Posted on 03/08/2015 2:24:16 PM PDT by 9thLife
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuela will begin installing some 20,000 fingerprint scanners at supermarkets nationwide in a bid to stamp out hoarding and panic buying, which the government blames for long lines and widespread shortages of basic goods.
...
On Saturday, President Nicolas Maduro said that seven large private retail chains had voluntarily agreed to install the scanners.
"I ask for the the comprehension of all of Venezuela, to understand this problem, because there is a lot of manipulation taking place," Maduro said at the inauguration of a state-run supermarket.
Economists say the effort is bound to fail. They blame decade-old price controls for destroying local manufacturing and attracting smugglers who can resell the goods on the black market and in Colombia for huge gains.
In recent days, those profits have become juicier as a result of Venezuela's tanking currency. The bolivar has slid 35 percent in the past two weeks on the black market and now trades at nearly one-fortieth the official rate used to import food, according to DolarToday, a website that tracks the illegal rate based on currency trades along the border.
The fall of world oil prices by nearly half since November is also diminishing the supply of dollars available to import everything from milk to cars. Crude oil accounts for 95 percent of Venezuela's exports.
As Venezuela's economic crisis deepens the government is increasingly lashing out at its opponents and the United States, which it says is trying to sow instability and set the stage for a coup.
But many Venezuelans point to Maduro. Recent polls say the embattled president has a 22 percent approval rating, the lowest since the start of the socialist revolution 16 years ago by the late President Hugo Chavez ...
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
Funny the elaborate steps that governments take when all they have to do is step back and let the free market take over.
They can’t deliver toilet paper, but they can come up with this.
This would take a large-scale internet infrastructure, wouldn’t it? Who maintains that? Where do the people who maintain the anti-hoarding infrastructure get their groceries and other vital supplies?
That’s not something a despot is going to do.
Any reasonable person weighing possibilities would have to consider whether the "solution" was the goal to begin with.
Next scene in this script; Venezuela suddenly running out of gloves! Using gloves can enable multiple (illegal) purchases over the shortage quotas. Black Market Gloves are a hot item for every family. “Oh, Oh! Donde son todas las guantes?”
Right, it’s not about controlling commerce,
it’s about controlling people.
Might develop a black market in fingers, too.
> This would take a large-scale internet infrastructure, wouldn’t it? Who maintains that? Where do the people who maintain the anti-hoarding infrastructure get their groceries and other vital supplies?
Setting up of the largest citizen database in the world - Obamacare
Large scale internet infrastructure - Net Neutrality
Invisible Mark of the Beast tattoos or implants soon to come
Soros directing unfireable president, Obama, to accomplish his bucket list point by point for huge payoff in the end (over a billion in untraceable cash with 72 male virgins at time of death). As soon as The One leaves the WH he and Moochiev will divorce from their sham martiage and the kids will be headed for college...
(Might develop a black Market in fingers too). As Joe Biden would respond; “Literally!”
“seven large private retail chains had voluntarily agreed”
at the point of a gun.
Oh, idunno. I don't think you get to be a "large" anything in a thugocracy without going along.
Riiiight. And the government socialist policies had nothing to do with it.
Odd that they would blame Obama’s administration of trying to overthrow the communist regime.
Obama is not capable of going any such thing. BO is too busy overthrowing our own government and constitution.
They seem to be forgetting the Saudis that decided to let the price of oil tank to stop American energy independence and deprive their avowed enemies of cash flow as the icing on the cake.
They might as well slam Canada too whole they are at it for their development of the oil sands which compete with heavy Venezuelan crude.
Venezuela is just a side show.
Sooner rather than later, barring some benevolent intervention.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.