Venezuela: Resistance or disintegration?

[BlackCartouche]

Relax.

That was very slippery. Its funny how, sometimes, all it takes is a little word said not quite in the right place and right way, and it speaks volumes in revealing the inner-person... So much for the olive branch then.

 

[angelburst29]

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said that snap elections would represent "a democratic, peaceful and constitutional solution" to the difficult political situation in the country

Maduro proposes to hold early parliamentary elections

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro © EPA-EFE/MIRAFLORES PRESS HANDOUT

CARACAS, May 21, 2019 - Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has proposed to the opposition controlling the country's National Assembly to hold snap parliamentary elections in order to resolve the political crisis in the Bolivarian Republic.

"Today I am making a proposal to the opposition — let's try to compete in elections," Maduro said at a demonstration broadcast by Venezolana de Television. "Let's hold an early election to the National Assembly, in order to see whom the people support," he added.

Snap elections would represent "a democratic, peaceful and constitutional solution" to the difficult political situation in the country, Maduro noted.

Next scheduled parliamentary elections will be held in Venezuela in 2020.

In Venezuela, Bolton showed none of the ruthless, devious subtlety of a Dwight D. Eisenhower in masterminding a coup and fragrant breach of international law without appearing to have anything to do with it.

Venezuela Exposes the Myth of John Bolton’s “Genius”
May 19, 2019 - April 30 was the real April Fools’ Day in Venezuela: They proclaimed a coup and nobody came.

The fiasco of the latest obviously unsuccessful US attempt to topple twice democratically-elected President Nicolas Maduro made a laughing stock of the US government throughout the world and is now exposing new splits in the Trump administration in Washington. It is also exposing a dangerous but also ridiculous myth that Washington has credulously swallowed for generations – the idea that National Security Adviser John Bolton is actually competent.

No one among the carefully trained castrated geldings of the US mainstream news media and their pseudo-liberal and libertarian outliers has ever dared to ask how able Bolton actually is. He is held in awe and even fear for his supposed brilliant intellect and for his undoubted energy and relentless determination to push the policies he supports with tunnel vision and fanatical relentlessness as hard as he can.

Yet given such undeniable “qualities” what is truly astonishing is how useless Bolton has been in pursuing his own primary foreign policy goals for more than 40 years.

He failed to prevent the first president to take him seriously, Ronald Reagan to conduct sweeping nuclear arms reductions with Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev and to push ahead with Gorbachev to dismantle the Cold War. These policies were anathema to Bolton who prophesied – falsely – that war and catastrophe would flow from them. But Reagan ignored him and pushed them through anyway.

Now Bolton has destroyed Reagan’s legacy of peace by convincing current President Donald Trump to scrap one of Reagan’s greatest achievement, the 1987 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty.

He succeeded in helping provoke the US invasion, conquest and occupation of Iraq under President George W. Bush in 2003 but failed to persuade even Bush, Junior and his top foreign policy adviser, National Security Adviser and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to pull out of any arms control treaties whatsoever.

Then, the Iraq misadventure was so appallingly bungled that Bolton failed to get any traction whatsoever for his priority project of toppling the government of Iran, even if it took a full scale war to do it.

In Washington, even Bolton’s greatest critics among libertarians and paleo-conservatives have spoken for decades with awe of his supposed brilliant intellect, command of all details, endless energy and ability to read and keep track of everything. But now, the latest failed coup in Venezuela instead reveals an ignorant, simplistic rash adventurer and gambler who charges head on into dangerous situations and who relies on bullying and bluster alone to get his way.

Bolton showed none of the ruthless, devious subtlety of a Dwight D. Eisenhower in masterminding a coup and fragrant breach of international law without appearing to have anything to do with it (a skill which Ronald Reagan, though far less masterful than the revered Eisenhower also attempted in Iran-Contra).

Bolton’s fingerprints were all over the hard-charging policy of propping up ridiculous Juan Guiado as America’s cardboard cutout puppet to run Venezuela, even though he had no credibility whatsoever.

Bolton is in fact is an awesomely bad judge of choosing his own allies in other countries. His combination of recklessness and vanity means he is always a sucker for whatever smooth-talking sociopath can worm his way into his presence.

