Hugo Chavez Frias

The information presented here, is factual and accurate. Rather than regurgitate the popular media's negative hyperbole and political propaganda, I offer the facts.

The President of Venezuela, Hugo Chavez Frias, is a present day Zorro who has pledged to bring down the New World Order. He wants to “burn down the mission” and if we continue our addiction to petroleum, we are only aiding his quixotic cause. According to a recent poll, approximately 60 percent of the populace stand behind Chavez. The opposition party, according to the same poll comprised only 32 percent of the electorate. It should be noted however, that 46 percent of the respondents to the poll refused to identify their party affiliation.

On September 26, 2010, Venezuelans elected a multi-party National Assembly. This development may signal a change of direction for the Nation and a shift away from the popularity of a 21st century socialist agenda. For more detailed information, read this analysis of the election results. In December of 2010, President Chavez successfully pushed a resolution through the pro-Chavez Assembly to grant him emergency powers that will render the newly elected pro opposition Assembly impotent. When the new Assembly is put in place in January 2011, it will be interesting to see how the drama unfolds. Students appear to have taken up the lead in opposition to the Chavez government, probably a bad omen for the future of the Socialist movement.

According to a reliable news source, the US. has recently leased land in Columbia to prepare for possible conflict on the border with Venezuela. We will not be able to intimidate Chavez into submission; he will not back down, and in fact, a military conflict with the United States is exactly what he wants. There is another more effective strategy we could employ that would maintain our global dominance for another hundred years, but only if we act wisely. We must invest much of our remaining wealth on switching to a new fuel source and building a network of new power plants. We are standing at a crossroads; the road we take now will make all the difference. In December of 2010, Wikileaks gave us all a little insight into the United States' global strategy toward Venezuela.

Whether the Venezuelan government can be labeled Socialist or not is irrelevant. Anything that helps eradicate the grinding poverty in the slums of Caracas would be an improvement over what has existed in the recent past. Adoption of the Socialist model might actually be a reasonable strategy in view of the fact that a very tiny minority of the population has controlled nearly all the wealth for generations, while the majority of the population have been left to fend for themselves in abject poverty.

Hopefully, the end result of this revolution will be a more equal distribution of wealth and a larger, better educated, empowered and more prosperous middle class. Perhaps, in the future, more effective leadership can provide better results. The current administration seems unable to effectively train and empower quality leaders at the community level. Rather than punish the ministers for failure, it might be more effective to improve their project management skills. Fear and intimidation are poor motivators that usually result in sub optimal performance and finger pointing.

In 1998 Hugo Chavez Frias was elected president of Venezuela and he initiated what he has described as the Bolivarian Revolution in which he promised to rebuild the economy and end corruption in the government. In addition, he was determined to regain control of Venezuela's vast oil and mineral reserves which were then controlled largely by foreign entities. This revolutionary vision would be no easy task and would result in a great deal of social disruption and severe internal conflict.

As a result of the Bolivarian Revolution, there were many business closures and nationalization of many private companies. Military leaders were replaced, judicial appointees were replaced, and the Constitution was revised. In late 2009, the federal government was compelled to take over the police force. Many doubted that the revolution would ever materialize as the economy began a rapid decline which lasted for several years. Inflation spiraled out of control, unemployment and crime rose to intolerable levels.

In 2002, an unsuccessful coup was led by the military in which most of Venezuela's elected officials were arrested, the President was forced to resign and the media was muted. The morning after the coup, nearly one million patriotic Venezuelans surrounded the Presidential Palace banging on pots and pans, demanding that their elected government officials and their President be returned to power. The Presidential Guard quickly saw the writing on the wall and arrested the coup leaders; after two days the President returned to power. President Chavez believes that this bungled coup has George W. Bush's fingerprints all over it, hence, his disrespectful comments at the United Nations.

President Chavez has faced many challenges. In spite of the military coup, Chavez held onto power. In spite of a two month general strike, he held onto power. In spite of several attempts at recall by the opposition, the President has held on to power. If oil prices and production remain high, crime rates are reduced, inflation is stabilized and the economy improves, it is possible that this government will remain in place for the foreseeable future. However, obvious failures could lead to defeat in the next election. In 2010 inflation has begun to accelerate when efforts to support the Bolivar failed, the infrastructure system has begun to break apart, electrical shortages are now common and the standard of living for the common man has started to decline.

In September of 2009, well known scholar and political activist, Professor Noam Chomsky from the Massachusetts Institute for Technology (MIT) visited President Chavez to congratulate him on his successful effort to resist U.S. hegemony by leading his Bolivarian Revolution.

During a Chavez visit to Moscow in September, 2009 it has been reported in the Russian Press that Prime Minister Putin will provide well over $5 Billion in direct and military aid. Russia has also pledged to provide technical expertise to expand Venezuela's petroleum production and possibly construct electrical generation plants.

On October 25, 2009, a delegation of high officials from 66 countries across the continent of Africa, including the President of Nigeria, visited President Chavez on Margarita Island to initiate the formation of an inter—continental body to coordinate distribution, control and sales of natural resources. Venezuela now gets over 80 percent of every dollar from petroleum sales rather than the 10 percent they received prior to nationalization of that industry. I suspect that Venezuela wants other petroleum rich nations to regain control of their natural resources as well.

