Showing posts with label Leopoldo Lopez. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Leopoldo Lopez. Show all posts

Thursday, September 17, 2020

Statues tumble, cops watch

 Protesters in Colombia toppled a statue of Spanish conquistador Sebastián de Belalcázar in the south-western city of Popayán while the cops watched. So why don't you go through the legal process to move statues that disturb your sense of justice? BTW, protesters did you know that Benalcázar died while under indictment for the killing of one of his fellow Spanish leaders, Jorge Robledo.
I've been following  Latin American events at two  blogs for a few years.
Sept 20, 2020
 Interim President Anez has pulled out of the October 18, 2020 election in Bolivia in hopes of keeping Arce  of Morales party from winning in round 1.Recent polls show Arce has more than 40.3% , while Mesa, a Centrist has 26.2%,  Camacho, a conservative anti-Morales activist,  has 14.4% and Anez is at 10.6%. The election winner requires at least 40% of valid votes in the first round and a 10-point advantage over the closest competitor. 
Oct 1
 Chile's House of Representatives passed a bill that would punish people who “justify,” “approve” of, or “deny” the human rights violations committed during the country’s dictatorship between 1973 and 1990 with up to three years in prison. Its Senate hasn't taken up the bill, and it's great to see Human Rights Watch adding this caution : "but the criminalization of speech is not an acceptable way to pursue those aims."
Oct 19, 2020
It's going to get chillier politically in Chile after protesters set two churches  and a police station afire.
Oct 26, 2020
#LeopoldoLopez ,  arrived in Madrid, Spain on Sunday following  leaving the Spanish Embassy in Venezuela residence and escaping by sea to Aruba. Maduro quickly removed General Nestor Revero from his job overseeing SEBIN security outside the embassy. Let's see how how roughly Maduro treats Spanish embassy personnel.
Nov16
 #peru : #merino resigns due to deadly protests after taking over last week for the impeached Vizcarra.  What a clusterF! Meanwhile  Commie  Morales is welcomed back to #uruguay.  Same old sh^t in Latin America.
nov 23
#guatemala : Hundreds of people stormed into Guatemala's Congress building as part of protests against President Alejandro #Giammattei who responded via Twitter. that "he defended people's right to protest, "but neither can we allow people to vandalize public or private property." Does this sound familiar?
dec 6, 2020
This will be the new rage  from the Lefties: Argentina passes confiscatory tax on the wealthy "one- percenters"  to pay for virus measures. Those with assets worth more than 200 million pesos ($2.5m; £1.8m)  will have to pay.  #AlbertoFernandez
jan 11, 2021
Court allows Cape Verde to  expel #AlexSaab, Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro ally, to the USA on money laundering charges. The US DoJ charged him two years ago with running a global multi-million dollar money laundering operation. 
Jan 29, 2021
A special tribunal in Columbia has accused eight former leaders of the Marxist group FARC of kidnappings civilians, including Americans, and extortion to finance its war to topple the Colombian state. Two of  those eight are now in congress and all. have 30 days to respond to the special tribunal’s indictment. In 2016 FARC signed a peace agreement, but I wonder if this news leads to sporadic riots.
Feb 15, 2021
 RIP #Menem , Argentina's president between 1989 and 1999, oversaw the re-establishment of diplomatic relations with the UK, visiting Great Britain in 1998. That was a huge step after the Falklands war, but most of his career was filled with financial scandals.
Feb 19, 2021
 Vaccine Gate in  Peru:  Former President Vizcarra and his family, plus consultants, lobbyists, and  cabinet ministers were inoculated starting in September 2020 before the Covid vaccine was approved by Peruvian authorities.  Of course,  the Chinese embassy in Peru rejected the notion that the shots were a perk in exchange for the contract.
March 3
#LuisAbinader , the president of the Dominican Republic, has announced plans to build a fence along its border with Haiti, and claims the barrier will help curb illegal immigration, drugs, and the flow of stolen vehicles between the two countries.
April 8, 2021
Is this Communist tactic coming to your town?  Luis Duque,  a buddy of Maduro and the mayor of Sucre municipality in Yaracuy state in central Venezuela has been placing red warning symbols on the homes of people with COVID-19 and is threatening to cut welfare handouts for those breaking quarantine. 
April 13, 2021
A conservative wins  the Presidency in  the Ecuador runoff election. Lasso won 52.4% of the vote to defeat left-leaning economist Andres Arauz's 47.4%, according to the Election Council website. Arauz congratulated Lasso  then added this snide comment. " I only ask you to stop the lawfare, which destroys lives and families." Lawfare  is a term used to broadly label anyone who opposes the Left as purveyors of fake news and practitioners of  tactics to destroy democracy.
april 22, 2021
Kim Jong Un , the North Korean dictator ,calls President Miguel Díaz-Canel the new leader of Cuba, comrade . We get the message!
JUNE 1, 2021
After all the negative press Bolsonaro, the President of Brazil has received, COPA America is asking him to allow the Copa America soccer tournament to be played thereArgentina and Columbia were the original co-hosts, but Columbia was removed on May 20 due to wide-spread protests sweeping the country, and Argentina was removed a few days ago due to a spike in Covid cases.
June 7, 2021
Do you recall when Ortega was the darling of the  Left  during the  Iran- Contra hearings? Arturo Cruz is the second opposition presidential candidate to have been detained this week by Nicaraguan police. On Wednesday police took in Cristiana Chamorro, who leads the opposition to #danielOrtega, who has ruled since 2007,  in the polls.
June 11, 2021
It couldn't have happened to a nicer guy: In 2019, when two rebel commanders of the Martin Villa Front  broke from the FARC peace pact  and fled Colombia, #Maduro called them leaders of peace and  welcomed them to Venezuela. Now the Venezuelan Army is locked in a battle with them in the Apure region.
june 30 2021
Protesters in Barranquilla, Colombia have toppled a statue of Christopher Columbus. The trend continues: 


