And any engineer or scientist with the ability to do sum and multiply beyond the simplest in sales is an egghead, not necessary and can as well go away if they insist on showing off.

We don’t sow, we don’t produce, we don’t process, we don’t research, we don’t develop. Save in the past, before 2003, in oil. We only sell, if that.

We have a “services” economy, minus the industrial management, shipping expertise, information technology, or real entrepreneurship. Grim indeed.

It should read like this:

“The opposition could reach out to the poor whenever they want, but what would be the fun in that? That ISN’T “power” – i.e. that doesn’t enhance opportunities to abuse power, etc….”

Sorry, I don’t understand this “That doesn’t enhance opportunities to abuse power. Etc….”

I often have wondered: how come so many – there are always exceptions- who grew up only in the wealthy east of Caracas or North of Valencia find it so hard to understand the rest of the country? I mean: yeah, it is VERY different, it can be frustrating to have to explain this and that, but there is no way around it unless they think Chacao-Baruta is going to drift apart from Venezuela and become an independent state in the Caribbean (with independent oil wells to easily tap from)

You are from another country and you don’t live in Venezuela and you know it. Only a few of the Venezuela-born politicians in opposition we have are starting to slowly realise it…now, in the year 2010.

The opposition could reach out to the poor whenever they want, but what would be the fun in that? That is “power”. That doesn’t enhance opportunities to abuse power. Etc….

There are references galore to this in Humboldt’s diaries in Venezuela.
Just a piece:

“The city of Nueva Valencia occupies a considerable extent of ground,
but its population scarcely amounts to six or seven thousand souls.
The streets are very broad, the market place, (plaza mayor,) is of
vast dimensions; and, the houses being low, the disproportion between
the population of the town, and the space that it occupies, is still
greater than at Caracas. Many of the whites, (especially the poorest,)
forsake their houses, and live the greater part of the year in their
little plantations of indigo and cotton, where they can venture to
work with their own hands; which, according to the inveterate
prejudices of that country, would be a disgrace to them in the town.
“

What will wake Venezuela up? Starvation. No food, no one with the interest and ability to grow food, no one who cares about food except that they have some.

The Venezuelans who read this blog don’t grow food, most wouldn’t dream of putting their hands in the soil, and they consider those who do to be very low class. How it is. With that attitude, they deserve to starve. And likely will.

In the USA, a small farmer has cachet, they grow a valuable crop that is in demand. Many, many of the people I work with are former or present IT professionals who have found an equal intellectual challenge in agriculture; they are creating new realities and super good food and being paid well for doing so.

It’s the same in Europe. A small farmer growing a high-quality crop is respected. A master craftsman is what he is, and he is rewarded. In Venezuela, no craftsman and no grower gets the least respect; all respect goes to those who produce nothing of value, but only steal, cheat, and figure ways to play games with money.

Do you have seeds to grow food? Probably not. Venezuela even imports the seeds to grow the few bits of food they produce. People who can’t figure out that food is important enough to grow their own deserve to starve.

Wait and you’ll see this or other similar used by an government official.

About two centuries ago the first thing Miranda said when Bolívar betrayed him to escape was “Bochinche, bochinche, esta gente no sabe hacer sino bochinche”.

Deananash,

Many of those very poor could turn against Chavismo, but to do that we actually have to talk to them and present a plan that includes them. At this stage, after 10 years, there is very little of that, very little. You don’t reach them by going on Globovision. You don’t reach them by writing on Internet. You don’t reach them by organizing meetings in El Hatillo or Altamira or in Parque Negra Hipólita in Northern Valencia.

And it is not just going to the slums in Caracas and Valencia. Somehow the opposition seems to think the rest is just “tiny villages”. Most Venezuelans live in secondary cities and the oppo is almost never there.

We actually have some oppos within poor groups, but it is in spite of our political leaders, not because of them.

Second, MOST PEOPLE (I’m talking about you, dear commentator and friend) DO NOT understand that the core of Chavez supports (here I’m talking about the poor, not his corrupt cronies) were dirt poor to begin with and are QUITE SATISFIED with seeing the rest of the population share in their poverty. To them, the “rich” are getting their just desserts.

Best wishes from europe