This explains how the late, unlamented Ahmed Chalabi was able to convince Bolton and his neocon friends that he (Chalabi)) would be welcomed by tens of millions of Iraqis as soon the US armed forces invaded (“liberated” was the politically approved term) his country and how Zalmay Khalizad, a catastrophic clown, was acclaimed as an infallible guru on Afghanistan.

Bolton is widely known to have no small talk, private interests, charm or social skills whatsoever. Far from confirming his “genius”, as his many worshipful courtiers claim, this only confirms his haplessness.

If Bolton played poker he would be skinned alive. He cannot read people and being an obsessive courtier and flatterer himself, he always falls flat on his face for the flattery of others. The arch-manipulator is in reality the easiest of figures to manipulate.

Once the strange miasma of worshipful myth is stripped from Bolton, all the confusions and bungles of the April 30 Coup That Never Was in Venezuela become clear.

 

[goyacobol]

No one among the carefully trained castrated geldings of the US mainstream news media and their pseudo-liberal and libertarian outliers has ever dared to ask how able Bolton actually is.

That's one description of MSM that is worth it's weight in golden gonads if I ever heard one.

Sorry if it is more like a noise factor but I couldn't get the picture out of my mind. The MSM media fake "journalists" are such gutless and mindless puppets that this is a perfect description I think.

It is strange also that "April" seems to have been a factor in the attempted "coup" as we are thinking about the "April drop dead date".

 

[angelburst29]

That's one description of MSM that is worth it's weight in golden gonads if I ever heard one.

I wonder, if desperate Bolton is behind this "stupid" nonsense? Where do they dream up this wacky stuff?

The United States is preparing sanctions and criminal charges against Venezuelan officials and others suspected of using a military-run food aid program to launder money for President Nicolas Maduro's government, according to people familiar with the matter.

U.S. readies sanctions, charges over Venezuela food program: sources

FILE PHOTO: Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro speaks during his visit to a packing center of the CLAP (Local Committees of Supply and Production) program, a Venezuelan government handout of basic food supplies, in Caracas, Venezuela April 17, 2019. Miraflores Palace/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo

These actions are expected to be taken within the next three months as part of the Trump administration’s push to curtail the cash flow to Maduro and his loyalists, two sources said on Tuesday, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The Wall Street Journal first reported that the United States was putting together a package of measures alleging the large-scale laundering of funds intended for the food program and other state operations in Venezuela, where millions of people are suffering from food and medicine shortages.

Multiple U.S. government agencies, including the National Security Council and the Treasury, State and Justice Departments, are involved in the effort, the sources said. The agencies did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Sanctions and fraud indictments are under consideration against Venezuelan military officials and politicians as well as Venezuelan business people and foreign partners, the sources said. The names of those who might be targeted was not immediately known.

Many Venezuelan families rely on the subsidized food program, known by its Spanish initials CLAP, for their basic necessities in the oil-producing South American nation, where hyperinflation has raged for years.

The food aid program would be a new target in Washington’s pressure campaign against Maduro. Since President Donald Trump took office in 2017, his administration has imposed sanctions on dozens of Venezuelan officials as well as companies and other entities.

 

[angelburst29]

The United States should help Venezuela keep control over U.S. refiner Citgo by preventing its seizure by creditors seeking to collect on unpaid Venezuelan debts, opposition leader Juan Guaido said in an interview with Reuters on Wednesday.

Exclusive: Guaido says Washington should help Venezuela keep U.S. refiner Citgo

Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido, who many nations have recognized as the country's rightful interim ruler, poses for picture after an interview with Reuters in Caracas, Venezuela, May 22, 2019. REUTERS/Manaure Quintero

Venezuela’s opposition is pushing to remove President Nicolas Maduro amid a catastrophic economic collapse that has created a humanitarian crisis. It also wants to protect overseas assets that it says will be crucial for a future economic recovery after Maduro leaves office.

Guaido, who invoked the constitution in January to assume the interim presidency after declaring Maduro’s 2018 re-election a fraud, said a U.S. executive order protecting Citgo from seizure was the best option to keep the refiner in Venezuelan hands.

“That would be ideal for Venezuela. It should be decided in a sovereign manner by the United States,” he said at the headquarters of opposition party Popular Will in Caracas. “We are looking to follow that path, given the institutional fragility of Venezuela, which is living through a dictatorship.” “Our objective is to protect the nation’s assets, (which is necessary) because of irresponsible borrowing,” said Guaido, who heads the opposition-run legislature.

Houston-based Citgo, a subsidiary of Venezuelan state oil firm PDVSA, is the country’s most important overseas asset. It is the eighth-largest U.S. refiner, with a 750,000 barrel-per-day refining network supplying 4% of America’s fuel.

The United States, along with nearly 50 countries around the world, calls Guaido Venezuela’s legitimate leader and has thrown its support behind him in efforts to push Maduro from power.

Washington has levied several rounds of sanctions that have crippled Venezuela’s capacity to borrow abroad and hobbled its vital oil industry by restricting crude sales to the United States.

But the White House has not issued an executive order protecting Citgo from creditors. Washington carried out a similar measure for Iraqi assets following the U.S. invasion of that nation in 2003.

Venezuela’s opposition this week hired veteran debt lawyer Lee Buchheit to help restructure its more than $150 billion in debts. In October, Buchheit co-authored a paper saying Venezuela needed a protective executive order to force debtholders reluctant to accept losses to the negotiating table.

SEEKING MILITARY SUPPORT
An ad-hoc board of PDVSA, made up of Guaido allies, made a $71 million interest payment this month on the company’s 2020 bond, which is backed by Citgo shares.

The move was criticized by some opposition sympathizers on the grounds that Venezuela is likely to lose Citgo anyway. The same bond has a $913 million payment due in October that most believe the ad-hoc board will not have the resources to pay. “When October comes, under the conditions of Maduro today, it will be difficult to pay,” Guaido said in the interview. “When October comes, we hope to be able to protect assets.”

Venezuela’s inflation has topped 1 million percent, fueling malnutrition and disease. Millions of Venezuelans have fled what was once a bustling economy.

Maduro, who blames the country’s economic problems on U.S. sanctions, calls Guaido a puppet of the United States and has said he should “face justice.”

Guaido has called on the military to end the crisis by turning on Maduro and helping to create a transition government that can call free and fair elections. But the military has been slow to respond.

A small group of officers, along with Guaido, led street protests on April 30, urging the armed forces to rise up against Maduro. But the effort collapsed when the bulk of Venezuela’s military stood by the ruling Socialist Party.

Guaido said change was being blocked by fear among military officers over taking the first step, as well as by the extensive presence of Cuban intelligence agents who conduct surveillance operations.

“What is preventing a transition? That there is a dictatorship, that there is persecution of military officers that does not allow for direct interaction between them,” he said. “Cuba’s interference is notorious.”

Cuba has sent thousands of doctors to support Venezuela’s health service. Venezuela’s opposition, defecting military officers and Washington officials have also said Cuba provides intelligence services to prop up Maduro’s administration. That is denied by the Venezuelan and Cuban governments.

Slideshow (5 Images)
Exclusive: Guaido says Washington should help Venezuela keep U.S....

Venezuela turns to Russia, Cuba, China in health crisis

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro's government is increasingly turning to allies Cuba, China and Russia to offset a health crisis caused by U.S. sanctions, a minister said on Wednesday.

 

[angelburst29]

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said that the armed forces "should always be ready to defend the right for peace".

Maduro says "traitors" among armed forces should be detained

© Valery Sharifulin/TASS

CARACAS, May 22, 2019 - Venezuela's armed forces should always remain ready to counter possible threats and maintain unity in their ranks, President Nicolas Maduro said on Tuesday.

"I tell everyone in the armed forces that they need to have high morals and discipline," Maduro was quoted by Union Radio as saying. "They should always be ready to defend the right for peace. If someone is revealed to be a traitor, he needs to be detained right away," he added.

On April 30 a group of military representatives supported opposition leader Juan Guaido. This development was followed by massive anti-government protests in the country. Five people died and hundreds were injured in clashed with security forces. Non-governmental organizations reported that nearly 340 protesters were detained.

