MOA—Venezuela is not in need of U.S. aid. It is need of an end to the economic sanctions that put it under a medieval siege. There is no current lack of food or medicine like in Yemen though some products may run short. The UN, the Red Cross and Caritas already have aid distribution projects within Venezuela. They reject the U.S. aid delivery as a political stunt. The International Committee of the Red Cross recently doubled its budget for Venezuela to $18 million and is ready to provide more. Last week 933 tonnes of medicines from Cuba and China arrived. Another 300 tons from Russia is supposed to arrive today.
WORLD DESK
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GROVER FURR—Soviet leaders, Stalin among them, decided that the only solution was to reorganize agriculture on the basis of large factory-type farms like some in the American Midwest, which were deliberately adopted as models. When sovkhozy or “Soviet farms” appeared to work well the Soviet leadership made the decision to collectivize agriculture. Contrary to anticommunist propaganda, most peasants accepted collectivization. Resistance was modest; acts of outright rebellion rare. By 1932 Soviet agriculture, including in the Ukrainian SSR, was largely collectivized.
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HALYNA MOKRUSHYNA—One of the new forms of intimidation of journalists and citizens who do not agree with the ‘official’ version of what is happening is Ukraine is the public exposure of their personal data by anonymous denunciators using the snitch Ukrainian website with the telling name ‘Myrotvorets‘, which translates as ‘Peacekeeper’ from Ukrainian. The website lists the names of journalists, Ukrainian citizens and foreign citizens accused of holding anti-Ukrainian and ‘pro-Russian’ views, foreigners who joined the military forces of the non-recognized ‘peoples republics’ of Donetsk and Lugansk, names of Russian volunteers assisting the republics or fighting on their side, and people who have entered Crimea through the territory of Russia instead of Ukraine.
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Seven Factors Which Can Help Maduro’s Government Survive
8 minutes readANDREY SUSHENTSOV—We should remember that the situation is extremely shaky – there is an emergency situation and the projections are limited to a short-term period. However, in this heightened uncertainty there is a number of constants – the Venezuelan parliament speaker rotates on an annual basis; the current speaker Juan Guaidó should resign at the end of the year. New parliamentary elections in the country should be held before the end of 2020. Although the government in Caracas maintains control over the situation and remains viable in the short term, the consolidation of this trend requires elimination of shortages of essential goods by external economic assistance. Venezuela’s key vulnerability is the position of PDVSA, its oil major. Due to the fact that the Americans transferred control over the accounts of this company to the opposition, Guaidó can use these resources to buy the loyalty of a part of the armed forces or the National Guard of Venezuela. Only in this case will the real dual power begin to take shape in the country.
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Caleb Maupin: Is America The New Rome? A Socialist View
4 minutes readCaleb Maupin is a widely acclaimed speaker, writer, journalist, and political analyst. He has traveled extensively in the Middle East and in Latin America. He was involved with the Occupy Wall Street movement from its early planning stages, and has been involved many struggles for social justice. He is an outspoken advocate of international friendship and cooperation, as well 21st Century Socialism.