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Venezuela as the pivot for New Internationalism? - Michael Hudson
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2019 Feb 7, 1:30am 554 views 4 comments
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1
HeadSet
2019 Feb 7, 7:18am
HeadSet
2019 Feb 7, 7:18am
This whole article reads like that of an adolescent acting 20 something who wants his parents/siblings/relatives to finance his lifestyle and bail out his bad choices.
3
anonymous
2019 Feb 8, 9:22am
Michael Hudson: The Shape of the Venezuelan Economy, from Chavez to Maduro and Beyond
Interview conducted by The Saker with Michael Hudson, a research professor of Economics at University of Missouri, Kansas City, and a research associate at the Levy Economics Institute of Bard College. His latest book is J is for Junk Economics. Cross-posted from Hudson’s site.
https://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2019/02/michael-hudson-shape-venezuelan-economy-chavez-maduro-beyond.html
If anyone is interested in what a sensible discourse is like on a topic, read the comments section from Naked Capitalism on the same article as the main thread article.
No political hysterics at all - then again people on there are willing to admit Hudson is going over their heads as well as opposed to referring to him as a adolescent acting 20 something or who the fuck is he.
Interview conducted by The Saker with Michael Hudson, a research professor of Economics at University of Missouri, Kansas City, and a research associate at the Levy Economics Institute of Bard College. His latest book is J is for Junk Economics. Cross-posted from Hudson’s site.
https://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2019/02/michael-hudson-shape-venezuelan-economy-chavez-maduro-beyond.html
If anyone is interested in what a sensible discourse is like on a topic, read the comments section from Naked Capitalism on the same article as the main thread article.
No political hysterics at all - then again people on there are willing to admit Hudson is going over their heads as well as opposed to referring to him as a adolescent acting 20 something or who the fuck is he.
4
anonymous
2019 Mar 18, 3:46pm
Reuters Exclusive: As Venezuela crisis deepens, U.S. sharpens focus on Colombia rebel threat (Unintended Consequences)
As the United States makes its biggest diplomatic push in Latin America in years to try to oust Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, the U.S. military is zeroing in on a byproduct of the crisis: a strengthening of Colombian rebels on both sides of Venezuela’s border.
U.S. Admiral Craig Faller, the head of the U.S. military’s Southern Command that oversees U.S. forces in Latin America, told Reuters the United States had sharpened its focus on the rebels and increased its sharing of intelligence with Colombian officials.
U.S. officials see a growing threat from both Colombia’s National Liberation Army (ELN) and factions of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) that refuse to adhere to a 2016 peace agreement to end five decades of civil war.
The United States believes the rebels are taking advantage of Venezuela’s crisis to expand their reach in that country and the scope of long-standing illegal activities, including drug trafficking.
“Our principal role working with our Colombian partners is to assist in intelligence sharing. What we know, we share,” Faller said. Asked whether the intelligence sharing on the rebels had ramped up as Venezuela’s crisis deepened, Faller responded: “Absolutely.”
The risks from the insurgents on both sides of the Colombia-Venezuela border add another layer of complexity to the crisis in Venezuela, where U.S. President Donald Trump says all options are on the table to remove Maduro from office.
U.S. officials have uniformly emphasized diplomatic and economic tools to accelerate Maduro’s departure, like sanctions, but Faller acknowledged the U.S. military stood ready to provide options if needed.
At the same time, he noted that no U.S. allies in the region were seeking a military solution to the crisis in Venezuela.
“My job is to be ready, be on the balls of my feet, at all times. But we’ve been talking to our partners and no one, no one, thinks that a military option is a good idea,” Faller said.
“If the Americans invade, or if Colombia promotes a military intervention, then they (Maduro’s supporters) would be able to call upon an insurgent force with more than 50 years of combat experience,” McDermott said.
Start thinking the Vietnam of South America patriots. Sign your kids up today and be the first on the block to have your kid come home in a box for the glory of Exxon Mobil
Asked whether the United States had any evidence of communications between Maduro and the guerrilla groups, Faller said: “I’d rather not discuss the details of the exact connections but we’re watching it very closely.”
