FWIS3

The Saudi Oil Minister had a lot of fun with our revolution

As an added bonus, that same article shows how we fight Global Warming..... Venezuela style..

While some Saudi officials focused on the meeting with Mr. Ramirez, others participating in the climate summit were treated to periodic presentations by mid-level Venezuelan government officials discussing the virtues of socialism and the evils of capitalism, not to mention its effect on the environment.

“Venezuela’s position on climate change is that the capitalist system is unsustainable for the life of the planet,” Mr. Ramirez told delegates this week.

There’s no shortage of irony, however.

Venezuela is the biggest oil producer on the continent, the region’s leader in CO2 emissions and, thanks to a generous fuel subsidy, sells gasoline for less than a penny a gallon. As a result, domestic consumption has soared in recent years to around 700,000 barrels a day, meaning Venezuela dedicates about a quarter of its crude production to supply its population of 30 million.

Venezuela’s government, which often expresses solidarity with progressive groups, had invited green activists to this year’s preliminary climate talks in what it said was a bid to get their voices heard at the U.N. But during an open forum with environmental organizations, Venezuela’s top official on climate matters, Claudia Salerno, refused to allow talk of cutting the use of fossil fuels to be included in the final draft of a resolution to be presented to the U.N., something that left many participants feeling dismayed.

“The whole framing of the discussion was lost,” said Mauro Fernandez, a climate campaigner from Argentina working for Greenpeace.

This stuff is worthy of the Onion.....

ETA: The Saudis may be whatever they are, but they DON'T have these problems....

Venezuela rushes for fuel imports as biggest refinery ails

Oh Goody, scarcities will probably ease up by Christmas......

The Venezuelan Government Saves Christmas

But not for long.... Venezuela's OPEC Headache...

A year ago, Venezuela held local elections that many expected the government to lose. A few weeks before the elections, Maduro ordered the military to force open the doors of appliance stores and allow customers to purchase goods at bargain prices. "Let no shelf remain stocked, everything empty!" declared the president on national TV. The incident was a game changer in the election, and the government won comfortably.

This year, the government does not face elections, but it is clearly hoping the Christmas plan will reverse its plummeting poll numbers.

It is too soon to tell what political consequences the plan will have. However, oil prices are plummeting, the economy is in a recession, and the government is facing a severe fiscal crisis. The government's ability to engage in large-scale populist giveaways may be coming to an end.

Venezuelans should be aware of this. Populist giveaways may mean a "happy" Christmas this year, but if current economic trends hold, it may be the last happy one for some time to come.

The ride is going to get bumpier......

Ah the joys of price controls and scarcity. Don't you just love Black Markets?

Color me completely unsurprised.....

And we're back to Conspiracy Theory mode......

What if it’s Diosdado who’s vetoing devaluation?

Diosdado Cabello is the president of the National Assembly (our single-chamber Congress). And to many he's the real power behind the throne.

So, this conspiracy theory says that he's setting up Nicky to fall and take all of the power when the next big turd hits the fan in a few months. And then (so does out CTer implies anyways) will implement some less kooky economic policies.

Oh, yeah, next year is going to be a wonderful FWIS year

But hey, were NUMBER ONE in something: We're the world's worst managed economy

The Revolution! What a Show! The Revolution! HERE WE GO!

This looks like the Death Knell for the Revolution......

Saudis block OPEC output cut, sending oil price plunging

Which would be great, except for the small detail that for us, next year is going to make 1988 look like a good year........

But of course Nicky is not one to take a hint

The plan is …

Sigma_Orionis wrote:Oh, yeah, next year is going to be a wonderful FWIS year

But hey, were NUMBER ONE in something: We're the world's worst managed economy

The Revolution! What a Show! The Revolution! HERE WE GO!

you could turn that into a Broadway hit.

SciFiFisher wrote:

Sigma_Orionis wrote:Oh, yeah, next year is going to be a wonderful FWIS year

But hey, were NUMBER ONE in something: We're the world's worst managed economy

The Revolution! What a Show! The Revolution! HERE WE GO!

you could turn that into a Broadway hit.

Like “Springtime for Hitler”??

If you two check out the archive, you'll find out, yer a couple of years late

Oh yeah, the only difference between the Chavistas and the Opposition is their rhetoric....

For instance, take VP leader Freddy Guevara’s comments on the 45% wage increase to the military, coupled with a 15% lagged increase in general wages.

The situation was clearly outrageous: on the verge of default, with rampant inflation and unparalleled shortages, the government increases the wages of one group in society just because they hold the country’s weapons.

What was his position? Well, this. The 45% pay rise should apply immediately to everyone.

Guevara’s was a call for “justice” that was joined by most relevant spokesmen from both sides of the opposition. Many in the MUD demanded equal benefits for all, while former Presidential candidate Henrique Capriles even suggested that the wage increase should be of 400%. I repeat: 400%.