July 12, 2020
 Home invaders assassinated #moise , who called himself “Banana Man,” and had ruled Haiti by decree f after his government postponed legislative elections in 2018. Hey Joe, just send Kamal and everything will improve. Or maybe the Clintons who have a foundation there?
Aug 30, 2021
In some parts of oil rich Venezuela, citizens are returning to  “stick gas” - wood stoves.
Aug 31, 2021
It  took newlyweds, Heydi Paco and Jhonny Pacheco, three days to climb to the top of the Illimani Mountain (21,125 feet above sea level) in the Andes from Bolivia's capital, La Paz. 
Oct 14, 2021
Backward  to Venezuela: #RaúlBaduel , an army general who helped Chavez survive a coup in 2002, became the 10th political prisoner to die in prison during Maduro's dictatorship.  He fell out of favor in 2007 when he opposed Chávez' efforts to change the constitution. He was convicted of graft charges in 2009,  and days before he was scheduled to finish his sentence in March, 2017, he was charged by Venezuelan military intelligence of holding clandestine meetings to stockpile weapons and conspiring against Maduro's government.
Nov 28, 2021
After 55 years of independence from the Brits, Barbados is completing the divorce and becoming a Republic. Of course, last year they had obligatory removal of a statue. This time it was of the statue of British Admiral Lord Horatio Nelson which stood in National Heroes Square for two centuries. However, Prime Minister Mottley invited Prince Charles to be the guest of honor this week, and to award him the Order of Freedom of Barbados, the highest national honor.
Dec 14, 2021
 Conservative Jose Antonio Kast is narrowing the gap in recent polling on his race to defeat leftist Gabriel Boric in the upcoming election for President in Chile. It looked like Boric was cruising to victory a few weeks ago.
dec 28, 2021
Chile elected the Lefty.
Nicaraguan Dictator Ortega seized the former embassy and diplomatic offices of Taiwan, saying they belong to China. Taiwanese diplomats had attempted to donate the properties to the Roman Catholic archdiocese of Managua. 
 But the Contras, not Ortega, were often shown as the bad guys in the USA media in the 1980s.
Jan 8, 2022
Sgt Victor Isasi, 42, a Paraguayan soldier, died from piercing injuries after he was attacked by a deer in the gardens of the country's presidential palace. The animal is an axis deer from India which is usually kept in a separate area and reacted when Isasi lifted his hand.
June 10, 2022
Venezuela's Opposition lawmaker Sergio Garrido, 54, defeated the ruling party’s candidate Jorge Arreaza, 48, who served as the country’s vice president and foreign minister and was Hugo Chavez’s son-in-law. This was a governor's race in Barinas,  a region ruled byChavez family for over twenty years. I'm sure Maduro will try to undo it.
Jan 29, 2022
No respect for Venezuela! Italy rejected a request by Venezuela for the extradition of Rafael Ramirez, a once powerful oil minister and former head of state oil company, Petroleos de Venezuela. Ramirez was tight with Chavez but was ousted as Venezuela's U.N. envoy in 2017 after publicly criticizing Maduro.  Ramirez was probably involved in some embezzlement and bid-rigging for oil contracts, but the Italian courts ain't sending him back because of human rights violations in Venezuela under Maduro and Chavez.
March 8, 2022
So rather than get the USA back to pumping its own oil, Biden is reaching out to Maduro, the commie dictator in Venezuela, for oil in exchange for easing sanctions. This ain't going over well with Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Menendez (D-N.J.)  who said the White House's efforts to unite the world against Russia's actions "should not be undercut by propping up a dictator under investigation for crimes against humanity in Caracas."
April 5, 2022
Why history matters! Landlocked Bolivia is back at The Hague battling for access to the Silala River in its search for fresh water. Bolivia lost its only coastline to Chile during an 1879-1883 war and has demanded ocean access since that defeat.
April 28, 2022
Do you remember when Ortega was everyone's darling? And the Contras were the devil in Nicaragua in the 1980s?
The real estate that occupied the offices of the OAS in Nicaragua has been declared a public utility and will be passed on to the State of Nicaragua according to Vice President Rosario Murillo, wife of Dictator Daniel Ortega.
jan 8, 2022
Watching a documentary on BBC select on the Alan Addis missing case. Tony Blake, David clark pop up. #falklands


Sunday, March 9, 2014

Hey Sean, where's your pen?


