Saturday, March 26, 2016

The Bizarre Reality of Venezuela’s Energy Crisis

The Bizarre Reality of Venezuela’s Energy Crisis:
"Venezuela is facing an electricity shortage so severe that President Nicolas Maduro extended the national Easter holiday by decree to decrease demand for it.
The government is effectively shutting down the country for five days with the hopes of staving off an impending infrastructural collapse.
That’s right: The country with the largest proven oil reserves in the world is facing an energy crisis.
In spite of enjoying a decade-long oil bonanza, the government failed to invest in the maintenance of existing infrastructure, let alone in its expansion.
...The government’s response has been to throw money at the problem, grind the country to a halt with the hopes that it works, and in the meantime pray for rain.
Venezuelans have been forced to light candles and live their lives accounting for potential outages.
...If one is looking to understand the effects of 21st-century socialism, look no farther than its birthplace.
It depends on oil exports for its income and on rain to keep the lights on..."

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