jcberry

The adoption of a new constitution in 1999 and the launch of the Bolivarian Revolution further consolidated Chávez’s power and led to the implementation of policies that ultimately were proved unsustainable. Venezuelans voted for granting Chávez sweeping powers and a more balanced approach to economic and social reforms. But these policies contributed to the country’s economic decline.

The election of Hugo Chávez marked a turning point in Venezuelan politics. Venezuelans were disillusioned with traditional political parties and were attracted to Chavez’s populist policies and anti-establishment rhetoric. But, importantly, economic policies have to be upheld by political ones. Chavez’s policies of increased government control over the economy led to the erosion of democratic institutions. The Venezuelan people could have been more critical of Chávez’s populist promises and supported candidates who offered more sustainable economic and political solutions.

The Venezuela of the 1980s saw the collapse of oil prices, exposing the vulnerability of Venezuela’s oil-dependent economy. Instead of implementing economic reforms to diversify the economy and reduce its reliance on oil, the government borrowed excessively and lacked fiscal discipline. Austerity measures led to social unrest and economic hardship, which continue to this day.

With the start of oil exploitation in the early 20th century, companies from the United States began establishing operations in Venezuela, bringing with them U.S. citizens. By the 1960s and 1970s, Venezuela was a comparatively prosperous country and gladly received millions of immigrants from Spain, Italy, Portugal, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and other European and South American countries. With the economic prosperity driven by the oil industry, Venezuela was a destination for both Americans and Europeans.

However, the nationalization of the oil industry in 1976, while initially leading to increased government revenue, also sowed the seeds for future economic problems. The focus of the government should have been on furthering good economic performance by diversifying the economy instead of relying solely on oil revenues. But with the good times came a failure to invest in the oil industry’s infrastructure and human capital to ensure its long-term viability.

The Venezuela that my aunt was from was a prosperous nation. But by 2017, the creeping, unconstrained far-left policies and decisions had led to the socialist hellscape described above.

The human catastrophe in Venezuela is unspeakable. Record hyperinflation, shortages of basic goods, unemployment, environmental destruction, high child mortality, malnutrition, disease, poverty, rampant crime, and political corruption. Since June 2024, mass emigration has created a refugee crisis of almost 8 million people fleeing the country for neighboring South American countries and the US. Credit reporting agencies declared Venezuela to be in default with its debt payments.

The rapidly deteriorating human rights situation has spread to the US southern border.

Dashing all hopes for reform, the results of this July’s elections were overturned by President Nicholas Maduro.

The key economic and political events that shaped the current crisis are a warning to the US, where the perennial promise of more handouts without long-term consequence rears its head every election season. In Venezuela, it was the incremental changes that slowly boiled the proverbial frog unaware of its doom.

There’s an interesting phenomenon that takes place in both progressive and more conservative or mainstream administrations. Anthony Blinken is typical of both types. Neo-liberal foreign policy has brought war to various parts of the globe.

This is true even for hope and change Barack Obama. I was impressed that Obama oversaw the raid that killed Bin Laden, but it just showed that no matter the government the neo-liberal officials kowtow to an aggressive foreign policy. The Trump administration may have decreased our involvement in wars. But if Trump is re-elected, all eyes will turn to the new admin’s direction.

Is the Trump foreign policy different? Not so sure. But I can still hope for a policy that will present an alternative to neo-liberal aggression.

I recently saw this piece on the CCP’s approval for Musk. Transhumanism aside, Musk also favors Beijing. His sometime conservative supporters, at the Babylon Bee, for instance, like to present him as a free speech advocate. Fine. But his hypocrisy is rank.

The tech industry has a history with ignoring China’s human rights abuses while getting their products or components made in China. “Team Humanity”? Complexity of the issue?

Money talks, values walk.

“I know people in Washington who would unplug your life support to charge their cellphones.”
-John Kennedy, Republican Senator, Louisiana

Saw Deadpool and Wolverine this weekend. I was hoping for more of a tie-in with the old movies, but it was really a cursing and violence bonanza. A young employee said it was his favorite movie.

So yet again, I feel old.

A lot of friends have children. Today I also learned that a friend of mine in his 50s is getting married. I quipped, “there is a God.”

I had a young man I met at church last year sometime who said incredulously, “you still want to have a relationship?” Youth is wasted on the young.

Where does resignation to your age begin?

Sometimes the best thing someone can do when in disagreement with friends is to point out the experience with other friends on the subject. “I’ve always had good experiences with others on this.” The words of a true friend are nothing but salve. There is a universe of kindness, the tongue dripping with honey.

The Engineers press forward to what they consider the future, creating a “new slate.” The past is not a problem; they will just rewrite it and point toward a future that they believe no one else has thought of.

They wield government to create executive orders, audits, investigations, penalties, fines, regulations, government healthcare, and to restrict the free market with wage and price controls.

When finally free speech becomes hate speech and the engineers take control of the family, education, and children’s lives, then we have crossed over the Rubicon.

Man sells himself for comfort.

Can memory be reset? It seems it’s easy. Change can happen faster if the past of your enemies is maligned and if your own past is forgotten.

Repeating what you want others to remember is an effective method in bringing about forgetting the bad, emphasizing a person’s good traits or successful actions. “I would never do that,” says the morally superior human. Forgetting his past, his opponents’ maligned, and he a new person.

Radicalism kills history, kills memory, kills examination. Because of pain, we don’t want to look back. But self-awareness is the only way the future can amend wrongs and errors.

Apparently, you can have it both ways.

You can say you want to be uniters, while disparaging the opposition. You can revile your opponents and declare openness. You can claim “joy,” while exhibiting pure anger.

These are not happy warriors. Using stronger emotion to drive your politics and crushing dissent are the making of tyrants.

The news media has been drawing parallels between the riots at the 1968 DNC and the planned protests at this week’s DNC. One difference is that there are still significant Democratic believers in the right of Israel to protect itself. How long will that be true?

College students are carrying the torch for Hamas. They stop traffic, they shut down businesses. No matter your belief on the war in Gaza, we should be able to agree that your fellow citizens should not be harassed.

I was watching an episode of Somebody Feed Phil wherein the happy chef is enjoying a carnivorous meal and a bothersome anti-meat crusader passes by Phil and his companions, saying “meat is murder,” or something to that effect. Phil responds, “I guess no one learned manners.”

People deserve to be free from harassment. Your cause may be important to you, but don’t force others to have to support your cause.

It’s a basic tenet of our Bill of Rights. You get free speech and freedom of association, and others get their freedom to not have to listen to your free speech and to associate with people who don’t care about your cause.

It’s time to grow up.

After the last two weeks, I am more convinced that mankind believes and has hope in good things.

Why are teamwork and peace and friendly competition lifted up between nations, not perfectly at peace, ideals? Yes, there are many issues and many conflicts around the world right now, and one can’t be Pollyannaish. But hope is a good thing.

Just finished The Magicians Nephew. Of interest to me right now is its bit about how someone could block Aslan’s words out of mind to a point where all you would hear is a roar or growl. Makes you think about how His voice should reach you, and warn against conscious blocking out of His voice. Lewis was such a master and had a perceptive vision of human nature.

In anger one can purposely drown out the good voice, angry about struggle. But where can we go? The dream that permeates the world still speaks today.