Venezuela lost $130 billion since 2015 because of US actions, says envoy to Russia

Venezuelan Ambassador to Russia Carlos Rafael Faria Tortosa © Mikhail Japaridze/TASS

MOSCOW, May 21. /TASS/. The losses sustained by Venezuela because of the US economic blockade imposed on the country between 2015 and 2018 amount to $130 billion, Venezuelan ambassador to Russia Carlos Rafael Faria Tortosa told a press conference on Tuesday.

"As a result of the economic blockade imposed on Venezuela by the United States, the country sustained losses estimated to be around $130 Billion in 2015 - 2018," he said. "With these funds our country could carry on for nine years."

"The government of our President Nicolas Maduro is fighting a very asymmetric war against the most powerful country in the world in economic and military regards - the US," the diplomat underlined.

 

[angelburst29]

Maria Zakharova reiterated that Moscow was urging the Venezuelan politicians to peaceful methods in the settlement of the crisis, calling inadmissible the moves triggering a civil war and violence.

US warships off Venezuela make situation worse, says Russian diplomat
MOSCOW, May 23, 2019 - The presence of US warships off Venezuela does not enhance confidence, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told a briefing on Thursday.

According to the diplomat, on May 9, a warship of the US Coast Guard was spotted 20 kilometers off the Venezuelan port of La Guaira. "This activity only aggravates the situation and does not contribute to the strengthening of trust," the diplomat stressed.

"At the same time, the radical opposition has initiated negotiations with the Southern Command of the US Armed Forces to overthrow the legitimate government," she added.

The diplomat reiterated that Moscow was urging the Venezuelan politicians to peaceful methods in the settlement of the crisis, calling inadmissible the moves triggering a civil war and violence.

She also condemned last week’s incident in which US police officers broke into the building of the Venezuelan Embassy in Washington. "This is a gross violation of Article 22 and Article 45 of the Vienna Convention in regards to ensuring the protection of the diplomatic mission," she stated.


Russia welcomes readiness of Venezuelan government, opposition to negotiate
The current situation confirms there is no alternative to peaceful, civilized ways of resolving controversies by the citizens of that country, the Russian diplomat said.

MOSCOW, May 23, 2019 - Russia welcomes the readiness of the parties to the political crisis in Venezuela to hold contacts for the sake of finding a way out of the current situation, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told a news briefing on Thursday.

"The current situation in Venezuela confirms there is no alternative to peaceful, civilized ways of resolving controversies by the citizens of that country. We hail the readiness of the government and the opposition to hold contacts ahead of a dialogue, including internationally mediated dialogue. We support any initiatives that accommodate the parties’ interests to an equal degree."

 

[1peacelover]

In reading the PDF generated Venezuela (BolivarianRepublic of)'s Constitution of1999 with Amendments through 2009, I can innerstand why this "sovereign socialist country" is a threat to capitalistic minds. Especially since it's mineral rich lands are needed to restore the dwindling resources of others. Why do capitalistic minds "think" they can continue pillaging & plundering resources that do not belong to them? Isn't that what treaties and the concept of "Free Trade" is about?

Article 12
Mineral and hydrocarbon deposits of any nature that exist within the territory of the nation, beneath the territorial sea bed, within the exclusive economic zone and on the continental shelf, are the property of the Republic, are of public domain, and therefore inalienable and not transferable. The seacoasts are public domain property.

Article 13
The territory shall never be assigned, transferred, leased or in any manner whatsoever conveyed, even temporarily or partially, to foreign States or other international law subjects. The geographical space of Venezuela is an area of peace. No foreign military bases or facilities having purposes that are in any way military shall be established within such space by any power or coalition of powers. Foreign States or other international law subjects shall be permitted to acquire real property only for the quarters of their diplomatic or consular delegations, within such area as may be determined and subject to guarantees of reciprocity, with such limitations as may be established by law. In all such cases, national sovereignty shall remain intact. There shall be no conveyance of title to vacant land existing within the federal dependencies and on islands in rivers and lakes, and the right to use the same shall be granted only in a manner that does not involve, directly or indirectly, the transfer of title to the land.

 

[angelburst29]

This report by Reuters News Agency - I'm unable to locate another report (as yet) to verify the incident?

