Venezuela's Chavez Looks At U.S. Economic Crisis.

[justinaforjustice]

Venezuela's www.venezuelanalysis.com translates President Hugo Chavez Frias's latest comments on relative economic conditions:

As I write today Saturday, in the early hours of the morning I receive fresh news about the evolution of the crisis: “According to the International Labor Organization (ILO), the economic crisis pushed 61 million people into unemployment in 2009, and the world there are now 241 million unemployed workers, the largest number of unemployed persons in history.” (IAR Noticias) “It is expected that the number of poor people , will grow to 90 million by 2010, while at least 59 million will join the ranks of the unemployed, as stated by the Central Bank president Robert Zoellick.” (IPS) There's nothing coincidental that Venezuela is one of four countries in the world that advanced four positions in terms of Human Development Index according to the United Nations Human Development Report 2009. And it is no coincidence that, according to the report, we are the country with the best distribution of income across Our America, that is, with the best rate, to use Bolivar’s term, of established and practiced equality.

Despite last year's steep fall in oil prices, Venezuela continues to invest in its social programs, especially is Mission Al Dentro free medical clinics, recently welcoming hundreds of new Cuban medical doctors and personnel to staff numerous new free clinics and diagnostic centers. In return for providing medical staff, Cuba receives oil from Venezuela.

Here, for those who take advantage of the free medical care, there are no premiums, no co-pays, no lifetime caps, and no exclusions for pre-existing conditions, just a free "Medicare for All" program.

The U.S. could have that too -- if it would just stop financing its two unjustified offensive wars and its 800+ military bases in foreign countries.

As a result of the 7 new military bases the U.S. is building in Venezuela's neighbor, Colombia, and the billions funneled to Colombia's military establishment through Plan Colombia, Venezuela has had to spend money on beefing up its defense posture. Money it would rather spend on social programs and development.

Colombia has been using U.S. funding to send hundreds of paramilitaries into Venezuela to foment destabilization and attempt assassination of its president. The U.S. bases are a real threat to Venezuela, providing easy access (one base is right on the Colombia-Venezuela border) for increased intelligence gathering and destabilization efforts, to say nothing of presenting a serious military threat.

Reducing the U.S. Defense and Intelligence budgets by half would still put us way ahead of the whole rest of the world, but we would have all the needed money for universal health care and public education. When will U.S. voters wake up to the fact that they are being deprived of needed services in the U.S. in order to fund our anti-human war machine world-wide.

[ensho]

1. kick

nt

[redqueen]

2. K&R

[enid602]

3. crime

From http://www.mywestworld.com/places/international/murderous-cities/:

Caracas, Venezuela
Population: 3.2 million
Murder rate: 130 per 100,000 residents
Caracas has become far more dangerous in recent years than any South American city, even beating out the once notorious Bogotá. What’s worse, the official homicide statistics likely fall short of the mark because they omit prison-related murders as well as deaths that the state never gets around to properly “categorizing.” The numbers also don’t count those who died while “resisting arrest,” suggesting that Caracas’s cops—already known for their brutality against student protesters—might be cooking the books. Many have pointed the finger at president Hugo Chavez, whose government has failed to tackle the country’s rising rates of violent crime. In fact, since Chávez took over in 1998, Venezuela’s official homicide rate has climbed 67 percent from 4,550 to 13,156 in 2007, an average of 36 murders per day—mostly due to increased drug and gang violence. Ramón Rodríguez Chacín, who recently resigned as interior minister, claimed in July that homicide has dropped 27 percent since January—but experts say he’s just playing with numbers. As for Caracas, whose crime-infested barrios continue to expand, some speculate that its actual murder rate is closer to 160 per 100,000.