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Comrade Chavez Threatens Confiscation Of Grocery Stores
This is what happens when you give complete power to a tyrant. From BreitBart News:
President Hugo Chavez threatened Wednesday to nationalize any privately owned supermarkets and food storage facilities caught hoarding inventories or violating price controls imposed on basic goods.Accusing private companies of hoarding beef and other foods, Chavez warned supermarket owners and distributors that he would nationalize their facilities as soon as they gave him "an excuse."
"If they remain committed to violating the interests of the people, the constitution, the laws, I'm going to take the food storage units, corner stores, supermarkets and nationalize them," Chavez said during a televised broadcast. "So prepare yourselves!"
Chavez has been intent on nationalizing "strategic" sectors of the economy since winning re-election in December. He has moved quickly to buy out private interests in leading electricity and phone companies since the National Assembly gave him authority to enact sweeping measures by decree and accelerate the country's socialist transformation.
Comrade Chavez, having gained the power to execute is will by decree, bypassing the legislative process and all checks and balances, has already moved to nationalize energy and telecom sectors. As some of those sectors had foreign interests, he could not outright confiscate the businesses in total, but was forced to buy the foreign interests. There is no such roadblock when it comes to grocery stores.
No proof of violations is necessary, only accusations. If storeowners are violating price controls, it is most likely because they have a need to make a living. Price controls tend to make it very difficult for a business to make a profit, especially if they are set below the cost of production.
Should Comrade Chavez confiscate these businesses, it will be the people of Venezuela who will lose, not just the storeowners and their employees.
Hey, jazz and annarboriter, still think Venezuela is a model of Democracy?
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