The 'Tragedy' of Venezuela: Film Shows How Oil-Rich Nation Was Destroyed From the Inside
*By Bridgette Webb*
Venezuela, once among the wealthiest economies in Latin America, is now in a state of crisis.
According to Brian Price, executive producer of a new documentary "Venezuela: State of Disaster'" decades of greed and corruption have created an impenetrable barrier.
"They had tremendous oil resources and still do," Price said in an interview on Cheddar Wednesday.
"Right now they are sitting on 300 million barrels of oil ー in a conservative market call it $1 trillion dollars worth ー and they have no way of extracting that wealth because the entire system of extraction has been completely decimated."
Venezuela’s drop in oil production volumes was the largest global unplanned fall in crude oil in 2017. That trend has continued. Oil production in the nation now stands at its lowest level in more than 50 years.
Of the oil that is produced, much of it is being used to pay off interest on Venezuela's massive debt load to countries like China and Russia. Venezuela has borrowed billions of dollars from the two over the years, mostly through oil-for-loan deals.
The economic crisis is also hitting Venezuela's public health system.
In addition to a shortage of doctors, nurses, and supplies, Price said even the most basic needs of patients can't be met.
"They have to ask patients to bring their own light bulb when they check in the hospital because there is no light in the room. It's a good and it has value and people will steal that from the hospital," he said.
Meanwhile, the President of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, has been steadily shifting the country from a democratic nation into a dictatorship.
Since he was elected back in 2013 Maduro has consolidated power by jailing would-be competition and neutralizing any opposition.
Although his presidency is slated to end on Jan. 10 2019, Maduro is expected to be "re-inaugurated" that day on the basis of elections held last May, which are widely viewed as fraudulent.
There have already been rumblings that the International community is ready to act against Maduro, though Price believes it will be very challenging to remove him from power.
"He will do whatever he has to do to stay in power ー \[including\] moving up an election, that was supposed to occur in December because it fit his needs. He is a corrupt leader, like any dictator you have to be skeptical of any tactics he uses, specifically because he wants to stay in power."
As the U.S. continues to face supply chain shortages, President Joe Biden is reassuring U.S. consumers that the supply chain is in "very strong shape" ahead of the all-important holiday season. As supply bottlenecks start to show signs of improvement, the industry may be faced with yet another challenge: the Omicron variant. Rob Caucci, Co-Founder & Co-CEO of Fillogic joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss.
Markets rebounded Monday morning after Friday's deep sell-off that saw the Dow suffer its worse day since 2020. It comes as investors continue to react to the impact of the omicron variant on the broader reopening. Eddie Ghabour, Co-Owner at the Key Advisors Group joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss.
Markets bounced back this morning with travel leading the gains after plunging on Monday as the first case of Omicron was detected in the U.S. Jimmy Lee, CEO, Wealth Consulting Group joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss.
The market saw investors react to comments by the World Health Organization's chief scientist, who suggested existing vaccines are likely to offer protection against the new variant. According to Thomas Hayes, chairman of Great Hill Capital, the next two weeks will be crucial as the markets watch for not only the effects of the Omicron variant, but also the Fed's decision on a taper.
It's Friday at long last. Jill and Carlo cover the latest on Omicron, including a possible superspreader event in NYC. Plus, previewing the November jobs report, a new Zoom feature no one asked for, and when it's no longer a good idea to eat Thanksgiving leftovers.
Following the Mississippi abortion case, the fate of Roe V. Wade is at stake. A decision is expected next summer, right around the time midterm candidates will be making their cases to voters. Laura Packard, executive director of Health Care Voter, joins Cheddar News to discuss how the ruling will impact upcoming elections.
Stock markets around the world continue to be impacted by fears of the new Omicron COVID-19 variant. President Biden today reiterated his stance that the new strain is cause for concern, but not cause for panic. Wells Fargo Investment Institute Global Equity Strategist Scott Wren joined Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
Jill and Carlo discuss what appears to be the beginning of the end of Roe v. Wade, another victim dies following the school shooting in Michigan, Omicron in the U.S., Trump's Covid chronology and more.
