Posted on 01/16/2007 8:16:52 AM PST by FairOpinion
Chávez tells parliament: 'We have decided to nationalize the whole Venezuelan energy and electricity sector, all of it, absolutely all.'
Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez said on Saturday the country's entire energy sector had to be nationalized, reinforcing his socialist revolution and possibly giving himself more targets for state take-over.
But he said he would permit foreign firms to hold minority stakes in energy deals.
The president was reinaugurated this week for a term that runs through 2013.
Chávez has already pursued oil and gas projects and power utilities but on Saturday left no leeway for a private company to hold a majority in operations anywhere in the energy sphere.
(Excerpt) Read more at money.cnn.com ...
Yeah, they did....The election was monitored, but Chavez counted the votes.
It won't happen until we start to hear that oppenents and their families are mysteriously disappearing.
Best thing the oil companies can do is tell this lunatic they are shutting down and moving their operations. Force unemployment on the people and blame it on Chavez.
Communism marches on. The alliance of the left and the jihadists is alarming.
Yep. They promise the poor land, and then seize the land for collective farms.
World Court, eh? I'll betcha old Huge is losing a lot of sleep over that one...
Based on my recent experience in Colombia with their military, he'll have a fight on his hands. The Colombians think he's an idiot, and they're much better trained these days than the Venezuelan military.
Colonel, USAFR
You can almost hear the capital in that country screaming to escape.
But there is really nothing much more to do, but wait for the opportunity to overthrow him.
Same as Iran....
I think the two will go down in tandem...Like a kabuki dance...
And that suit will go exactly nowhere. Even if the World Court puts its anti-Americanism aside long enough to make a proper ruling (a huge if), Hugo will basically dare them to enforce it, and of course they won't. The ruling will then have about as much value as a UN resolution.
In the meantime, the Europeans, the Russians and the Chinese will be more than happy to keep Hugo's credit line open to allow him to keep buying the votes he needs to stay in power. Oh sure, eventually it'll all come crashing down - communist systems always do. But we're probably talking decades, not just a couple of years. Look at how long Castro has held on, and look at how long it took for the Soviet Union to implode.
Iran and Venezuela Plan Anti-U.S. Imperialism Fund
Venezuela's Hugo Chavez and Iran's Mahmoud Ahmadinejad -- fiery anti-American leaders whose moves to extend their influence have alarmed Washington -- said Saturday they would help finance investment projects in other countries seeking to thwart U.S. domination.
The two countries had previously revealed plans for a joint $2 billion fund to finance investments in Venezuela and Iran, but the leaders said Saturday the money would also be used for projects in friendly countries throughout the developing world.
"It will permit us to underpin investments ... above all in those countries whose governments are making efforts to liberate themselves from the (U.S.) imperialist yoke," Chavez said.
Hugo has decided that he's going to openly fund al Qaeda, and dare us to do anything about it.
This is South America, not Europe, so he'll be Allended.
How sweet would a CIA-backed coup to overthrow socialist Chavez be? It would be fun just to see Senator Dodd lose it. The Left is STILL upset that Allende was overthrown. Let's give them another reason to hate GWB.
Oh, sorry, the CIA was neutered by the Church committee and Admiral Turner and has never recovered.
"That's how tyrants grow. They promise the people the world and in exchange for temporary safety they forfeit their freedom."
Are you talking about the demonrats?
Contract with the devil?
http://www.citgo.com/CommunityInvolvement/HeatingOil.jsp
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The CITGO-Venezuela Heating Oil Program is targeting more than 100 million gallons to more than 400,000 households in 16 states, more than doubling the commitment made last year.
"We are more than just an oil company. We are neighbors and friends who care for those in need," said CITGO President and CEO Félix Rodríguez. "This is a people-to-people program that comes from the heart of Venezuela to the homes of American families who just can't pay their energy bills."
The program, being implemented in partnership with Citizens Energy Corporation, was created in 2005 to offset a perfect storm of catastrophic events within some of the poorest and most vulnerable communities in the United States. Decreased supplies, resulting from hurricanes Katrina and Rita, led to steep increases in fuel costs while cuts in the federal Heating Oil Assistance Program placed unbearable burdens on family budgets already stretched thin.
The exploration, drilling, production and field maintenance of production is done by a large group of companies that apply their particular expertise to what is needed on a day to day basis. If Hugo truly nationalizes the entire infrastructure of the oil industry it will collapse. The skills of those involved in oil production and exploration are essential. These skills are in demand world wide. They will leave Venezuela. Production will fall off a cliff. It should also be noted that the oil fields in the Lake Maracaibo area are quite old. These fields demand great amounts of work by specialists to keep the production up. Many of these fields are now on secondary and tertiary production enhancement. This is very labor intensive requiring great expertise.
Hugo is shooting himself in the foot.
And every time someone buys anything at a Citgo station, the anti-American fund grows larger.
BTW - did you see the commercials running on TV (I saw it on Fox) for Joe Kennedy and the Citgo buy-votes-for-Commies-with-cheap-oil? Real tear jerker, with mommy and the little girl huddled in front of the oven for heat.
BOYCOTT CITGO!
Agreed...perhaps we should seize citgo to insure payment for the stolen property.
No, it will be sooner than later. There is a very volatile situation there, and a revolution is as sure as the sun coming up.
Castro is a entirely different situation. The populace there, never did get out from under the dictator thumb and socialism made too much sense to fight. Add to this the isolation of the island.
Venezuela is a different animal, and will not be stable much longer. A power play is coming, and it is the quiet period before the storm.
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