Venezuelans scramble for food amid oil opulence

Reuters via ABC News ^ | Nov 11, 2007 | Brian Ellsworth

[Tzimisce]

More western media lies...

(/sarcasm)

[rawcatslyentist]

One of the fruits of socialism.

[Caipirabob]

"It takes a miracle to find milk," said Arteaga, who spent two hours in line outside a store in the poor Caracas neighborhood of Eucaliptus. "Don't you see I'm here slaving away to see if I can get even one or two of those (containers)?"

Venezuelan consumers are increasingly facing periodic shortages of basic food products as the economy shows signs of overheating amid record revenues from an oil boom.

Took a real economic genius there to re-invent the bread lines of Soviet Union and food shortages of Cuba.

[Sapper26]

The 37-year-old father-of-two has for months scrambled to find basic products like cooking oil, beef and milk, despite leftist President Hugo Chavez’s social program that promises to provide low-cost groceries to the majority poor.

Well, Chavez’s programs worked. It doesn’t cost anything if nothing is there. However, I’d bet there’s plenty on the black market - for those who can afford the stuff.

[2ndDivisionVet]

Cuba writ large.

[2ndDivisionVet]

Yeah, Danny Glover can bring some peanut butter and Michael Moore can stop by KFC on his way to the airport.

[never4get]

“The 37-year-old father-of-two has for months scrambled to find basic products like cooking oil, beef and milk, despite leftist President Hugo Chavez’s social program that promises to provide low-cost groceries to the majority poor.”

Isn’t communism just wonderful...The idiots who actually support this guy deserve what they get.

[DungeonMaster]

Amazingly evil communism ping.

[GWB00]

I have some colleagues in Venezuela and they believe that this situation is Chavez’s achilles heel.

There is no lo loyalty to Chavez at any level other than the fact he gives hand outs to people. Once those handouts dry up, he is in real trouble.

Nestle and Cargill are the two biggest food suppliers in VE. Chavez attempted to close down Cargill awhile back and quickly recinded the order (Except for those who are working in the offices - figure that out?).

An executive at Cargill told one of my associates that despite the infrastructure and security hazards throughout the country, they have a very reliable supply chain that gets food to even the most remote sections of the country.

Any major disruption in this distrubution could send the country into starvation in a short period of time.

Venezuela is not like Cuba in the sense that the infrastructure and supply chain was built by the state. This is private enterprise and once the incentive disappears, things go away very quickly.

[traviskicks]

"It takes a miracle to find milk," said Arteaga, who spent two hours in line outside a store in the poor Caracas neighborhood of Eucaliptus.



Libertarian ping! To be added or removed from my ping list freepmail me or post a message here.

[Liberty Valance]

Sorry Gustavo. The milk money is going to the Rooskies and Chi-coms for arms to protect your new ‘dear leader’.

[zeugma]

Venezuela...the next Zimbabwe.

As predictable as the rising sun, yet the press seems to somehow be surprised. Can they not read?

[Moonman62]

Venezuelan consumers are increasingly facing periodic shortages of basic food products as the economy shows signs of overheating amid record revenues from an oil boom.

This is being caused by price controls and Chavez printing money. Prosperity doesn't cause inflation or shortages.

[secretagent]

The government says the problem is caused by growing demand by poor citizens who benefit from social programs, exaggerated media hype and food hoarding by unscrupulous businesses.

They'll have have to get tough with those hoarders. They need a War On Hoarding.

[ozzymandus]

I am sooo looking forward to seeing hugo’s battered corpse hanging upside-down from a lamp post.

[FreedomPoster]

>>shortages of basic food products as the economy shows signs of overheating amid record revenues from an oil boom.

Such economic genius at ABC/Reuters. An overheated economy is *not* the cause for a shortage of a basic food product. Period.

[eleni121]

in the meantime the clown is literally forcing the construction a new city in the mountains outside caracas...kind of like Soviet style place displacing the residents (most of them poor) and appropriating property nearby --it's all his!

new city

While all that misery happens other clowns visit his excellency

Naomi, how can I serve you? Anyway you like el Lider.

[goldstategop]

Socialism equals equality of misery. But I guess people prefer to be miserable and poor in Venezuela than prosperous and happy there.

"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

[TexasRepublic]

“I bet for the truly poor their life’s are much better than before.”

If the middle class can’t get milk, sugar, flour and meat what exactly are the poor eating?

Communism probably does raise the standards of people who had absolutely nothing to begin with. People that had no medical care might now receive an aspirin. But in the process, the middle class is destroyed.

[bert]

If they have no milk, let them drink Chablis