Twenty-nine detainees were killed and 19 police officers were wounded in a confrontation in a cellblock in central Venezuela in what a state official called a failed escape attempt, but human rights groups described as a massacre.

Friday May 24, 2019 - Twenty-nine detainees killed in Venezuela police station cellblock riot

ACARIGUA, Venezuela -
The incident took place in the town of Acarigua in a municipal police cellblock in the central state of Portuguesa.

“There was an attempted escape and a fight broke out among(rival) gangs,” Portuguesa Citizen Security Secretary Oscar Valero told reporters. “With police intervention to prevent the escape, well, there were 29 deaths,” he said, adding that some 355 people were being held in the cellblock.

Detainees detonated three grenades, which wounded 19 police officers, he said. Venezuela’s Information Ministry did not immediately reply to a request for comment. Human rights groups questioned the official version of the events.

“How is it that there was a confrontation between prisoners and police, but there are only dead prisoners?” Humberto Prado of the Venezuelan Prisons Observatory said in a telephone interview. “And if the prisoners had weapons, how did those weapons get in?”

Detainees for several days had been demanding that government ombudsmen help them avoid being transferred to distant prisons where they would not be able to receive visits from relatives, Prado said.

Authorities entered the cell block to carry out searches and remove visiting women when violence broke out, Prado said, estimating the facility in fact held some 540 inmates.

Police cellblocks in Venezuela are meant to hold citizens for 48 hours while they face formal charges. But detained citizens can spend months or even years in such facilities because prisons are too overcrowded to receive them and because of chronic delays in basic criminal justice proceedings required to indict them.


In 2018, a riot that led to a fire in a police cellblock in the central city of Valencia killed 68 people, including two women who were visiting.

Carlos Nieto of human rights group A Window to Freedom said the country has around 500 cellblocks with capacity to hold around 7,000 people that currently have nearly 55,000 detainees in custody.

 

[angelburst29]

This report by Reuters News Agency - I'm unable to locate another report (as yet) to verify the incident?

Twenty-nine detainees were killed and 19 police officers were wounded in a confrontation in a cellblock in central Venezuela in what a state official called a failed escape attempt, but human rights groups described as a massacre.

Friday May 24, 2019 - Twenty-nine detainees killed in Venezuela police station cellblock riot

I'm not sure what to make of this report??? I counted 17 news sites that carried the above "Reuters report" - sites that copy from a main news feed, yet I'm unable to find anything on RT, TASS or Sputnik and Reuters hasn't generated any type of update?

I did find a site that's reporting the incident, along with several tweets but I don't know how reliable the site is and if the content is genuine?

May 24, 2019 - WATCH: Venezuelan prison mutiny leaves 23 dead
WATCH: Venezuelan prison mutiny leaves 23 dead | IOL News

 

[angelburst29]

Russia announced its troops and military experts in Venezuela are helping the Latin American state prepare itself and maintain its combat readiness in the face of the US' "threat of the use of force".

May 25, 2019 - Envoy: Russian Troops Helping Venezuela Amid US Threats

"The Venezuelan government has been in a state of anxious anticipation since the US has repeatedly threatened to use force against the country," Russian ambassador to Caracas Vladimir Zaemsky told AFP in an interview in Moscow.

He said, "In these conditions they need to be sure that the weapons they have are in a functioning state", adding that Russian military experts are there to train the Venezuelans "in maintaining combat readiness of their equipment and teach them how best to use it".

The Russian envoy noted that the troops are legally allowed to be there under an agreement signed between the two countries in 2001.

May 25 2019 - Venezuelan FM: US Sanctions Impede Medical Treatment, Kill Children

"Unfortunately, one Venezuelan child died while awaiting a bone marrow transplant, this is the consequence of the criminal blockade by the United States, which bans money transfers to Italian medical facilities that work with [Venezuelan state-run oil company] PDVSA on such urgent cases", Arreaza wrote on Twitter, Sputnik reported.

Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez, in turn, stated that US-backed opposition leader Juan Guaido "transferred [PDVSA subsidiary] Citgo to the United States to satisfy capitalist interests". Rodriguez added that it caused the deaths of children who benefited from health programs.

Last week, Venezuelan Ambassador to Egypt Wilmer Omar Barrientos told Sputnik that since Guaido proclaimed himself interim president in January, US and European banks had frozen billions of dollars worth of the Venezuelan government funds. The United States has also blocked the country's oil assets and imposed sanctions on PDVSA.

Norway says Venezuela government, opposition to hold new round of talks

Norway said on Saturday that representatives of Venezuela's government and opposition will return to Oslo next week following an initial round of preliminary talks about how to address the country's political crisis.

“We announce that the representatives of the main political actors in Venezuela have decided to return to Oslo next week to continue a process facilitated by Norway,” the Scandinavian country’s foreign ministry said in a statement. “We reiterate our commitment to continue supporting the search for an agreed-upon solution between the parties in Venezuela,” it said.

 

[angelburst29]

Maduro thanks Norway for facilitating dialogue with opposition
CARACAS, May 26, 2019 - Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has expressed his gratitude to the Norwegian government for granting a platform for dialogue between Venezuelan officials and opposition members in a Twitter message published on Saturday.

"I thank the Norwegian government for its efforts on facilitating dialogue about peace and stability in Venezuela. Our delegation is heading to Oslo, ready to work on a comprehensive agenda and move towards the signing of agreements," Maduro wrote.

On May 16, representatives of Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido and of Venezuelan incumbent president Nicolas Maduro held talks in Oslo in an attempt to resolve the political crisis in the country. Maduro hailed the talks as positive. The Norwegian Foreign Ministry informed on Saturday that another meeting between the Venezuelan government and opposition representatives would be held next week in Oslo.


Maduro blocks transmission of opposition speeches in fear, says Guaido
CARACAS, May 26, 2019 - Incumbent Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro blocks the transmission of opposition leader Juan Guaido’s speeches due to fear, Guaido said on Saturday during a speech in the state of Lara.

"Every time I give a speech, the regime not only blocks TV and radio stations, but also the Internet. Even words scare them [the government]," Guaido said, quoted by the Nacional daily. The opposition leader added that he represents the interests "of the majority, who want change." "We will continue to take to the streets of Venezuela," he stressed.


US hopes Venezuela talks will focus on Maduro’s departure
WASHINGTON, May 26, 2019 - The only thing that can be negotiated with the Venezuelan government is the departure of incumbent Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, the US State Department said in a statement published on Saturday. The US expressed hope that the upcoming talks between members of the Venezuelan opposition and government officials in Oslo will focus on this issue.

"The United States supports the desire of the Venezuelan people to recover their democracy and bring the illegitimate Maduro regime to an end. Previous efforts to negotiate an end to the regime and free elections have failed because the regime has used them to divide the opposition and gain time," the statement says.

"Free elections cannot be overseen by a tyrant. As we have repeatedly stated, we believe the only thing to negotiate with Nicolas Maduro is the conditions of his departure. We hope the talks in Oslo will focus on that objective, and if they do, we hope progress will be possible," the US State Department continued.

The US also demanded to release "800 political prisoners the Maduro regime held as of May 20". "We join supporters of democracy in Venezuela throughout the world in condemning their illegal imprisonment by the Maduro regime and in demanding their immediate release," the statement concluded.

 

[Voyageur]

It is really quite bizarre how they keep framing things for peoples minds - thanks ab29 for updating:

The opposition leader added that he represents the interests "of the majority, who want change."

Interesting math Mr. Guaido references of the "majority." Must be a new quantum math I've never heard of.

"The United States supports the desire of the Venezuelan people to recover their democracy and bring the illegitimate Maduro regime to an end."

+

"Free elections cannot be overseen by a tyrant."

Hmmm, a tyrant, as opposed to a new so called legitimate president who no one seemed to have known.

Now I'm still trying to figure out what parallel universe they elected Guaido in? It must have been a "free" election, though, free of voters that is, as if Guaido was then put through a TDARM (Trans Dimensional Atomic ReMolecularization) voting process and ta-da, a new Venezuelan reality is born.

Here is the thing, my Prime Minister says it is true, as does the Foreign Minister and the other opposition parties - and so many other world leaders, and the media is all too accommodating with their message. As for people, many (I dare say possibly most, if they admitted it), are watching saying WTHeck is going on.

