U.S. imposes first economic sanctions against Venezuela

a reply to: RAY1990

Im all for helping the Venezuelan people.
But do you really believe their government wouldnt just snatch up the supplies and do whatever they wanted with them?
How could we get the food to the people?

a reply to: Bluntone22

Maybe it needs an overhaul. It's a new century and they haven't changed much since the cold war.

In fact I'd urge for an overhaul. If we can't help the world together then it'll be done individually. Usually when nations offer such "charity" it doesn't come freely.

China is already taking over nations and lifting them out of poverty.

Ask yourself what future you want, for your/the kids, those suffering in other nations, your nation and the world.

The UN has a place, the world needs change. It may be selfish of me but I'd prefer change to be centered towards western values.

We are kinder generally... Not that we don't need change ourselves though. We do.

a reply to: Bluntone22

Use the UN lol.

What use is rice and water to a bunch of money grabbing corrupt government officials and elites of Venezuelan society?

Whom just happen to be fine dining on caviar and drinking champagne...

Don't get me wrong. Gasoline, medical supplies and other essentials of society could be confiscated. But then that could be a brilliant pretense for war. A war on humanitarian grounds.

a reply to: Bluntone22

I just feel so sorry for the Venezuelan people. From the richest country in the Caribbean to a literal jail cell of a life in less than a decade.

Duerme bien Venezolanos, que esta pesadilla tiene que acabar!

a reply to: Jonjonj

That tends to happen in dictatorships.

originally posted by: Bluntone22
a reply to: Jonjonj

That tends to happen in dictatorships.

Yep. And it is sad in every single case.

And what, exactly, are sanctions supposed to accomplish? Last time I checked, while Venezuela was a basket case, the nations problems are internal, and they have not been threatening or attacking their neighbors, or trying to destabilize the international community. Which is the point, ultimately, f sanctions. it is to starve off and diminish the power and capabilities of a government that threatens it's neighbors and region. Or, a government that is actively funding and supporting these things.

When you look at recent sanctions the U.S. has imposed on other countries, it is always countries that pose regional or international threats to stability and security. Saddam Hussein, Iran, North Korea....all these are countries with not only #ty dictatorships abusing the people, but the are also countries that were, or still are, threatening to attack and destroy their neighbors.

This is not the case with Maduro. He's definitely a total #bag of a leader who is ruining his own country, but that alone doesn't justify sanctions. If simply being a bad or evil leader or government were enough to justify sanctions, we would have sanctioned Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Israel, and other "allies" who do worse to their own people and neighbors than Maduro could ever dream of. Maduro, for the most part, it simply another cut and paste tin pot South American dictator ruining his country. Their problem, not ours.

I mean, what kind of idiot or mental midget thinks this stupid # up? Oh, wait,

The Trump administration banned trades of Venezuelan debt, prohibiting Maduro’s government and its state-run oil company, Petróleos de Venezuela SA, from selling new bonds to Americans or in U.S. financial institutions. President Donald Trump signed an executive order approving the sanctions Thursday. Read more here: www.miamiherald.com...=cpy

Mental midgets in question have been located. Of course. An idea this stupid could only come from the desk of Donald J Chump. I remember a couple weeks back, Trump actually said he was considering military action against Venezuela. An idea that sent all his generals into one massive fit of head-desking and facepalming.

Of course, of all the South American dysfunctional, #ty countries with corrupt governments and broken socieities, he chooses the only South American country not only with massive known and confirmed oil reserves, but also the only non-Arab/Middle Eastern member of OPEC.

Gee....wonder what this is really about, hmmmm?

originally posted by: RAY1990
a reply to: Bluntone22

Maybe it needs an overhaul. It's a new century and they haven't changed much since the cold war.

In fact I'd urge for an overhaul. If we can't help the world together then it'll be done individually. Usually when nations offer such "charity" it doesn't come freely.

China is already taking over nations and lifting them out of poverty.

Ask yourself what future you want, for your/the kids, those suffering in other nations, your nation and the world.

The UN has a place, the world needs change. It may be selfish of me but I'd prefer change to be centered towards western values.

We are kinder generally... Not that we don't need change ourselves though. We do.

Middle finger to the UN. They have not been relevant since the cold war.

And Im all for helping the world,but not for free. We have been giving and giving over 50 years and nothing to show for it. Time to charge for our services.

And LOL CHIna dont help anyone without a selfish motive. They will most likely try to bring in communism and rule those who they help out eventually.

a reply to: neo96

Citgo is mostly exempt from the sanctions.

Source

a reply to: yuppa

That's my point, China will take over the influence the west in general has.

Dude, we've exploited many of these nations we've "supported", just use Somalia as a blueprint for what we've accomplished in pretty much every third world nation.

By third world nation I mean any that wasn't aligned to the capitalist West or communist East.

Charging them for our help in bringing them up to humane standards of living won't work, China will win if we try that.

Screw the IMF, screw interest on charity. It won't work.

No strings attached aid and charity. On humanitarian grounds.

originally posted by: RAY1990
a reply to: yuppa

That's my point, China will take over the influence the west in general has.

Dude, we've exploited many of these nations we've "supported", just use Somalia as a blueprint for what we've accomplished in pretty much every third world nation.

By third world nation I mean any that wasn't aligned to the capitalist West or communist East.

Charging them for our help in bringing them up to humane standards of living won't work, China will win if we try that.

Screw the IMF, screw interest on charity. It won't work.

No strings attached aid and charity. On humanitarian grounds.

Oh we all know how great china is. One child policy..repressive regime...no freedom of speech. Yeah great role models for influence over a nation. CHina sucks worse than the rest.

a reply to: yuppa

Exactly.

So why would we pretty much encourage jolly foreigner to align to them?

a reply to: neo96

Also, Citgo was a major donator to the Trump campaign which is likely why they were largely exempted from the sanctions.

"The U.S. imposed its first economic penalties against Venezuela on Friday, hitting the South American country’s financial sector in an attempt to starve President Nicolás Maduro’s government of cash."


"Barring Venezuelan debt purchases could cripple Caracas’ ability to raise money to pay off interest on its growing national debt, as the oil-producing country has been doing in the middle of an unprecedented economic collapse."

US Oil Industry Warns Washington Over Venezuela Sanctions

So it would be bad for the US is they couldn't have access to Venezuelian oil anymore ? That surely explains why Citgo is exempted and why the embargo only targets individuals but not the oil business in itself but are the Venezuelian docile to US imperialism ?

Venezuelan Collapse? Wishful Thinking? Caracas Oil Deals with Russia and China

But the facts are different, and Venezuela has reacted. Initially, by borrowing from China and Russia against oil deliveries, but more importantly, it was recently announced that it had consigned its oil sales to Rosneft, the Russian oil and gas giant, who has so far sold the entire Venezuelan oil production until December, including sales to major US oil companies and refineries. This a smart move, that guarantees Venezuelan oil is neither embargoed, seized nor are its payments withheld.

Additionally, Venezuela continues to sell some of its oil assets (upstream and downstream) to Russia and China and hence ensuring proper funding for its oil operations.

If this development is allowed to continue, the chances of a Venezuelan (and Nigerian) oil production disruption diminish, and the argument for an oil price spike falters. Not only so, but in a worst-case scenario, Venezuela (and Nigeria) can, in desperation, dump oil on the markets and crash prices like never seen before.

From a geopolitical aspect, this means ever closer relations with Russia and China, which together with a couple more anti-western South American countries, could result in a ‘backyard’ full of pickles! Will it be allowed to happen, or are we about to witness another ‘North Korean’ drama, but this time in South America?