Sean Penn, a big supporter of the Left, particularly in Venezuela, has little to say when the middle and upper classes take to the streets in Venezuela.    Chavez and now Maduro have bribed the lower classes and  provided  oil at a below market cost to Cuba,  but can't make sure the basic food staples are available.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-26501176

Maduro told CNN : the unrest had not kept him awake at night. "I sleep like a child," 
The unrest will grow and may have him searching for sleeping pills

3/13/14

Maduro  takes a page from Obama's book and say things are better:
"Before Chavez no-one had anything we have now: access to public health, education and food," government supporter Marcos Alcayo told Reuters at the march.
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-26553968

3/18/14
Air Canada suspends flights to Venezuela over civil unnrest but airlines haven't been geting paid either.  Madur's mess
Several international airlines have reduced operations in recent weeks in Venezuela, but their main grievance has been the government's tight currency controls.

3/19/14
and Maduro may not allow Air Canada to return. AC you may be better off!

3/20/14
would Maduro hijack a plane?

3/22/14
Hey Sean Penn how about an apology for giving petty tyrants cover?

3/24/14

Maduro , the dictator,  keeps flexing and Sean 's pen is out of ink. link
Venezuela has stripped a leading opposition congresswoman of her mandate after she spoke before the Organization of American States (OAS) last week.

4/2/14
 Mr Vargas Llosa accused President Nicolas Maduro of trying to
         install a "Cuban-inspired dictatorship" in Venezuela.
He said that all Latin American countries would be under threat if Mr Maduro succeeded.  http://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-26844957
 4/11/14
Maduro invites the pope to broker peace. He has  a decent resume in Latin America but is or can he impartial?


4/30/14

Maduro's backward answer to the problems:  link
Critics say that while the new minimum salary amounts to $675 at the government-set exchange rate, it adds up to little over $67 at the black market rate.

5/6/14
Maduro 's schemes are failing.  Ford suspends
 U.S. automaker Ford has halted operations in Venezuela on Monday due to a lack of foreign currency to import parts for assembly, workers at its plant said.

5/30/14
House of Reps vote to sanction Maduro and his clowns, but BO won't sign it  even if it passes the Senate.
US House votes to sanction Ven

6/25/14
Maduro 's crown turning on their own. link
Venezuela's ruling Socialist Party has suspended one of its directors for echoing a former official's recent criticism over corruption

7/2/14
Patient gunned down during surgery at University Hospital of Caracas. Sean Penn-what say you?
no security


7/10/14
Maduro continues to play with the bolivar and big business is fleeing - not a good sign. link

7/24/14
Keep your eyes on the trial of Leopoldo Lopez, one of Venezuela's main opposition leaders. Fair trial? More protests?
Leopoldo

7/25/14
Aruba claims they've rejected his diplomatic appointment. This could get hot. Carvajal
A top Venezuelan official, Gen Hugo Carvajal, has been detained in the Dutch Caribbean island of Aruba at the request of the American government.
7/28/14
Aruban judge says Carvajal is a diplomat- wonder what arms were twisted?

8/20/14
Where is Sean Penn these days?

8/22/14
Do you recall Chavez offering low income full  to Americans and giving it away to Cuba? Maduro  is a  clown..
Citgo for sale

9/10/14
Price controls: Venezuelan government estimates that 40% of subsidised goods are smuggled into Colombia, further exacerbating shortages in Venezuela. Closing the border at night  is not much of a deterrent

9/11/14
Leopoldo Lopez goes on trial- will anti-Maduro protests re-surface?

9/13/14

So much for communism. Castro sent doctors to Venezuela and they  bribe their way to the USA.
Although the Cuban doctors who arrive in the United States cannot practice medicine until they get the proper licenses, Dr. Moreno said that they prefer to confront that situation rather than remain in a system plagued by corruption.
doctors

10/13/14
Chavez' legacy: According to United Nations' figures, Venezuela has the second highest peacetime murder rate in the world after Honduras.


10/17/14
UN Security Council: Venezuela  gets the Latin American seat, yep I bet that make  you feel safer. At least Spain edged Turkey out of a seat. link

11/26/14
Is Citgo up for sale. As usual Venezuela's history of seizing  property has made this a mess, but now they're dancing with the big boys. citgo

12/6/14
If you can't silence them accuse them. The commie nightmare drags downVenezuela into an abyss and Maduro is  desperate. Machado probed over murder plot
Ms Machado, a former congresswoman, led a major street protest against President Maduro's government in January.She dismissed the accusations as a charade designed to silence her.
12/12/14

US Congress passes bill to impose Venezuela sanctions


1/7/15

Maduro demands respect from USA  Maduro ????
you got to earn it dude

1/12/15

Who believes Maduro would cut his own salary?
"If we had to cut anything back on our budget, we would cut extravagances, we would cut our own salaries as high officials, but we will never cut one Bolivar of the money that goes to education, food, housing, the missions of our nation," Maduro said Friday during a televised address that was translated from the Spanish by CNBC.

