So let's review the regime's problems just this week,
What if there were internal elections and nobody came? It is exactly what happened this Sunday. The regime's political facade, PSUV, held internal elections. Some inside PSUV dare to claim something like 7 million members (more than the votes they get at general elections). Cooler heads inside the PSUV satisfy themselves with 5 millions. More realistic observers do not go much further than 2 millions. Whatever it is, the participation may have not reached the half a million. That the regime refuses to give numbers "because we do not want the enemy to know exactly how many we are" is a true confession of the paucity of enthusiasm inside the PSUV. In fact, even Telesur manages a triumphant article without giving a single number of votes. They say there were more than 400,000 candidates, really, which would allow us to believe that there must have been at least the same number of votes. No?
Whatever... Sunday was a bust by any standard, abundantly observed by the opposition, amazed at the negative landslide, almost unable to believe its good luck...
What if your currency lost more than 30% in less than 30 days? Let's be generous and assume that the bolivar lost 1% a day only against the Dollar. You do not believe me? On November 1st the black market rate was at 103. Today, November 26, we reached 137 Bs. for a dollar.
It cannot be clearer than that: people are desperate to buy dollars at truly ridiculous price because they know inflation will speed up and dollar availability will become worse. Kind of wallet voting if you please.
What if your jails went again into chaos? Which is exactly what is happening yet again. We had a break out of at least 41 inmates, some considered dangerous, early today. Those that cannot escape may chose to commit suicide. Thirteen of them today unless you chose to agree with the version that they "intoxicated" with some kind of food poisoning that included massive swallowing of barbiturates and psychotropic substances...
And more, I am sure, if I had the time to dig further.
So what is a repressive regime to do? Very simple, you put more opposition leaders in jail and accuse them of everything, including the weather.
Today it was the turn of Maria Corina Machado. See, the woman was accused last March of conspiring to kill Maduro. Yet, such tremendous charge could not be sustained (so to speak since there is no concrete evidence). Only this week did the regime start the proceeding to make sure she goes to jail soon, á la Leopoldo Lopez. For good measure the regime decided that there was indeed a conspiracy that involved, curiously, only its bêtes noires. I have named Diego Arria, Pedro Burelli, Henrique Salas, just to list the more notorious ones.
Of course Maria Corina is ready and started by posting the citation on her twitter account.
What surprises (not) more here is that the increasing international outcry over Lopez jail is not making the regime pause. Such must be the desperation and infighting inside chavismo that the only thing they can come up with, the only thing that kind bind them together, is recklessly to raise the ante, move towards flagrant dictatorship, mock international opinion, before reaching the inevitable end of the road: start internal purges in the most totalitarian way.
After last Sunday me thinks that Marea Socialista may find itself in the cell next to the one of Maria Corina.
What if there were internal elections and nobody came? It is exactly what happened this Sunday. The regime's political facade, PSUV, held internal elections. Some inside PSUV dare to claim something like 7 million members (more than the votes they get at general elections). Cooler heads inside the PSUV satisfy themselves with 5 millions. More realistic observers do not go much further than 2 millions. Whatever it is, the participation may have not reached the half a million. That the regime refuses to give numbers "because we do not want the enemy to know exactly how many we are" is a true confession of the paucity of enthusiasm inside the PSUV. In fact, even Telesur manages a triumphant article without giving a single number of votes. They say there were more than 400,000 candidates, really, which would allow us to believe that there must have been at least the same number of votes. No?
Whatever... Sunday was a bust by any standard, abundantly observed by the opposition, amazed at the negative landslide, almost unable to believe its good luck...
What if your currency lost more than 30% in less than 30 days? Let's be generous and assume that the bolivar lost 1% a day only against the Dollar. You do not believe me? On November 1st the black market rate was at 103. Today, November 26, we reached 137 Bs. for a dollar.
It cannot be clearer than that: people are desperate to buy dollars at truly ridiculous price because they know inflation will speed up and dollar availability will become worse. Kind of wallet voting if you please.
What if your jails went again into chaos? Which is exactly what is happening yet again. We had a break out of at least 41 inmates, some considered dangerous, early today. Those that cannot escape may chose to commit suicide. Thirteen of them today unless you chose to agree with the version that they "intoxicated" with some kind of food poisoning that included massive swallowing of barbiturates and psychotropic substances...
And more, I am sure, if I had the time to dig further.
So what is a repressive regime to do? Very simple, you put more opposition leaders in jail and accuse them of everything, including the weather.
Today it was the turn of Maria Corina Machado. See, the woman was accused last March of conspiring to kill Maduro. Yet, such tremendous charge could not be sustained (so to speak since there is no concrete evidence). Only this week did the regime start the proceeding to make sure she goes to jail soon, á la Leopoldo Lopez. For good measure the regime decided that there was indeed a conspiracy that involved, curiously, only its bêtes noires. I have named Diego Arria, Pedro Burelli, Henrique Salas, just to list the more notorious ones.
Of course Maria Corina is ready and started by posting the citation on her twitter account.
Acaba d llegar comisión SEBIN a mi casa c/ Boleta d Citación Fiscalía 20 p/realizar formal imputación caso magnicidio pic.twitter.com/tzCP1wuKy2
— María Corina Machado (@MariaCorinaYA) November 26, 2014What surprises (not) more here is that the increasing international outcry over Lopez jail is not making the regime pause. Such must be the desperation and infighting inside chavismo that the only thing they can come up with, the only thing that kind bind them together, is recklessly to raise the ante, move towards flagrant dictatorship, mock international opinion, before reaching the inevitable end of the road: start internal purges in the most totalitarian way.
After last Sunday me thinks that Marea Socialista may find itself in the cell next to the one of Maria Corina.