US denies jet flew over Venezuela

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Originally posted by GinoBiffaroni:
hope next time out Chavez gets some pictures

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Here it is. Obviously a U.S. plane flying over Mount Mas Prisa. That's Marx and Che on the left (well, actually, they're all on the Left). The one with the glasses must be Lenin, and the bearded one...Fidel Castro?. Yeah. That's it.

"Keep the Shiny side up"

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Originally posted by Geezer:
Don't know why the US might be overflying Venezuela. However, I can understand why Pres. Chavez might make the claim.

His economy is running to 25% inflation, and he's just had to de-value the Bolivar against the US dollar. It went from 2.15 to 1 to 2.60 to 1 for 'essential' items and 4.30 to 1 for items considered 'non-essential' - reportedly to reduce imports and spur exports. In the unofficial markets it's going for as high as 6 to 1.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/8449721.stm

And there's been no real resolution to the issue of relatives of his cabinet members getting government contracts and skimming millions.

What better time to wave the flag and denounce the Yankee Imperialists? Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain.

"Keep the Shiny side up"

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As economists have been advising this move for a few years now to boost domestic manufacturing, cut inflation, and react to the tanking US dollar, I'd have to say its about time this happened...

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/90dcf1ac-fd1b-11de-8952-00144feab49a.html?nc
lick_check=1

of course the other route is to borrow a ton of money from China and try to spend their way out of the global recession... I think he made the better choice.



Either your with the terrorists, or ... your with the terrorists

Life is like a jar of Jalapeño peppers.
What you do today, might Burn Your Ass Tomorrow"

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Originally posted by Kwicko:
By the way, if Chavez wants to get some pictures, or even shoot them down (kinda hard to claim there weren't there if he can produce wreckage and a pilot, eh, Francis?), I know where he can get a HELL of a deal on some nice Sukhoi Su-27s. Only about $5 million each, ready to go. :)

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He already bought a crapload of Migs, Mikey.

I.. err, have some interests in military surplus and logistics, and I can tell you straight up that since our last failed attempt to start a coup in his country* he's been tooling up his military for a set-piece scenario based around defending his country from us - not that it'd be all that effective against a bloated military machine like ours run by folks willing to spill any amount of blood that isn't theirs, but it would substantially raise the cost of picking shit with him.

We'd win, but he'd fucking bleed us white in the doing of it, and he *knew* that ever since kicking out foreign oil companies for, yanno, not actually PAYING for the oil (or even rent, for that matter) that sooner or later we'd get all in his shit over it, especially since we've been nonstop provoking him for a damned long time, and haven't even *tried* to hide it, mind you.

That ain't to say he's a decent guy or even all that good of a leader, but he's less ruthless and exploitive than one of our puppets would be and so has the firm support of his own people despite his flaws.

Unlike Iraq or Afghanistan, Chavez *is* capable of sticking a pin in our paw if we swat at him, and our long history of misdeeds in Latin America will bring him allies and us enemies if we make an issue of that, so the better policy is to quit pickin shit and giving the locals a reason to support him - eventually his own hubris will do the job for us without any need for us to get involved.

The only thing at stake is the egos of the assholes he has BEATEN on the clandestine front time and time again, our so-called "protectors" of the alphabet soup crowd, and for all I care the incompetent and rapacious bastards can lump it.

-F

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Quote:

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Originally posted by GinoBiffaroni:
As economists have been advising this move for a few years now to boost domestic manufacturing, cut inflation, and react to the tanking US dollar, I'd have to say its about time this happened...

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From a governmental standpoint it may make sense, but the average Jose in Caracas just saw most any imported goods, say consumer electronics, an automobile, or a bottle of bourbon, double in price. Since there is very little production of these items in-country, it's pretty much either imports or nothing. The folks on the street won't be happy with this.

"Keep the Shiny side up"

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Quote:

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Originally posted by Fremdfirma:

Quote:

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Originally posted by Kwicko:
By the way, if Chavez wants to get some pictures, or even shoot them down (kinda hard to claim there weren't there if he can produce wreckage and a pilot, eh, Francis?), I know where he can get a HELL of a deal on some nice Sukhoi Su-27s. Only about $5 million each, ready to go. :)

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He already bought a crapload of Migs, Mikey.

I.. err, have some interests in military surplus and logistics, and I can tell you straight up that since our last failed attempt to start a coup in his country* he's been tooling up his military for a set-piece scenario based around defending his country from us - not that it'd be all that effective against a bloated military machine like ours run by folks willing to spill any amount of blood that isn't theirs, but it would substantially raise the cost of picking shit with him.

We'd win, but he'd fucking bleed us white in the doing of it, and he *knew* that ever since kicking out foreign oil companies for, yanno, not actually PAYING for the oil (or even rent, for that matter) that sooner or later we'd get all in his shit over it, especially since we've been nonstop provoking him for a damned long time, and haven't even *tried* to hide it, mind you.

That ain't to say he's a decent guy or even all that good of a leader, but he's less ruthless and exploitive than one of our puppets would be and so has the firm support of his own people despite his flaws.

Unlike Iraq or Afghanistan, Chavez *is* capable of sticking a pin in our paw if we swat at him, and our long history of misdeeds in Latin America will bring him allies and us enemies if we make an issue of that, so the better policy is to quit pickin shit and giving the locals a reason to support him - eventually his own hubris will do the job for us without any need for us to get involved.

The only thing at stake is the egos of the assholes he has BEATEN on the clandestine front time and time again, our so-called "protectors" of the alphabet soup crowd, and for all I care the incompetent and rapacious bastards can lump it.

-F

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Yeah, Frem - I was being a bit facetious with that snark. I've no doubt Hugo has already ordered quite a fair number of surplus goodies from the former Soviet Union. In fact, if memory serves, one of the "surplus" things he ordered was a Kalashnikov factory to make his very own AK rifles (probably the updated 5.45x39mm AK-74, but could just as easily be the classic AK-47 or AK-M in 7.62x39mm). And if he really wants to export things, especially to the U.S., Americans seem to have a real affinity for a good, solid semi-automatic rifle. :) And it's damned near impossible to find a decent American-made one that's anywhere near as reliable or solid, and a half-decent AR-15 will only run you around $850 or so, compared to around $300 for a nice AK clone.

Mike

Work is the curse of the Drinking Class.
- Oscar Wilde

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