http://news.monstersandcritics.com/..._to_rule_by_decree_legislature_says__Roundup_ Chavez to rule by decree, legislature says (Roundup) By Nestor Rojas Jan 31, 2007, 22:50 GMT Caracas - Venezuela's National Assembly granted President Hugo Chavez unprecedented power to rule by decree on Wednesday, vastly increasing his authority to move forward on his leftist agenda in every area of the country's life from the oil industry to telecommunications to banking. Chavez was given the special powers for 18 months by a legislature fully controlled by his party and a handful of allies. The lawmakers took their celebratory vote under the open air and tropical blue skies of Caracas's main square, Plaza Bolivar, where ordinary Venezuelans also gathered. National Assembly Speaker Cilia Flores asked for a show of hands from dozens of government supporters congregated below the statue of Venezuelan and Latin American independence hero Simon Bolivar. 'Approved unanimously, with the vote of the people,' she proclaimed. Chavez did not attend the ceremony, and was represented by Vice President Jorge Rodriguez, who joked about criticism from home and abroad that the move has turned Chavez into a dictator. 'See how dictatorial, to make power in the hands of the state go directly to the people, and to legislate so that it goes directly to the people,' Rodriguez said, referring to the show of hands in the plaza. 'A dictatorship is what we had before, the dictatorship of a few. We want to insure the dictatorship of true democracy,' he added. With his new powers, Chavez will be capable of enacting sweeping changes to government institutions, local elections, finance and taxes, banking, national defence, and the energy field as he attempts to establish a socialist system. The country's opposition boycotted the last legislative election in 2005. Opposition parties have criticized the latest move as a step toward totalitarianism in the fifth-largest oil exporter in the world. Protestors were scant in sight on Wednesday. But last weekend, they demonstrated against another of Chavez's moves to lift the television license held by the critical broadcaster RCTV, holding up signs depicting Chavez holding a rifle. 'This does not come out of elections,' the slogan said. 'Let us rescue the homeland.' The controversial left-wing populist Chavez - who also was given special powers in 2001 - earlier this month announced plans to nationalize the country's largest electricity and telecommunications firms and end the autonomy of the Central Bank. Last week, he expropriated the Charallave private airport outside of Caracas. He also wants to remove presidential term limits from the constitution, raising the spectre of a leader with the ambition to hold on to the reins of power as did his political idol, Cuba's Fidel Castro, who has reigned for 47 years. The newspaper El Mundo ran the headline 'Super Chavez,' shortly before the end of the special assembly session. Chavez's tenure has raised concerns in the United States that he has marginalized democracy. Relations between the two countries have grown increasingly sour in recent years. The US intelligence czar, John Negroponte, on Tuesday warned that Chavez was a threat to democratic governance in the region. US President George Bush on Wednesday said Chavez's nationalization plans 'will make it harder for the Venezuelan people to be lifted out of poverty (and) will make it harder for the people to realize their full potential.' 'I'm concerned about the Venezuelan people,' Bush said in an interview with Fox News Channel. 'And I'm worried about the diminution of democratic institutions.' US State Department spokesman Sean McCormack told reporters Wednesday the National Assembly decision raises 'some eyebrows' but that the United States will withhold judgement until determining how Chavez employs his new authority. 'We'll see how he uses these powers during the next 18 months and see whether he uses them in the furtherance of Venezuelan democracy,' McCormack said.
The Venezuelan government, under the pretense of helping the people takes ownership of the largest and most productive Venezuelan business. Chavez rules by decree. Political opponents can be suppressed. Chavez might have honorable intentions but his successor may not. If I lived in Venezuela I would leave the country now, or at least set up a bank account in another country to prepare my escape.
What I would like to see happen in the Chavez case.... ........................................................................................... Man...it does not matter who owns the company...it does not matter if it is the government...some corporation..... The only way that productive assets can create their maximum value is on a free stock exchange...If these assets are not allowed to be posted on an exchange....then the amount of money that could be spread around drops like a stone... This is where Chavez has it wrong....he is in effect scaring away this premium value... ........................................................................................... It is this simple....someone needs to prove out that there is more money that can be spread around by providing the proper governmental environment that will allow this to happen.....