It was beautiful. The unified front presented by the opposition seemed to move besides the petty differences of the recent past, and suggests that there is hope in the coordination and aligned political action in the near future.

The catch? Such demands are outside the country’s means. Or put differently, complying with such demands would worsen the macroeconomic and microeconomic crisis that the country is in, that everyone is suffering, and that is clearly the country’s main problem. You might expect politicians to understand how pervasive such an increase in public expenditures and production costs would be in our dire situation, but this fact didn’t make anyone blink twice before making this unified statement to confront the government.

To quote Yosh: Hachiman take me.

Not to mention the effects of oil dropping to around $72 a barrel this week. That crashing sound is the economy of several nations falling through the glass bottom boat.

Since most of our oil is heavy oil, it's priced below the Brent Standard, apparently our oil is at US$65 a barrel

Sigma_Orionis wrote:Since most of our oil is heavy oil, it's priced below the Brent Standard, apparently our oil is at US$65 a barrel

So, your oil is cruder.

Yeah, just like us.

And as an added attraction, there are few refineries that can handle our oil, IIRC the only ones in the Americas (other than ours which are in shambles) available are the Citgo Refineries in Louisiana, now you know why PDVSA bought CITGO

And the revolution continues its quest to find idiots to fund it.

I mentioned CITGO because in the past months there have been rumors that PDVSA was going to sell it to raise cash for the government. Something quite short-sighted of course but hey, it's Chavistas we're talking about, the same idiots who managed to ruin this country in 15 years (vs 40 for the other guys).

Now this would be pathetically funny if I wasn't a Venezuelan.

Apparently the Government wants to get rid of PetroCaribe (aka how to buy caribbean states votes at the OAS and UN with Oil money) so the latest rumor is that it's selling the debt the Dominican Republic has with us to Goldman Sachs (hey if it's a shady latin-american deal, it HAS TO HAVE Goldman Sachs involved ) And to make it even better: apparently, Goldman Sachs is being an intermediary for the Dominican Republic, SO: They are buying their own debt at a hefty discount (THAT is a Haircut Ladies and Germs), Goldman Sachs gets its commission and once again we lose money. I remember than when Chavez died, one of his foreign quasi-allies: Brazilian ex-President Lula da Silva wrote an eulogy for the idiot on the NY Times, highlighting his contribution to Latin-American Integration (I remember saying that it was disingenuous because THAT favored Brazil). Well, here we have a great example: "Caribbean Integration" sure did us a lot of good

At the same time, Nicky apparently sent his Finance Minister to beg the Chinese for more money. The author says he has a Snowball's chance in Hell. I think he's being optimistic. The Chinese are going to tar and feather the guy before putting him on a plane back here, and will do so while they laugh their bellies out.

Sigma_Orionis wrote:At the same time, Nicky apparently sent his Finance Minister to beg the Chinese for more money. The author says he has a Snowball's chance in Hell. I think he's being optimistic. The Chinese are going to tar and feather the guy before putting him on a plane back here, and will do so while they laugh their bellies out.

Well, if Nicky is willing to mortgage most of the country to the Chinese they might consider it. I can see the UN trying to figure out how to avoid investigating China for trafficking in Venezuelans as Coolie labor.

Naw, they don't think we'd make good coolies, they bring their own here.

Sigma_Orionis wrote:Naw, they don't think we'd make good coolies, they bring their own here.

This is fun. Apparently Nicky is unable to put cause and effect together.

You see: Nicky now says the rating agencies are conspiring against the revolution....

Moron Risk

In a weird way, Maduro is right about one thing: there really is a freakishly wide gap between Venezuela’s ability to pay, its fundamentals (in terms of oil reserves, basic capacity-to-earn-dollars long term) and the risk premiums the country faces. That gap is undeniable.

What Maduro has zero insight into is his role in generating that gap.

He has no clue that every time he or one of his top officials talk the tsunami of non-sequiturs, trite rantings, and nada-que-ver conspiracy theories that comes out makes it painfully evident to bondholders that the Venezuelan economy is run by a gaggle of morons who’ll never understand what’s happening to them, let alone be able to piece together a semi-workable plan for stabilization.

Ahhhh the empire strikes back.

Venezuela leader Nicolas Maduro slams US sanction threat

Mr Maduro warned the US leader: "If the crazy path of sanctions is imposed, President Obama, I think you're going to come out looking very bad."

"Who is the US Senate to sanction the homeland of Bolivar?" he asked, referring to the 19th-Century Venezuelan independence leader.

"We don't accept insolent imperialist sanctions," he added.

So, Rubio boy got his wish. After that response, If I were the HNIC, I'd sign them gladly.

I can't tell you how educational this thread is, and how much I enjoy it.













...so I won't...

You mean someone other than Fisher reads this?

I try.

Great Scott!