Endangered wildlife and zoo animals are being eaten, yet babies are being born.
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I was watching a discussion of the Venezuelan elections on the Real News. Most of those interviewed had been observers at the polls in Venezuela. If only elections in New York State were half as transparent.
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That country used to be the exporter of the finest of foods (vegetables, meats, fish) to the ABC islands (Aruba, Bonaire, Curacao). Now Venezuelans are fleeing to these islands hoping to escape starvation. But as long as Russia and Iran are supporting the leader there, hoping to get a foothold in South America, no chance.
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Maduro's sham election is not only not credible, it is an insult and injury on the Venezuelan people, dying of hunger while Maduro looks overfed (with caviar and with vanity, I suppose), a most hateful abuse of power of a deeply incompetent, and corrupt, president. This, in a rich country on account of oil, a curse rather than an asset, where self sustenance is gone, and dependency on foreign aid a must...if available, that is. Maduro is injustice personified. This requires a firm resistance from all neighbors (can you, Bolivia, hear the voice of reason and justice and compassion?), so the current criminal regime calls for true elections, and the freeing of all political prisoners of conscience. Solidarity is the name of the game, sorely lacking for now. What is it going to be, complicity in this farce, or firm opposition and an urgent peaceful change of Maduro's misrule?
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Until China, Russia, Iran, Turkey, AND THE US (oil purchases) cut off Venezuela Maduro will continue his reign.
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The US has been trying to overthrow Venezuela’s government for a long time. Anywhere a country denies the US corporations control of their oil or natural resource, we declare an enemy.
“The United States will not sit idly by as Venezuela crumbles and the misery of their brave people continues.”
To bad the US does not try to help it’s own citizens. A United Way study just released shows that 40% of US households cannot afford the basics of rent, transportation, child care and a cellphone. Yet there always seems to be an unlimited amount of money for the military.
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You should visit Venezuela before you use poverty in the USA to minimize the abject destitution of the Venezuelan populace. No cellphone ??? Surely you jest.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/global-opinions/wp/2017/06/01/venezu...
By April [2017], 11.4 percent of of children in vulnerable areas were experiencing acute malnutrition — well above the 10 percent threshold humanitarian agencies use to declare a food crisis.
Acute malnutrition means a child has less than 80% of age appropriate weight.
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Steve, I know your comments are just cookie cutter (I’ve seen you post that 40% quite several times today) but for God’s sake, this has nothing to do with US control of Venezuelan oil reserves. This is about abject corruption at its absolute worst. I have many, many Venezuelan friends. You clearly know nothing about the country. It produces literally nothing. Zilch. Because they’ve nationalized every industry and driven every private company in the world out. Airlines don’t fly there anymore, Ford pulled out after its factories were nationalized. Just last week the Maduro government nationalized a Kellogg’s factory.
So before you comment, do some research.
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Where food distribution can be used to influence an election there are far more things amiss than a corrupt electoral process. That implies a population that feels, with perhaps some legitimacy, that their subsistence will be threatened if the opposition wins.
Or that the party that has completely dominated politics in Venezuela for more than a decade have allowed basic services to deterioriate to the point where the cynical and all to rare offer of food brings out the desperate.
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Wrong. Their fear is that if they do not support the regime in power, they will be cut off from food an medicine. They are correct.
In Venezuela, they are now exploiting starving people for political gain. And most likely, the suffering will get worse before it gets better.
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