Yipe google tells me Alberta's oil sands are almost identical chemically to Venezuela's heavy crude oil. But Venezuela's is easier and cheaper to get out of the ground.
And actually Chavez sacked 23,000 experienced oil workers not 15,000. The start of his country's massive economic decline. He also went all in on oil. Neglecting Venezuela's other industries, the economy became less diversified. Farm production was neglected, more food and other goods had to be imported.
I guess he was a anti greenie, climate change denier.
He also went on a big social spending spree (all good if you have the hard currency export earnings), and then stuff like price and dollar/peso fixing which never tends to go well.
When the oil price tanked, and with production quickly falling the economy became a complete cluster fudge.
Anyway can the Yankees come in and turn it around. Gonna be an interesting couple of months. Best case is some sort of stability and free elections down the track. Worst case all out civil war and anarchy. And that has happened for periods since the 1940s in neighbours Colombia.
Hegseth and Rubio will need to play this out very smart. Their leverage might be capture and 30 years rotting in a US jail, for any of Maduro's major inner circle players (incl importantly the generals) who don't co-operate.
To me the major difference between this 'military operation' and others like Putin's Ukraine, is the majority of his countrymen/women wanted Maduro gone.
The fact that Russia and Iran are among the loudest to condemn Mr & Mrs Maduro's, unplanned trip to New York says it all.
And actually Chavez sacked 23,000 experienced oil workers not 15,000. The start of his country's massive economic decline. He also went all in on oil. Neglecting Venezuela's other industries, the economy became less diversified. Farm production was neglected, more food and other goods had to be imported.
I guess he was a anti greenie, climate change denier.
He also went on a big social spending spree (all good if you have the hard currency export earnings), and then stuff like price and dollar/peso fixing which never tends to go well.
When the oil price tanked, and with production quickly falling the economy became a complete cluster fudge.
Anyway can the Yankees come in and turn it around. Gonna be an interesting couple of months. Best case is some sort of stability and free elections down the track. Worst case all out civil war and anarchy. And that has happened for periods since the 1940s in neighbours Colombia.
Hegseth and Rubio will need to play this out very smart. Their leverage might be capture and 30 years rotting in a US jail, for any of Maduro's major inner circle players (incl importantly the generals) who don't co-operate.
To me the major difference between this 'military operation' and others like Putin's Ukraine, is the majority of his countrymen/women wanted Maduro gone.
The fact that Russia and Iran are among the loudest to condemn Mr & Mrs Maduro's, unplanned trip to New York says it all.