1/29/15
Mascheroni, a former scientist at the Los Alamos National Laboratory in the US, has been sentenced to five years in jail for attempting to pass nuclear bomb-making secrets to Venezuela.


Leamsy Salazar, a member of Cabello’s( the head of Venezuela’s National Assembly) security detail, had been brought to Washington, D.C. on Monday as a star witness to build a case against Venezuelan military officials  accused of helping run drugs under the so-called Cartel de los Soles or the “Cartel of the Suns” — a reference to military insignia — but according to the reports, Salazar will make the case that Cabello is at the head of the organization.


2/4/15
Perils of communism:  National guardsmen and state price adjusters fanned are imposing  a military-style occupation to make sure shoppers can buy enough sugar.


2/13/15
more dueling protests and coup claims link
Maduro frequently denounces what he says are coup attempts without providing specifics

2/24/15
Sean Penn : Typical Hollywood blowhard has had nothing to say ablout Maduro arresting his political opponents.

3/11/15
I wonder if Penn is producing  these : Maduro denounces the "Yankee empire" almost nightly on national television. As his approval ratings have plunged to the 20 percent range


4/21/15
Will 5bn (£3.4bn) in financing from China ease the tension in Venezuela or will Maduro mis-manage this, too?


5/29/15
 Bolivar as currency is in deep trouble. Venezuela signs a big oil deal with Russia.  Maduro isn't running away rom the dollar as Chavez did.


6/11/15
Maduro going after Guyana  and Exxon. link
Venezuela has been claiming the disputed mineral-rich region west of the Essequibo river as its own since the 19th Century. An international tribunal ruled in 1899 that the area formed part of Guyana, which at the time was a British colony.

6/21/15
Venezuela is not the place to go. neves
A group of eight Brazilian senators on a visit to Venezuela to meet a jailed opposition leader say they had to flee after their bus was attacked.
7/19/15
Dear Mr Penn:  Where's your big mouth on the government of President Nicolas Maduro clamping down on the opposition ahead of December's elections. Maduro
 Mr Perez is the third opposition politician to be disqualified in the past week....It was not clear on what grounds he was barred, but he was given 15 days to appeal against the decision.
8/12/15
wonder what Maduro is up to:  link
The public prosecutor's office announced that Daniel Ceballos, a former mayor of the restive western city of San Cristobal, would be released for health reasons.
8/25/15

Colombia condemns Venezuela expulsions after border closure. link


9/9/15
another border closing: border. is war next?
PARAGUACHON, Colombia — Venezuela's sudden decision to close another major border crossing with Colombia has left workers, vacationers and members of a nomadic indigenous community stranded, and further escalated tensions between the neighboring countries.
9/15/15

Venezuelan military jets 'entered Colombian airspace'


10/16/15
Rosales arrested on his return to Venezuela. Elections in six weeks.What will Maduro do to survive December elections?

11/5/15
McDonalds fries - $133 or 800 bolivares in Venezuela. Sean Penn:your buddies have a currency problem
12/9/15
Great news for the citizens of venezuela: link


Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/americas/venezuela/article8232987.html#storylink=cpy
The election result is the worst for the Socialist movement founded by late leader Hugo Chavez in 1999.
12/29/15
You better make more Pepsi and faster. Or you'll be arbitrarily detained at work under Maduro in Venezuela. link

1/10/16 
If he ain't American , Sean likes him- in this case it was Mexican drug lord El Chapo.
1/19/16
Will Sean Penn be prosecuted?  Many lawyers doubt it.  link
Experts told the Los Angeles Times that Penn had no obligation to disclose the meeting, though he could be prosecuted if he made false statements on a government form while traveling.
2/4/16
If I lived in Venezuela, this would scare me:
Inflation-Wrought Venezuela Orders Bank Notes by the Planeload
2/18/16
Hey Commie Sean Penn  why don't you  spend your $$$ feeding Venezuela? No,  I'm sure there's a "most wanted"international criminal waiting for an interview.

3/3/16
Venezuela voters are starting to reject Communism  and it looks like Bolivia is joining that train.
Evo Morales, the Bolivian leader, had to accept defeat in a referendum making his current presidential term his last,. evo morales
 and now he is at the center of a scandal that reads like a Bolivian soap opera plot. It involves a secret relationship, a child that may or may not be alive, and alleged embezzlement and influence peddling.

