He's starting to remind me of Vladimir Putin, actually. As much as I feel for the people of Venezuela, this development really doesn't affect the U.S. As I have pointed out in the past, oil is fungible. We don't need oil specifically from Venezuela.
Furthermore, goons like Chavez and Putin overestimate their leverage through control over oil and gas. Bottom line- if they refused to sell oil into the world market, we could all work from home, share cars, take mass transit, use alternative fuels, etc, and we would make due. But if we stop buying their oil, they are screwed because they don't have anything else to bank on (especially Chavez). On 1/10/07, Gruss wrote: > > Chavez now wants to scrap presidential term limits and lead the OPEC > nation for decades. > > By now focusing on the media and utilities in his new term, he is > homing in on two sectors that could complete his state control. > > Emboldened by his landslide re-election win, the typically combative > anti-U.S. leader has gone on the attack, deciding to strip a private > opposition TV channel of its license and take over some major > companies owned by foreign investors. > > Chavez insists he needs more power to save Venezuela from exploitation > and even attack by capitalist countries, particularly the United > States, whose President George W. Bush he has labeled "the devil." > > Chavez has already confiscated large cattle ranches. But his decision > to nationalize the country's biggest telecommunications company CANTV > and power firms represents a bold new policy. > > http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070110/ts_nm/venezuela_dc_8 > > Future Hussein anyone? anyone? -- --------------- Robert Munn www.funkymojo.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~| Create robust enterprise, web RIAs. Upgrade & integrate Adobe Coldfusion MX7 with Flex 2 http://ad.doubleclick.net/clk;56760587;14748456;a?http://www.adobe.com/products/coldfusion/flex2/?sdid=LVNU Archive: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/CF-Community/message.cfm/messageid:224405 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/CF-Community/subscribe.cfm Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=89.70.5