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070207/lf_nm/venezuela_socialism_dc;_ylt=ArjDP_Bf1sF_rtIUDNl5_nNKTb8F By Christian Oliver Tue Feb 6, 8:03 PM ET CARACAS (Reuters) - "Fish lay eggs, don't they?" Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez asked Mary Quintero, a student at an agricultural collective who had just reached the half-way point of her course on fish-processing. She was stumped. The first half of her course had focused on the doctrines of socialism and had not mentioned fish, pregnant or otherwise. During a television show last month, Chavez grilled workers at several socialist projects that are meant to be the bedrock of the OPEC nation's new economy. Many politicians would have blushed at the results. Some workers were studying to grow medicinal herbs for which there was no suitable soil in the region. One admitted the trucks promised to a coffee plantation would not be able to negotiate most of farm's pot-holed roads. But Chavez was undaunted, seeing the principle of the socialist collective as far more important than profits. "Can you assure us all the resources here are being invested in furthering the path of 21st century socialism and not bolstering capitalism and perversion?" he asked a collective director. She agreed socialism was on course. MAINSTREAM ECONOMY This anti-capitalist ideology is now reaching into mainstream sectors of the economy, not just fish roe, aloe vera and coffee beans. Chavez is pressing ahead with an intensive program of nationalizations, targeting foreign investors as he takes over oil and gas fields, giant cattle ranches, power utilities and Venezuela's No. 1 telecommunications firm. Business and opposition leaders say he is ruining the economy. Washington paints Chavez as an authoritarian leader who is threatening democracy in Latin America and whose nationalizations will be an economic failure. "The economy cannot be bossed about and does not respond to whims. It rebels against barrack-room orders," opposition pollster Luis Vicente Leon wrote in an editorial in the El Universal daily, picking up on Chavez's military roots. Some Wall Street investors believe Chavez will be forced to soften his policies and cut back popular handouts to the poor as international oil prices ease and the economy weakens. The inflation rate is now above 18 percent, food prices have surged 31 percent in the last year, shops are reporting shortages in basic foodstuffs, and the currency is trading at more than twice the official rate. But Chavez is not easily dissuaded and he cites high growth, which the central bank has estimated at 10.3 percent for last year, as a sign his socialist revolution is working. He has also proved in the past that he sticks to his guns even when faced with economic problems. Locked in a political battle with the striking oil industry, Chavez watched the economy contract by 8.9 percent in 2002 and then 7.7 percent in 2003 but didn't back down. "The view in the market is that Chavez has lived up to the repercussions of what he does. Not only did he stare down the strikers in 2002-2003 but he has devalued the currency," said Christian Stracke, Latin America specialist at CreditSights. Chavez defends gutting the state oil company of its managers and many of its specialists in 2003 by saying they were effectively attempting a coup. He was willing to accept the production gremlins their departure caused. OPEC pegged Venezuela crude output at about 3 million barrels per day (bpd) before the strike. Most analysts reckon Venezuela is now straining to pump about 2.6 million bpd. BIT BETWEEN HIS TEETH Nationalizations are only part of a radical program Chavez has launched since winning landslide reelection in December. He has won powers to rule by decree, wants a single governing party and seeks an end to presidential term limits. "He has the bit between his teeth and feels very confident. He is going to plow ahead," said Michael Shifter, Latin America analyst at the Inter-American Dialogue think-tank. "But he may have to pull back if there are obvious failures." Leon also believes Chavez will have to rein in his post-electoral enthusiasm when he wakes up to the damage his reforms are doing. "It will not be easy for Chavez to affect the production of the private sector without compromising his room for maneuver, and when he finally understands that, I do not think he is going to commit hara-kiri," he said. Critics have said Venezuela's repeated calls for an OPEC output cut to push up prices shows nervousness about income. Stracke disagrees, saying Chavez will easily keep his firm support among Venezuela's poor, particularly with local crude at $48, and that the handouts central to his popularity are one of the easiest parts of the budget to maintain. "It is just a small percentage of GDP. He has done a good job of avoiding budget promises that could bring the government to its knees. If oil goes to $20 (a barrel), there could be subsidy problems but free-lunch operations are very inexpensive."
This article demonstrates the impact of price controls implemented in Venezuela Meat, sugar scarce in Venezuela stores http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070208/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/venezuela_food_crunch Similarly this type of government driven economics and nationalization efforts will impact stock markets in the region.
There are lots of retards on this forum who would tell it can work if done correctly. Chavez calls this 21st Century socialism. "How many times must a man......."
A very large percentage of the educated professional class has left the country. And why not, wouldn't you? This is the biggest long-term negative for what Chavez is doing to the country.
It's a replay of what happens every time leftists get in power. They centralize control, put in price controls, and exactly the same thing happens every time that I know of.... The mob gets lots of business via the black market and becomes the ruler of a big portion of the economy and they do business with people from outside the country who can then get the government to do whatever the big money guys want. After awhile even the government leaders realize they are figure heads at best and it settles into an equilibrium where the figureheads, the mob and the big money guys from outside all want the status quo. The Oil companies in the US will save Venezuela's oil for when the rest is running out maybe and the arms guys will convince everybody that Venezuela is a threat and sell all sorts of stuff. When it all collapses the figureheads, after living a very good life through theft from the middle and upper classes, go to work as highly paid consultants acting as middlemen for outsiders that want to come in and loot or do business, whatever, and the mob guys take over the government and "privatize" the state owned businesses (take ownership). When Russia collapsed there were lines of trucks miles long waiting to get across the border for months, the entire country was looted of everything of value that was not bolted down, bureaucrats were selling the natural resources, just anybody that could get control of anything for 5 minutes was selling it. It is interesting to watch actually, but not good for the poor people unless they suffer from extreme jealousy-anxiety, because in a leftist state you never see the wealthy people so you can't be jealous. I suppose some extreme environmentalists that want people to live like serfs in the 10th century might think this is all good but anybody else that thinks so has to be crazier than the extreme environmentalists even.