4/10/16
 hairdryer.jpg




































































































The President advised women to go for a 'natural' look Getty Images

4/22/16
Communism=Venezuela cuts power for four hours a day to save energy


5/4/16
Plenty of ticked-off folks : Venezuela's opposition has presented to the electoral authorities a petition with the signatures of 1.85 million voters calling for a referendum to oust President Nicolas Maduro.
5/18/16
Sean Penn's guy: takeover

























































































President Maduro has announced a 60-day emergency, giving soldiers and police wider powers to deal with the country's spiralling economic crisis.
6/7/16
Breadlines, no toilet paper , rampant looting , etc., but Sean's pen has no ink. Venezuela's plight isn't as interesting as a Mexican drug dealer. It's all about the cameras , ain't it Sean?

6/30/16
Our Prez Obama makes a habit re-writing the law through executive orders and bureaucratic shakedowns but  is calling for others to follow the law. And I concur on with  Obama's stern warning to Venezuela's government Wednesday to not block the opposition's "legitimate" efforts to hold a referendum to recall the country's embattled president Nicolas Maduro.
7/7/16
Food shortages, etc but Pres Maduro's focus is on Keeping Lamos Rondon from being extradited to the USA. Perhaps because Rondon has ties to some of the highest ranking officers in the Venezuelan armed forces, and operated directly with some of the key players in the cartel.
7/11/16
Maduro woke up briefly: Venezuela opened its common border with Columbia to allow its people to buy food and medicine.
8/7/16
Catholic Church is waking up in Venezuela. Bishops
On Friday, five young men, four of them Catholic seminarians, were stripped down and beaten up by a mob aligned with Maduro.
“Denying that there’s a crisis and refusing to let the world send medicine and food is not possible,” said Cardinal Jorge Urosa Savino, archbishop of Caracas.
8/16/16
Maduro appointed Gen. Nestor #Reverol to be Interior Minister, despite being investigated by the U.S. for alleged drug trafficking activities. #PokemonGo “gym” in Caracas is located just outside the Lider mall, but few go there with a cellphone when 3,000 cellphones are stolen every day in #venezuela
9/14/16
Where are the PC cops? "Maduro boasts start of Venezuela summit despite 'gringo pressure'. Only some have to watch what they say????
 Hey but Iranian President #HassanRouhani and Zimbabwe's president, #Robert Mugabe are expected. Also China is thinking Venezuela is a risky investment.
9/29/16
Hey #SeanPenn: #Venezuelans are loading up on the basics, particularly toilet paper, when they visit the USA. Prime example of how #communist leaders  wasted oil riches.
Maduro's opponents should be able to get 20% of registered voters to sign the petition for a presidential referendum vote in early 2017.
10/16/16
Has #jamiefoxx been hanging out with #seanpenn or #dannyglover ? Foxx visited Maduro at the his presidential palace, probably one of the few places left with toilet paper. Another clueless limo lib touting communism, the economic killer.
10/25/16
The Pope has helped bring political foes  to the table in Venezuela but the head of the opposition coalition, Jesus Torrealba, who met Mr Tscherrig, said while talks were important "it can't continue to be a strategy for the government to win time". Still waiting for #seanpenn 's blessing.
11/29/16
Communism = #Venezuela 's currency now worth so little shopkeepers weigh vast piles of notes instead of counting them. #seanpenn  where are you?
12/13/16

 #grinch #maduro raids Kreisel Toys.
"This was plundering of inventory. The government didn't even respect the company's right of due process," Venezuelan Chamber of Commerce President Francisco MartínezFernández said.
I smell a coup by Maduro's opposition.
1/8/17
I'm tempted to laugh but Venezuela has to live  with a dictator  #maduro who just raised the minimum wage 50% while it's currency devalues.
1/24/17
#venezuela "express abductions" on the rise.  you'll need weight scales to pay your ransom in currency.
2/16/17
Can't fake this: #Venezuela's highest denomination banknote, the #100-bolivar note which is worth just two US cents on the black market, has ceased to be legal tender, in a move that has caused cash chaos and long queues at banks.
3/16/17
If you think Communism, Socialism etc work check this out :  A new #maduro regulation: bakers will be forced to use 90% of the flour they are given to bake ordinary bread and only 10% for pastries and other sweetened goods.
3/24/17
The authorities in Venezuela say they have arrested six children in connection with the stabbing murders of two national guard soldiers.The kids ages range from six to fifteen and are members of a gang called Los Cachorros (The Puppies).
3/26/17
Dear #seanpenn for three years you've ignored my blog. #maduro is pleading for medicinal help from the UN, but I'm sure you have what they need. Recall your photo-ops with #chavez. 
3/31/17
You knew this was coming. Venezuela court takes over National Assembly functions. #maduro is a desperate Commie dictator.
4/12/17
You know #maduro sees his days in power coming to an abrupt end. Paranoid???
"under a veneer of pacifism, the opposition is actually encouraging violent protests in a bid to topple his government."
4/20/17
Major protests against #Maduro in the streets of Venezuela and then his dictatorship is stripping assets including vehicles from a  #GM  plant. Hey #maduro where is all #oilmoney? Where is #seanpenn who praised commie #chavez , Maduro's predecessor, daily?
5/13/17
The sh^t is hitting the fan when professional athletes grow bolder politically.  Cheers for  #vinotinto,or "red wine," Venezuela's burgundy jerseyed  national men's soccer team for putting out a video asking #Maduro to curtain the brutal repression in their homeland. A few weeks ago Venezuelan players in the #MLB put out a video with similar ideas.
May 25
#venezuela is a mad house. These items caught my attention: Young guy plays violin during violent clash with police in Venezuela. Eight people died due to electrocution as they were looting a bakery last month.
june 12
Hey #popeFrancis listen to the prelates, and start sending tough messages, public or private, to  #Maduro ! Or are your critical comments reserved for only capitalist nations?
june 22
I guess this means #seanpenn won't be tossing out the first pitch. #joking . Baseball is the #1 sport In #Venezuela, but there are calls to cancel Venezuelan Professional Baseball League (LVBP) season after Venezuela lost the right to host the 2018 Caribbean Series tournament. 
july 11, 2017
Maduro moves #leopoldolopez from  jail to house arrest. I suspect this olive branch will crack and #maduro sees his power vanishing. Maybe #seanpenn  has a spare room in his mansion for Maduro?
july 23 2017
When some Hollywood commies lecture us just toss this back at them. A few years ago from  #seanpenn "Venezuela and its revolution will endure under the proven leadership of vice president Maduro."
july 31, 2017
#venezuela election violence,state workers forced to vote,#venezuelans fleeing while major airlines are halting or cutting  flights there. Maybe #seanpenn should visit ?
aug 4, 2017
#Venezuela currency down 18 percent --maybe #seanpenn can shoot a movie there on the cheap?
aug 15, 2017
Is #maduro 's buddy #cabello stupid enough to hire someone to kill a US Senator he calls #narcorubio. Yep, Venezuela is that F'd up
aug 22
Hey #seanpenn and other Hollywood stars who supported #chavez and #maduro , your silence is deafening. #Dudamel's tour with Venezuelan youth symphony canceled by President Maduro
sept 4
#LilianTintori, pregnant wife of #LeopoldoLopez, a top opposition leader , was stopped at the #Caracas airport on her way to join a delegation in Europe. No comments from #seanpenn or #dannyglover . 
sept14
 President #Maduro urged crisis-hit Venezuelans to breed rabbit and eat them as a source of animal protein. And the hits keep coming!
oct 2, 2017
Will #venezuela default on upcoming debt payments and leave  #Citgo, on of the bond backers, footing the bill?
oct 10, 2017
#ArgentineAirlines suspends flights to Venezuela. The list grows.
oct 11, 2017
#Venezuela’s triple-digit annual inflation rate is set to jump to more than 2,300 percent in 2018.  Is #seanpenn coming to the rescue? A civil war?
dec 10,2017
I'm not surprised amd nearly amused at this : One of China's state-owned companies has filed a lawsuit against Venezuela's oil company, #PDVSA, in a U.S. court, claiming millions of dollars it says it is owed. Call #seanpenn
dec 27 2017
Grim sign of the times in #Venezuela:  a Christmas tree in Maracaibo was decorated with virtually worthless low-denomination bolivar bills.
jan 9, 2018
I didn't hear a #seanpenn apology to the people of #venezuela Sunday night at the Golden Globes for propping up two miserable dictators, #chavez #maduro . Another whine would've fit in at the " me so sorry2 moprahfest ."
jan 28, 2018
snapshot of the miltary in #Venezuela: food shortages, desertions, suspension of retirement after minimum service .No #seanpenn peptalk looming.
feb 16, 2018
#Araoz ,Peru's PM, added these comments about #maduro 's vow  to visit  Peru , despite being told not to: "Neither the Peruvian soil, nor the Peruvian sea, nor the Peruvian air can be invaded by a foreign force." Just a little tense!
march 28 2018
Hey #seanpenn how about writing a satire on Venezuela which would involve you looking in the mirror.
april 15, 2018
Has #seanpenn, a supporter of Venezuela dictators, opened his fat wallet? Meanwhile, Vice President #Pence met Friday with Venezuelan opposition leaders and promised that the USA would contribute an additional $16 million  to help Venezuelans who've escaped to Brazil and Colombia
april 22, 2018
Western Venezuela suffering daily power cuts  while #maduro  visits with #danel, the new Cuban dictator. Did they save a chair for #seanpenn ?
may 19, 2018
Will #popefrancis step up in Latin America and address Maduro's Communist-driven starvation of it's people , and/or maybe accept the resignation of all 34 #Chilean Bishops over sexual abuses coverups?
may 22, 2018
Is a coup the only option left for the people of #Venezuela after #maduro the dictator sham election "win" yesterday?
may 27 2018
#usa get Holt back from Venezuela w/o lifting sanctions.
I bet #ortega  was one of #seanpenn 's heroes back in the day. Well, Ortega,  the Sandinista darling of the left, is trying to repress protests against  he and his wife VP #RosarioMurillo reign in #Nicaragua
June 9, 2018
Is this the end for #Bitcoin ? Bitcoin trading in Venezuela is skyrocketing amid 14,000% inflation
June 13, 2018
I started this blog entry about four years ago mentioning how dictators ,Chavez and #Maduro , have  provided  oil at a below market cost to Cuba. Part of that deal was access to Cuban's ,highly rated by some, medical expertise. Polio has returned to Venezuela  30 years after its eradication. You do the math!
July 17, 2018
#Mexico 's new Lefty President  #Obrador is promoting non-intervention with Venezuela and will likely move Mexico out of the #LimaGroup of largely Latin American countries seeking a solution to Venezuela’s #Maduro problem.
july 27, 2018
If #seanpenn embraces your methods, this is the result : #IMF says: #Venezuela inflation set to reach 1 million %
aug 4 , 2018
Oil rich #Venezuela  began a census of car owners, a move the commies say will help determine a “rational” use of fuel .
aug 8. 2018
A federal judge in Brazil  has ordered Brazil's northern border state of #Roraima closed to Venezuelan immigrants until the country has the humanitarian capacity to receive them.
aug 10
President  #Morales , one of #Maduro 's few Latin American supporters  ,  lost Bolivia's presidential regalia which was  stolen from car of his guard who was visiting a brothel in red-light district. Thieves later left  the stolen goods at a church.
aug 13
Venezuelan Pres #Maduro will allow US FBI agents into the country to help investigate the alleged assassination attempt against him a week ago, but the FBI hasn't offered its services. We'll send #seanpenn 😉
aug 22
#Peru , #Ecuador and #Brazil are trying to limit migration flows from #venezuela. Maybe #seanpenn has rooms in his mansion?
aug 30
Results of communist created migrant crisis: #Brazil sends troops to #Venezuela border
sept 18
#LuisAlmagro , secretary-general of the Organization of American States (OAS) said that a "military intervention" to "overthrow"  #Maduro 's government in Venezuela cannot be ruled out. The neighbors are getting restless.
Oct 21, 2018
 2.3 million people and more daily have left #Venezuela — more than 7 percent of the population. All those #Hollywood folks , particularly #seanpenn, who embraced Commie dictator  #hugoChavez from 1999-2013 must feel proud in their cozy California mansions. They've said little about his successor #maduro.
Nov 8, 2018
#Venezuela ’s consumer prices rose 833,997 % in the past year.  Maybe #seanpenn can grasp that that ain't good.
Nov 23, 2018
 Ten years ago #venezuela nationalized CanTV,  a telecommunications firm. A phone tower it built  to provide coverage to a local area outside the western city of #Barinas, had stopped working.
The tower was overgrown with vines snaking up its pylons,  its guardhouse was abandoned almost a decade ago, and no Cantv employee had visited in three months.
Nov 30, 2018
#UN sends sends 9 million in relief funds to #Venezuela and you can safely bet  the funds will end up lining the pockets of ruling Socialist politicians.
dec 5: 
Hey #seanpenn your buddy #Maduro is running to #putin for help. Is this  russiancollusion?
dec 14
Props to Reporters Without Borders (RSF) for standing up to Venezuelan authorities who arrested #billySix a German reporter for the right-leaning  Junge Freiheit , for spying, rebellion and "violating security zones," . Granted, Six shouldn't be surprised that #maduro didn't like his stories on  drug trafficking activities, smuggling of fuel , human trafficking, etc.
dec 30, 2018
 Columbian authorities have said an alleged plot to kill  president #IvanDuque may involve three Venezuelans who were recently arrested with assault weapons.  Is  #maduro, the Venezuelan dictator, that crazy? Yes!
jan 7, 2019
 #ChristianZerpa , a Venezuela Supreme Court judge and #maduro ally,has fled to the USA and called the VSC "an appendage of the executive branch". I doubt if #seanpenn offered him a room.
Jan 24, 2018
 Opposition leader #JuanGuaido has declared himself acting president of Venezuela after urging supporters to take to the streets in an effort to oust  #Maduro , who is likely texting #seanpenn for help
R Junge Freiheit ead more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/americas/venezuela/article87979462.html#storylink=cpy
Jan 31, 2019
Venezuela's opposition leader #JuanGuaidó has met with the Venezuela military and offered an amnesty to armed forces "found not guilty of crimes against humanity". Will #seanpenn , Russia, and China save #Maduro from losing  his dictatorship?
Feb 4
Hey #maduro text #seanpenn -he'll save you from the EU and the USA , etc . LOL
feb 5
  Secretary-General #AntonioGuterres wants the UN to remain neutral so it's doing nothing ???. Meanwhile #maduro is begging the Pope for help
feb 17: #JohnBolton says Maduro's generals are talking to the opposition in Venezuela. Hopefully for less bloodshed.
feb 20: Sure I believe the Cuban commies who denied it had security forces in Venezuela and I love the phrasing  ????:
"Our government categorically and energetically rejects this slander," Foreign Minister #BrunoRodriguez.
feb 22
After #maduro announced that the Venezuelan border with Brazil will be closed, many Venezuelans rushed to the Brazilian city of #Pacaraima to stock up on supplies. That speaks volumes.
March 7
Is #maduro 's time running out? He gave the German ambassador, Daniel Kriener, 48 hours to exit because he was among the diplomats accused of  helping opposition leader Juan Guaidó return to Venezuela on Monday.
march 8
No surprise: #maduro blames massive power outage in Caracas on the USA not his own ineptitude .
april 11
Here's why Russia is sending military to #venezuela :   Russia sank billions of dollars into Venezuela quicksand. #Rosneft , the Russian state-controlled oil firm, bosses didn't heed  the alarm  bells from some of its managers about the company’s bad investments with its local partner, Venezuelan state oil company #PDVSA .
May 1
Has #seanpenn arrived in Venezuela to save the Maduro dictatorship ?
June 3
  #Canada is suspending operations at its embassy in Venezuela over the government's refusal to accredit Canadian diplomats who have criticized #Maduro.  Is Trudy waking up?
Aug 15
 #Maduro , the bunker boy,  continues to think #Uribe , the President of Columbia, is aiming to kill him.  “It is a plan for 32 mercenaries to enter [Venezuela] to try to assassinate me and leaders of the revolution,” Maduro said." But we are here, protected by God.” . I wonder if Maduro has requested asylum in #seanpenn 's mansion.
Aug 20
 Another false start? Members of Maduro's inner circle, particularly Diosdado Cabello,  are seeking guarantees from the USA that they won't face prosecution for alleged abuses and crimes if they accede to growing demands to remove Maduro.
Aug 30
Last month Maduro said the fugitive rebel Columbian leaders would be welcome in his nation and yesterday a video appeared of Farc negotiator Luciano Marin  alongside 20 heavily armed insurgents dressed in camouflaged fatigues. Columbian President Duque has offered a reward to nabs these narco terrorists and, I suspect, Columbia may invade Venezuela.
dec 20
Some bi-partisan news thanks to Maduro remaining in power. Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart(GOP) and Debbie Schulz (DEM) formed the Venezuela Democracy Caucus in the House.
Trump ADM is working with Columbia and others to get rid of Maduro and it appears Guaido's, the opposition leader, star is dimming.
jan 18
How did I miss this? #seanpenn has been on a mission to save Haiti. So that's why Venezuela is crumbling?
feb 19
 USA  increases financial pressure on Venezuela by blacklisting Switzerland-based Rosneft Trading SA and its chairman, Didier Casimiro, a subsidiary of Russia's state-controlled Rosneft oil giant.
March 1
Maybe #seanpenn will make a movie about  #Colectivos , pro-government vigilantes in Venezuela. Yesterday one of their members shot a 16 year old kid during Guaido's march through Barquisimeto.
March 13
Send #SeanPenn to investigate:  Warehouse blaze destroyed 50,000 voting machines
 east of Caracas,Venezuela.
March 27
Paging #seanpenn to do his "Chapo" routine for #Maduro.   Unsealed indictments in New York, Florida and Washington DC accuse Venezuela's President Maduro and several key aides of conspiring with Colombian rebels to "to flood the United States with cocaine."
April 3
 USA "anti-drug" ships are being moved towards Venezuela with forces operating both in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific
April 4
And the hits keep coming:  A Venezuela naval vessel rammed the German-owned RCGS Resolute cruise ship which was receiving maintenance in international waters near Venezuela , but the Resolute has  steel plating to help it navigate through ice so it suffered only minor damage while the navel vessel sunk. And Maduro is calling the Resolute a pirate ship, etc.
June 13. 2020
Those darn fuel stops! Alex Nain Saab, a buddy of Maduro and a Colombian who was indicted by the US DOJ for money laundering in July 2019 , was detained when the Venezuelan  plane he was on traveling to Iran stopped in Cape Verde, an island country in the central Atlantic Ocean.
june 30, 2020
 Maduro  gave , Isabel Brilhante Pedrosathe, the head of the EU mission in Caracas, 72 hours to leave the country after the bloc announced sanctions against 11 Venezuelan officials. He''ll help the delegation find a flight out of the county amid coronavirus measures that have grounded most air travel.
July 3, 2020
The British High Court ruled that Nicolas Maduro, could not take control of over $1 billion (€890 million) in gold that his government has held in a Bank of England vault. because the UK government had "unequivocally" recognized Juan Guaido as constitutional interim President of Venezuela. So it does matter when other countries officially recognize leaders.



Read more here: https://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/americas/venezuela/article237335739.html#storylink=cpy








































































































Two Irelands - more coming

John Connolly, who was jailed for 14 years by a Belfast(NI) court in 2000 after being caught with a Real IRA mortar bomb on his way to blow ...