• This is a political forum that is non-biased/non-partisan and treats every person's position on topics equally. This debate forum is not aligned to any political party. In today's politics, many ideas are split between and even within all the political parties. Often we find ourselves agreeing on one platform but some topics break our mold. We are here to discuss them in a civil political debate. If this is your first visit to our political forums, be sure to check out the RULES. Registering for debate politics is necessary before posting. Register today to participate - it's free!

Venezuela: We can't pay our debts anymore

Rogue Valley

Rogue Valley

Lead or get out of the way
DP Veteran
Joined
Apr 18, 2013
Messages
94,073
Reaction score
82,300
Location
Barsoom
Gender
Male
Political Leaning
Independent
Venezuela: We can't pay our debts anymore

by Patrick Gillespie
November 3, 2017

Maduro said in a televised speech Thursday that Venezuela and its state-run oil company, PDVSA, will seek to restructure their debt payments. The oil company made a $1.1 billion payment on Thursday, he said, a sizable amount for a country with only $10 billion left in the bank. "But after this payment, starting today, I decree a refinancing and a restructuring of the external debt," Maduro told the country. Venezuela is already deep into a humanitarian crisis, with people suffering from food and medical shortages. Many can't afford to buy basic items because prices are skyrocketing faster than wages. The country's currency, the bolivar, is worth less than a tenth of a U.S. penny. If Maduro's government can't reach a new agreement with bondholders over the debt restructuring -- which often means trying to pay less money -- it will end up defaulting. That would trigger a potentially ugly series of events. Investors in the U.S. and elsewhere could seize Venezuelan oil as collateral. All told, Venezuela owes about $65 billion in bonds denominated in foreign currencies, mostly in dollars, according to research firm Capital Economics. Venezuela also owes debts to China, Russia, oil service providers, airlines and a slew of other entities. Its top negotiator also has a problem: He can't do business in the U.S.
Click to expand...

Venezuela's bonds are already rated as Junk. The country renounced its membership in the International Monetary Fund and World Bank in 2007. The Maduro government is under US sanctions. It may lose ownership of its PDVSA (Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A./Citgo) national oil conglomerate to China and Russia. No entity will want to restructure debt -- the country is probably already too far gone with no monetary lifelines available. The government of Venezuela will most likely be forced to default, with expanding national impoverishment and accelerating social unrest/riots.
 
Is that the speech where he ate the empanada live on TV while his people are starving in the streets?
 
Nap said:
Is that the speech where he ate the empanada live on TV while his people are starving in the streets?
Click to expand...

Yup. Terrible optics with citizens starving.
 
Rogue Valley said:
Yup. Terrible optics with citizens starving.
Click to expand...

The sad thing is I feel like I can't really chastise him too much for it because I could easily see Trump do something similar.
 
ecofarm said:
Just popping in to say, "I told ya so".

https://www.debatepolitics.com/latin-america/173988-venezuela-crumbling.html

A quasi dictator sells domestic gas nationally at pennies a gallon to keep power and this is what happens.
Click to expand...



You reference a link dated 9/30/13, where you give the county “within a year” to implode. Then in the following post in the same thread, dated 6/1/16, You post “told ya so!” Almost three years later, and then again in this post you break your arm patting yourself on the back, over four years after your 2013 prediction. Wow, ”hoist on you own petard!”
 
That's what happens when you dismantle your nation's economy.
 
Maduro will pay for what he's done.

Mark my words.

He will pay.

He's not the only one at fault, but he has made a concerted decision for his own personal benefit to double down on extremely bad decisions that were made and bring unimaginable misery to his people.
 
Rogue Valley said:
Venezuela: We can't pay our debts anymore



Venezuela's bonds are already rated as Junk. The country renounced its membership in the International Monetary Fund and World Bank in 2007. The Maduro government is under US sanctions. It may lose ownership of its PDVSA (Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A./Citgo) national oil conglomerate to China and Russia. No entity will want to restructure debt -- the country is probably already too far gone with no monetary lifelines available. The government of Venezuela will most likely be forced to default, with expanding national impoverishment and accelerating social unrest/riots.
Click to expand...
Yay socialism. Bernie supporters, pay attention. ;)
 
Nap said:
The sad thing is I feel like I can't really chastise him too much for it because I could easily see Trump do something similar.
Click to expand...

Lol, our citizens aren't starving.
 
countryboy said:
Yay socialism. Bernie supporters, pay attention. ;)
Click to expand...

This has nothing to do with say, having UHC or having social programs aimed at not having kids starving.

Could you please stop using the suffering of the Venezuelan people to push this stupid idea that, Venezuela means social programs are bad things that cause starving people.

The situation there is much more complex than that.
 
countryboy said:
Lol, our citizens aren't starving.
Click to expand...

https://www.dosomething.org/facts/11-facts-about-hunger-us

1 in 6 people in America face hunger.

The USDA defines "food insecurity" as the lack of access, at times, to enough food for all household members. In 2011, households with children reported a significantly higher food insecurity rate than households without children: 20.6% vs. 12.2%.

Food insecurity exists in every county in America. In 2013, 17.5 million households were food insecure. More and more people are relying on food banks and pantries. Collect food outside your local supermarket for a local food bank. Sign up for Supermarket Stakeout GL.

49 million Americans struggle to put food on the table.

In the US, hunger isn’t caused by a lack of food, but rather the continued prevalence of poverty.

More than 1 in 5 children is at risk of hunger. Among African-Americans and Latinos, it’s 1 in 3.

Over 20 million children receive free or reduced-price lunch each school day. Less than half of them get breakfast, and only 10% have access to summer meal sites.

For every 100 school lunch programs, there are only 87 breakfast sites and just 36 summer food programs.

1 in 7 people are enrolled in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Nearly half of them are children.

40% of food is thrown out in the US every year, or about $165 billion worth. All of this uneaten food could feed 25 million Americans.

These 8 states have statistically higher food insecurity rates than the US national average (14.6%): Arkansas (21.2%), Mississippi (21.1%), Texas (18.0%), Tennessee (17.4%), North Carolina (17.3%), Missouri (16.9%), Georgia (16.6%), Ohio (16.0%).
Click to expand...
 
Nap said:
If they were would it shock you to see Trump eat something while addressing them in a speech.
Click to expand...

They're not. And no amount of wishful thinking on your part will make it so.
 
Jetboogieman said:
This has nothing to do with say, having UHC or having social programs aimed at not having kids starving.

Could you please stop using the suffering of the Venezuelan people to push this stupid idea that, Venezuela means social programs are bad things that cause starving people.

The situation there is much more complex than that.
Click to expand...

It is a worthy discussion to have because Venezuela represents a real time example of the evils of socialism and the destruction it brings
 
Rogue Valley said:
Venezuela: We can't pay our debts anymore



Venezuela's bonds are already rated as Junk. The country renounced its membership in the International Monetary Fund and World Bank in 2007. The Maduro government is under US sanctions. It may lose ownership of its PDVSA (Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A./Citgo) national oil conglomerate to China and Russia. No entity will want to restructure debt -- the country is probably already too far gone with no monetary lifelines available. The government of Venezuela will most likely be forced to default, with expanding national impoverishment and accelerating social unrest/riots.
Click to expand...

Another triumph of Socialism as a system of governance.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom