Leading pollster, Oscar Schemel of the Hinterlaces Company (Grupo Hinterlaces), was interviewed yesterday regarding the economic war in Venezuela. He stated clearly that evidence gathered in interviews indicate that the population is becoming increasingly neurotic. This is due to the combination of the psychological war in the media, text messages and social media, and the uncertainty of finding basic products at regulated prices in the supermarkets.

Schemel summed up his findings by classifying the “neurotic and potentially chaotic” situation as a psychological strategy typical of fourth generation, low intensity warfare - designed to eventually overthrow the government. Only 2% of people interviewed thought that taking to the streets was a “solution” to the economic war.

Wishful Thinking

Opposition figures known to the author reveal they are betting on people taking to the streets to oust the Maduro government as a result of engineered shortages and induced inflation in Venezuela. This is a carbon copy of what the CIA organized and executed so successfully in the 1970s in Chile, to overthrow Salvador Allende, and to weaken the Sandinista Revolution in Nicaragua at the end of the 1980s.

The private media – TV, radio, press, social media and text messaging – are all calling for a “change in the economic model” to solve the situation of shortages and are demanding more subsidized dollars for imports. The “change” is one of liberated prices and all the dollars they want not needed to satisfy consumer demand – in other words a return to the disastrous 1990s when inflation was over 100% per year, with wages frozen and 80% of the population living below the poverty line. Not one of these opposition actors recognizes that the problem lies with the distributors and wholesalers slowing down deliveries and hoarding products.

Yesterday, in a debate in the National Assembly, opposition deputy Hiram Gaviria said quite clearly that the problem was one of “production not distribution”. The evidence of tons of food, cleaning, and personal hygiene products being found by the authorities uncovers Gaviria’s assertions as pure political propaganda. It is an excuse to demand more dollars from the Central Bank for his business cohorts to line their pockets. Even local evidence in East Caracas proves that distributors are not delivering regularly so far this year.

Confiscated contraband

The National Guard discovered 30 tons of sugar destined for illegal shipment to Colombia in Zulia state yesterday.

Also in Zulia, 980 kilos of rice were found hidden in vegetable boxes also destined for Colombia. It looks as if smugglers are now using methods similar to drug traffickers.

The following chart illustrates the absurdity of assertions that there is a shortage of basic products in Venezuela due to production shortfalls and government inefficiency. The available products are made from the basic products being hidden, smuggled and hoarded.

Government inspectors have verified that factories producing basic products are working normally now - so the problem is in the distribution chain in the hands of the private sector.

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