There is a long way to go for Venezuela, though there were impressive gains in 2009. Last year, the economy showed some positive signs of growth and unemployment began to decline, however several factors have put the brakes on economic growth in 2010. Construction of a National Railroad was initiated but is going forward at a reduced pace. The government has tried in vain to stabilize the Bolivar and slow the flight of wealth out of the Country. As of January 2010, the economic picture for Venezuela has unfortunately begun to deteriorate and oil production has slowed. Venezuela may have external debt financing requirements in 2010 of up to $19 billion and as much as $22 billion in 2011 should authorities chose not to use non-reserve savings funds on hand estimated at $41 billion, according to Morgan Stanley Bank.

In June of 2010, the Central Bank of Venezuela (BCV) implemented its new transaction system for foreign currency denominated securities (SITME). This system now determines the buy and sell rates of foreign currency bonds and sets requirements for participating institutions. The regulations are summarized in this article. This was done to stop a free fall in valuation of the Bolivar and to tame a high rate of inflation.

Venezuela's minimum wage is now the highest in South America. The malls are still full of shoppers and the stores still have a good supply of fresh high quality food. There are also now large numbers of young well equipped police officers patrolling the streets to suppress crime; in my neighborhood, this effort is working.

Complicating Venezuela's economic situation is a persistent drought that has led to a serious electricity shortage. Venezuela's Guri Lake feeds hydroelectric plants that generate more than two thirds of the Country's power. Water levels were in April 2010 at only 34 percent of useful capacity, down from 60 percent at the beginning of the year. Rolling brown outs were curtailed in June 2010 but could resume if reservoirs remain unfilled. August and September however, have had above average rainfall, if this continues, electricity shortages may be a thing of the past.

The Rest of the Story:

President Chavez is providing a wake up call that we all need to hear. Americans can turn the current challenge to their advantage if they take the correct actions now. Chavez suggested recently that Americans go into the streets and demand change; I agree that Americans should go to the streets, but not for the exact reasons he gives.

President Chavez is diligently working to build an international coalition (or union) of resource rich nations, including Brazil, Bolivia, Argentina and 66 African nations. With their help, he will establish the Bank of the South which will create a South American Central Bank and a new currency for foreign trade in South America. Russia has recently contributed over $10 billion to assist in this effort and other partners in the region have committed a total of $20 billion. In April of 2010 China promised another $20 billion in aid. Iran is also involved in this effort, but it is unclear to what extent. Once established, the Bank of the South will provide an alternative to the US Dollar for international trade in this region. The importance of this move is probably minimal, but it does indicate the intent of our Southern neighbors.

I hope the USA will respond to Venezuela's alliance with our adversaries thoughtfully and strategically. We must refuse to be goaded into a military conflict, since a confrontation is just what most of the players in this chess game hope for. The US. recently decided to establish seven military bases on Venezuela's border in Columbia. If history has taught us anything, we know that a military solution would be ineffective and would only divert more of our limited financial resources into the pockets of the defense industry and those greedy military contractors who have served us so well in the recent past.

Of course, in a week or two, the USA could destroy Venezuela's 300 T—72 battle tanks, their Sakhoi S-30 fighter aircraft, and their Russian built ground to air missile systems; but to what end? These military assets are only tasty baits purposefully placed in Venezuela by Vladimir Putin, that, if taken by the United States, will initiate a chain of events that will isolate and weaken our Country. On April 2, 2010, Vladimir Putin paid a personal visit to President Chavez in Caracas. It is reported that Putin and Chavez signed economic, military and trade agreements and agreed to locate several Russian industrial plants in Venezuela. In addition, Russia agreed to loan Venezuela several billion dollars if needed.

It would be a mistake to underestimate our adversaries in this chess game. The most effective way to deal with Venezuela and the rest of our adversaries is to gradually wean our dependence off fossil fuels; a strategy that would be to our benefit in endless ways and leave our adversaries scratching their heads in disbelief and confusion.

I hope that America will activate its amazing creative energy and industrial capacity to address this challenge. It is time for the American People to demand that their government implement a winning long term energy strategy and adopt a sane and abundant energy source. We must end our Country's fatal addiction to petroleum. This addiction has nearly destroyed our economy and forced us into futile conflicts all over the globe. The leaders of the oil and gas industry have proven over and over again that they do not have our Nation's best interests at heart. In February of 2010 Chevron Oil agreed to partner with Venezuela and pay $1.2 billion for the right to develop a new oil field, Chevron will pay Venezuela another $80 billion over the life of the contract. Another larger development contract will go to a Russian consortium to develop Venezuela's largest oil field. This field is by some estimates the largest oil reserve in the world, the Hunin—6 deposit.

In November of 2011 the 99 percent of Americans demonstrated a glimmer of discontent with the "Status Quo". Time will tell if the Occupy Movement has any serious impact on corruption of the American financial system. It does seem like people have at least become more aware of the system they live under. Americans may indeed stand up and take the Country back from the corporate traitors who have risked our children's future in a quest for corporate quarterly profit instead of seeking long-term benefit with our national interest in mind. Fascist governments always turn on their own people eventually, I hope that does not happen this time. America's adversaries have identified our weaknesses and believe that corruption and greed will destroy our Democracy; the American people must take to the streets if necessary and demand change!