Venezuela: Seizing corn meal an option [price controls and communism]

Business Week/Associated Press ^ | January 17, 2006

[sarasmom]

Who is "John Gault" in real life?

[Redbob]

That'll work once, but come next fall...

[proud_yank]

Lets not forget that they voted this idiot in to office. Let them get a good, long taste of socialism.

Hopefully, our liberals will remember that 30 years from now, when Venezuela is in shambles and its up to us to send them money because people there are starving. In a nutshell: NO.

[proud_yank]

how rewarding would it be for us to send a few ships filled with corn and arepas down to Hugoland after his little NYC oil stunt?

[vrwc0915]

They won't "it will be different this time"

[TheDon]

They are following the European example.

[winner3000]

(The consumer protection agency, Indecu, has seized more than 150 metric tons (165 tons) of powdered milk this month)

I can't wait to see how many metric tons of powdered milk will be produced next month!

[proud_yank]

Silly me. They just didn't 'try hard enough'.

[No Longer Free State]

Keep it up, Hugo, baby. That country will be ripe for a popular uprising in no time flat. Thanks for the help.

[Abcdefg]

Nixon tried wage and price controls in 1971. Didn't work then either.

[ol' hoghead]

Communism promotes equality. Every one is equally poor and hungry, except the rulers.

[kublia khan]

Well Chaves I guess now we know where you got the money to send that heating oil to new England. Your just another third world thug starving your own people with policy's that have a 80 year history of failure.

[Hardastarboard]

Indecu, has seized more than 150 metric tons (165 tons) of powdered milk this month from companies hoarding the products

Jesus, what a bunch of economic ILLITERATES

Can these b@$t@rds be any more stupid? Companies expend precious cash to buy a product that they then HOARD? Any CEO in the world would be fired on the spot for such an outrageously stupid business strategy, especially with a perishable product. Commies (and Democrats, same thing) have no understanding of even basic economics or business. And the rules of economics are like the laws of physics, they can't be repealed or beaten.

[Bogeygolfer]

"Can these b@$t@rds be any more stupid? Companies expend precious cash to buy a product that they then HOARD? Any CEO in the world would be fired on the spot for such an outrageously stupid business strategy, especially with a perishable product."

Not sure who you are referencing but it's fairly common to take losses in the short term to protect your long term viability.

"And the rules of economics are like the laws of physics, they can't be repealed or beaten."

I beg to differ. Macro Economic laws are often as simple as the average or end result and by definition are often beaten. Physics you might say is a more exact science while economics is subject to diverse and conflicting points of view.

[Chode]

and Atlas PUKED!!!

[hedgetrimmer]

Its perfectly 'legal' under a "free trade" agreement to export price controlled products. Chavez is a good "free trader".

[hedgetrimmer]

Nothing Chavez is doing violates any "free trade" agreement. You see, "free traders" embrace communists. They embrace China, although China enslaves their people in laogai to produce goods for "free trade". They welcome Viet Nam into their waiting arms, although they use forms of slavery as well. Now if Chavez wants to starve his people so other consumers can get stuff cheaper, why thats the name of the game to "free traders".

[1rudeboy]

In case you didn't read it, this article mentions price controls and expropriation. [chuckle]

[1rudeboy]

That would be truly hilarious.

[CGTRWK]

You want to see price controls and communism, look no further than right here. As of 2003 the US government has stockpiled 650,000 tons of powdered milk - about $1 billion worth. This is bought from dairy farmers for no reason other than keeping the prices up.

If every cow in the country dropped dead tomorrow, this stockpile contains enough milk to supply the entire country for 16 months. It sits in caves and warehouses for a few years until it's unfit for human consumption and then sold as animal feed for a few dollars per ton.