a strong man[dictator] to come in and reset things or government be reset to back to small government to take care of the major stuff as a normal government and let the people fin for themselves.
Justified posted on 2016-06-22 07:39:25 Reply Private Reply
#12: A K A Stone To: paraclete (#7)
A K A Stone posted on 2016-06-22 07:51:05 Reply Private Reply
#13: paraclete To: BorisY (#8)
paraclete posted on 2016-06-22 10:28:02 Reply Private Reply
#14: BorisY To: paraclete (#13)
bet
your
head
is
up
Bernie
Anderson's
ass
hole
when
it
isn't
up
hillaries
mental
botulism
tape
worm
flatulence
infatuation
Make
America
fragrant
great
again
bad
breath
no
thanks
boris
BorisY posted on 2016-06-22 12:07:16 Reply Private Reply