I'll leave the important message to Glinda:

Glinda the Good said to Dorthy of that strange reality:

"The Silver Shoes," said the Good Witch, "have wonderful powers. And one of the most curious things about them is that they can carry you to any place in the world in three steps, and each step will be made in the wink of an eye. All you have to do is to knock the heels together three times and command the shoes to carry you wherever you wish to go."

"If that is so," said the child joyfully, "I will ask them to carry me back to Kansas at once."

It is just all so frigging bizarre to read this nonsense everyday, I mean, it really does seem an OZ land.

 

[angelburst29]

It is just all so frigging bizarre to read this nonsense everyday, I mean, it really does seem an OZ land.

My exact sentiments on the developments in Venezuela. I see the situation, as a reflection of how "out of touch" the elites are with reality?
They have propagated their fantasies and greed - into an isolation cell of their own making. They follow the same rule book and tactics and now have manipulated and tweaked themselves into a corner. Not accustomed to defeat and owning up to their own mistakes, they dropped Guaido - like a hot potato and moved onto greener pastures (Iran). I don't think that's going to work out in their favor - either?

Welcome - to the party - of one! It can be lonely at the TOP.

Venezuela's opposition leader Guaido plays down prospects for Oslo mediation

Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido on Sunday played down the prospects for success at a new round of mediation with the government to be hosted by Norway next week, saying protests would continue until President Nicolas Maduro resigned.

Russia says it is ready to play role in Venezuela crisis talks in Oslo

Russia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Monday that Moscow was ready to play a role in talks between the Venezuelan government and opposition in Oslo if the participants felt it was useful.

This report by Reuters News Agency - I'm unable to locate another report (as yet) to verify the incident?

Twenty-nine detainees were killed and 19 police officers were wounded in a confrontation in a cellblock in central Venezuela in what a state official called a failed escape attempt, but human rights groups described as a massacre.

Friday May 24, 2019 - Twenty-nine detainees killed in Venezuela police station cellblock riot

At this point, I'm unable to locate a reliable source on this claim, so of the opinion - it's FAKE news. Shame on you - Reuters and double SHAME for publishing another hit-piece of the same garbage! No reliable confirmation on this one - either.

Riot in Brazil prison leaves 15 choked and stabbed to death
A riot between inmates in a prison in Brazilian state of Amazonas ended with 15 dead on Sunday, according to a statement of the state secretariat for prisons.

 

[angelburst29]

May 28, 2019 - The United States walked out of the Conference on Disarmament on Tuesday to protest against Venezuela assuming the rotating presidency of the U.N.-sponsored forum - as it did a year ago when Syria took the chair.

U.S. boycotts U.N. arms forum as Venezuela takes chair

FILE PHOTO: U.S. Ambassador and President of the Conference on Disarmament Robert Wood attends a session at the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, March 20, 2019. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse

As Venezuela took up the one-month presidency of the Geneva talks, US disarmament ambassasdor Robert Wood left the session and announced a “boycott” while Maduro ambassador Jorge Valero chairs it.

“We have to try to do what we can to prevent these types of states from presiding over international bodies,” Wood told reporters.
“Clearly, when you have regimes like the (Bashar) Assad regime (of Syria) and the Maduro regime presiding over this body, there is something fundamentally wrong with how we are conducting our business. And we need to examine that,” he said.

EU names special adviser to help resolve Venezuela crisis

The European Union on Tuesday named Spanish-Uruguayan former banker and diplomat Enrique Iglesias as its point man to help end the crisis in Venezuela, part of an intensification of diplomatic efforts to seek new elections.

(Note; EU is siding with the US. Their "diplomatic endeavors" are meant to help oust Maduro! NATO stands behind the EU.)


Peru and Colombia call for more aid to help with Venezuelan migratory crisis

Colombia and Peru on Monday called on the international community to commit more aid to help them cope with an influx of around 2 million Venezuelans who have migrated to the two countries in recent years.

Shippers raise rates for cargo from U.S. to Venezuela: documents, sources

Two major shipping lines this month have raised their rates for transporting goods from the United States to Venezuela, according to three industry sources and two documents, as U.S. sanctions limit transit between the two nations.