Venezuela’s Information Ministry and ELN contacts did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
As the United States makes its biggest diplomatic push in Latin America in years to try to oust Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, the U.S. military is zeroing in on a byproduct of the crisis: a strengthening of Colombian rebels on both sides of Venezuela’s border.
U.S. Admiral Craig Faller, the head of the U.S. military’s Southern Command that oversees U.S. forces in Latin America, told Reuters the United States had sharpened its focus on the rebels and increased its sharing of intelligence with Colombian officials.
U.S. officials see a growing threat from both Colombia’s National Liberation Army (ELN) and factions of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) that refuse to adhere to a 2016 peace agreement to end five decades of civil war.
The United States believes the rebels are taking advantage of Venezuela’s crisis to expand their reach in that country and the scope of long-standing illegal activities, including drug trafficking.
“Our principal role working with our Colombian partners is to assist in intelligence sharing. What we know, we share,” Faller said. Asked whether the intelligence sharing on the rebels had ramped up as Venezuela’s crisis deepened, Faller responded: “Absolutely.”
The risks from the insurgents on both sides of the Colombia-Venezuela border add another layer of complexity to the crisis in Venezuela, where U.S. President Donald Trump says all options are on the table to remove Maduro from office.
U.S. officials have uniformly emphasized diplomatic and economic tools to accelerate Maduro’s departure, like sanctions, but Faller acknowledged the U.S. military stood ready to provide options if needed.
At the same time, he noted that no U.S. allies in the region were seeking a military solution to the crisis in Venezuela.
“My job is to be ready, be on the balls of my feet, at all times. But we’ve been talking to our partners and no one, no one, thinks that a military option is a good idea,” Faller said.
“If the Americans invade, or if Colombia promotes a military intervention, then they (Maduro’s supporters) would be able to call upon an insurgent force with more than 50 years of combat experience,” McDermott said.
Start thinking the Vietnam of South America patriots. Sign your kids up today and be the first on the block to have your kid come home in a box for the glory of Exxon Mobil
Asked whether the United States had any evidence of communications between Maduro and the guerrilla groups, Faller said: “I’d rather not discuss the details of the exact connections but we’re watching it very closely.”
Venezuela’s Information Ministry and ELN contacts did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Introduction: There is a great deal of controversy about the true shape of the Venezuelan economy and whether Hugo Chavez’ and Nicholas Maduro’s reform and policies were crucial for the people of Venezuela or whether they were completely misguided and precipitated the current crises. Anybody and everybody seems to have very strong held views about this. But I don’t simply because I lack the expertise to have any such opinions. So I decided to ask one of the most respected independent economists out there, Michael Hudson, for whom I have immense respect and whose analyses (including those he co-authored with Paul Craig Roberts) seem to be the most credible and honest ones you can find. In fact, Paul Craig Roberts considers Hudson the “best economist in the world“!
I am deeply grateful to Michael for his replies which, I hope, will contribute to a honest and objective understanding of what really is taking place in Venezuela.
The Saker
1. Could you summarize the state of Venezuela’s economy when Chavez came to power?
2. Could you outline the various reforms and changes introduced by Hugo Chavez? What did he do right, and what did he do wrong?
3. What are, in your opinion, the causes of the current economic crisis in Venezuela – is it primarily due to mistakes by Chavez and Maduro or is the main cause US sabotage, subversion and sanctions?
4. What in your opinion should Maduro do next (assuming he stays in power and the USA does not overthrow him) to rescue the Venezuelan economy?
What about the plan to introduce a oil-based crypto currency? Will that be an effective alternative to the dying Venezuelan Bolivar?
5. How much assistance do China, Russia and Iran provide and how much can they do to help? Do you think that these three countries together can help counter-act US sabotage, subversion and sanctions?
6. Venezuela kept a lot of its gold in the UK and money in the USA. How could Chavez and Maduro trust these countries or did they not have another choice? Are there viable alternatives to New York and London or are they still the “only game in town” for the world’s central banks?
7. What can other Latin American countries such as Bolivia, Nicaragua, Cuba and, maybe, Uruguay and Mexico do to help Venezuela?
More, details on each of the 7 areas outlined above, longer read:
https://michael-hudson.com/2019/02/venezuela-as-the-pivot-for-new-internationalism/
#Venezuela #Internationalism