[WBL 1952]

Another Cuba in the making.

[inkling]

The definition of insanity (and socialism): Doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.

[3AngelaD]

Last week on El Gordo y La Flaca someone said, 'Hugito Chavez es la primera dama de Cuba." (Chavez is the first lady of Cuba) and everyone fell down laughing, including me.

[Dog Gone]

This is almost fun watching.

[3AngelaD]

Understatment of the day: "There seems to be a basic misunderstanding in Chávez’s government of what is driving scarcity and inflation,” said Francisco Rodríguez, a former chief economist at Venezuela’s National Assembly who teaches at Wesleyan University.

[sono]

Eventually, El Gordo's fiscal irresponsibility, not limited to selling Venezuela's major export at below market rates for the sole purpose of tweaking W, will be his ruin.

[Abathar]

No, more like another Robert Mugabe and Zimbabwe with the inflation they are having. The only thing keeping that entire nation afloat is the oil, and when oil prices drop then that place will become the festering crotch of the entire Continent.

[ml/nj]

Another Cuba in the making.

But Fidel only had cigars. This guy has oil. I don't understand how things could be spiraling out of control this fast down there.

ML/NJ

[Leftism is Mentally Deranged]

Since communism is against the free market and human nature the government must become oppressive to force people to follow communist dictates.

[mmmRamen]

so it's either obey strict price control laws OR be nationalized? i'm failing to see the difference.

[Virginia Ridgerunner]

Or Zimbabwe...

[MichiganConservative]

But Cindy Sheehan told us that the people of the world looooove him in her little retarded-child voice. Maybe Cindy Sheehan just wants to have his love-child.

[Larry Lucido]

Well, they had the guy and didn't kill him.

[Chode]

if you will supply us with the food stuffs DearLeader... we will sell them at what ever price you say.

[theymakemesick]

From the article: "Venezuela, despite boasting some of South America’s most fertile farmland, still imports more than half its food, largely from Argentina, Brazil, Colombia and the United States."

Bush ought to sell loaves of bread to Venezuela's poor below the "official government price" like Sluggo does with his oil here in the USA.

[lormand]

Ed Asner says that socialism has not worked because it has not been tried by the right people or leader.

Here is yet another chance for Ed Asner to be proven right.

[dleecomeback07]

This is what those who stayed home last November want this here.

[Felis_irritable]

This is fascinating to me. The NYT prints an article about a hard-left economy on the brink of catastrophe, and the only mitigating sentence in the whole article is "For now, Venezuela remains far from any nightmarish economic meltdown." Everything else is an accurate litany of the train wreck in the making.

So, the NYT really *does* understand economics. Then my question becomes, why do they push so many Marxist ideas for the US?

Oh, and the "First Lady of Cuba" comment was priceless.

[Logophile]

Inflation climbed to an annual rate of 18.4 percent a year in January, the highest in Latin America and far above the official target of 10 to 12 percent.

The country is in big trouble when the government is hoping for 12 percent inflation.

[Mr. Brightside]

Inflation climbed to an annual rate of 18.4 percent a year in January, the highest in Latin America

Only 18 percent? At least its better than Mugabee's 1600 percent.

[goldstategop]

Comrade Chavez doesn't seem to understand that if you force people to sell at a loss, there will be shortages. That's what price controls do. Economics 101.

"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus