Venezuela's Poor Sour on Maduro as Prices, Shortages Sting

[Zorro]

Packing potatoes at his vegetable stand on a sun-baked street in Caracas's hillside Catia slum, Jesus Jimenez fondly recounts voting for late president Hugo Chavez.

Like millions in Venezuela's poor "barrios," the chatty father of 14 worshiped the larger-than-life Chavez and benefited from his welfare programs, especially Cuban-staffed free health centers and substantial pension rises.

So after Chavez's death last year, Jimenez naturally voted for the leader's hand-picked protege Nicolas Maduro, a former union activist and bus driver who vowed to continue the idiosyncratic brand of socialism known as "Chavismo."

Now, though, he struggles to make ends meet as inflation running at over 60 percent eats into his meager income and he spends hours in lines to buy scarce flour or medicines.

http://www.voanews.com/content/reu-venezuela-poor-sour-on-maduro-as-prices-shortages-sting/2553163.html

[Marksman_91]

1. Obviously the CIA's hand is at work here!

Who else would be able to cause an entire nation's inflation to skyrocket and cause production levels to plummet, especially from industries mostly controlled by the government?! There's no question it's the dirty hands of the CIA and Alvaro Uriber and the Illuminati and so on.

[Bacchus4.0]

2. it keeps getting worse, no end in sight. Where are the DU chavistas? n/t