******************** POSTING RULES & NOTES ******************** #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly & permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. *****************************************************************
A warning, however. Pasqualina's article (a chapter in her book) contains no statistics beyond 2013, that is, before the precipitous drop in hydrocarbons prices on the world (and Venezuelan) market. That changed a lot, if not everything. A few months ago, she published an article arguing that Venezuela was not really dependent on hydrocarbon exploitation, or at least not nearly as dependent as is commonly thought. See Mitos sobre la economía venezolana (I) (versión ilustrada), http://www.15yultimo.com/2017/06/17/mitos-sobre-la-economia-venezolana-i-version-ilustrada/. She also argued that manufacturing production had held up well in the recent period, another unconventional reading. She promised a follow-up article outlining what she thinks is the road to be taken now toward "overcoming the so-called rentist petroleum model," but to date I am unable to locate it. Richard -----Original Message----- From: Marxism [mailto:marxism-boun...@lists.csbs.utah.edu] On Behalf Of Ralph Johansen via Marxism Sent: Tuesday, October 24, 2017 1:56 PM To: rfid...@ncf.ca Subject: Re: [Marxism] Fwd: Economic warfare in in Venezuela | MR Online ******************** POSTING RULES & NOTES ******************** #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly & permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. ***************************************************************** [Ellner intro cut] What is written here raises a lot of questions: This book The Visible Hand of the Market: Economic Warfare in Venezuela has been written to correct for pervasive misinformation peddled by global politicians and media. It purports to detail how national food, medicines and hygiene products monopolies have contrived to produce disruption, disaffection and chaos. Chavez's death and the little-known Maduro's accession, severely weakened as he narrowly won against all the forces arrayed against him, presented the oligarchy with their golden opportunity. They haven't carried it off. The book lists their main weapons: 1) planned shortage of essential materials; 2) induced inflation; 3) boycott in the supply of basic goods; 4) covert trade embargo and 5) international financial blockade, with gigantic transnational corporations and imperial power behind it all. Add to this bitter, protracted counter-revolutionary obstruction in the streets. Despite massive opposition from banking, industry, market forces, the media and many in the bureaucracy, the wealthy classes and powerful US imperialist opposition, and of course with the positive support of the mass of the less well-off and abjectly poor sectors of the country, could it be of significance that because the military still supports the Bolivarian project throughout all the opposition's antics (unlike Chile in 1973) that it is still standing? Few know at close hand the machinations of corporate power as do the military, Chavez after all was one of them, and the oligarchy has failed to win them over. Are the failure of disruptive tactics, street warfare, divisions in opposition leadership, and elections just completed favorable to the government (winning 18 of 21 gubernatorial contests), a sign of a turnaround and the spluttering defeat of the counter-revolution? Are the essential moral and material resources of the regime and above all of the people, and course-correction in the design of the revolution going forward enough? Petrol prices are rising again. What next? As in pre-revolutionary Russia, people must be hungering for reliable, honest, resolute leadership, information and a road map. This book, ordered by Maduros to be distributed massively as part of the new offensive, and its prompt translation into English, the language of imperial power, could conceivably have enormous consequences in aid of the revolution. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ --- This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software. https://www.avast.com/antivirus _________________________________________________________ Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm Set your options at: http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/rfidler%40ncf.ca --- This email has been checked for viruses by AVG. http://www.avg.com _________________________________________________________ Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm Set your options at: http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
