Thursday, September 15, 2011

Systemic pillaging in Venezuela: it could have been me

Starting pillaging of a cooking oil truck
UPDATED  In yet another notable "fait-divers", a whole bunch of trucks were pillaged Tuesday night along a few private cars.  This hit home really hard because it happened on a road that I use at least 4 times a month, and that I used last Tuesday afternoon at the same time as it all happened Wednesday late afternoon.

The road I take most of the time between Caracas and San Felipe is the one that goes through Morón, a godawful joint that we call Mojón (turd).  Moron was "founded" at the crossing of the road from Puerto Cabello to Coro, where the branch to Barquisimeto and the Andes start.  It grew with all sorts of squatters (invasores) since the oil industry created a few complexes in the area.  All anarchic of course, over the decades.  Sure enough, it is one of the districts where chavismo gets some of its highest percentages (often above 80%).  The current mayor, a certain Matson Caldera, looks like the kind of guy you would not want to meet in a dark alley.  Yet his personality cult is well advanced, next to Chavez in all sorts of billboards.

Making progress, womenfolk helping, broken oil bottles on road

Not surprisingly since it is a district taken for granted by chavismo, it is also one of the most neglected with extensive slums at each entry of the town (town for lack of a better word to describe a ramshackle of who knows what).

Tuesday, the people from those shanties who probably do not pay for electricity to begin with, were incensed because yet another blackout had lasted for more than half a day.  In the hot and humid climate of the area where no refrigerator can hold cool for more than a few hours without power, it was indeed a problem for these people, even if electricity is stolen by most of them.  So they did the most sensible thing: they blocked the second most strategic road of Venezuela for several hours refusing to lift the barricades until power was restored.  That trucks and drivers also suffer from blackouts was apparently of no concern.  That they could have set seat in front of Matson' offices either did not come to mind, or was too far to walk to, or simply they did not want to jeopardize the occasional free Mercal bag.

Almost done!  No more oil shortage for Moron! 


Sure enough, when the night set, they started pillaging the trucks, women and children giving a helping hand to the males of the pack.  For good measure many cars stuck for hours in a road which was blocked both ways were also relieved of wallets and cel phones.  Shooting was heard but no report on its results.  Twitter was aflame last Tuesday I was told, in the twitter traffic addresses.  The Carabobo state police is the only one that showed up, woefully outnumbered.  No Nazional Guard was seen, even though any opposition rally is quickly surrounded by it in massive shows of strength.  See, el pueblo is allowed to pillage.  What else can we deduct?

Suiii, Suiii, stealing pigs on motor bike barefoot!
Note that none of the pillagers looks particularly malnourished or close to starvation state.   In fact many are rather chubbified.  Which did not stop them from stealing livestock...




Morón shopping spree
That is what 12 years of chavismo did to the country, a descent into anarchy and barbarism.  While now I need to make sure that I always drive through that area before noon.....  because the could have been me is the piglet there, as we are all in Venezuela now, sitting pigs/ducks wherever we are.

UPDATE

Apparently light is not coming back yet, at least not to all sectors of Moron.  Looting spread even to some stores in Moron,  Eventually the regime was bothered enough to send the army in to control the situation.  It is simply unbelievable that it took the authorities so long to react, letting Puerto Cabello police deal with it, eventually, we are told, arresting 19 people.  By the way, I could not find any declaration from the mayor, Matson.  Maybe he is on vacation? (sorry, I did find one 30 min later: he is actually critical of CORPOELEC, he has no choice I guess if he does not want to get lynched by his (ex?) electors)

And of course nothing on the state news.....  It is all a media manipulation and all of these people are paid actors.

Photo Credit el Carabobeño.

12 comments:

  1. Anonymous11:27 PM

    "What else can we deduct?"

    You mean "deduce", right?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Chubbified...I love it!

    This is scarey, I mean I would be terrified to travel the highways there, but I had heard of this before.

    It's mind boggling to think that even the mothers allow their children to participate in something like this...what kind of adults will these children be??????

    firepigette

    ReplyDelete
  3. RabbiBulla3:42 AM

    I remember when everyone was
    "chamo" or "chama"-those in the photos are not MY chamos.

    ReplyDelete
  4. 1979 Boat People7:16 AM

    Communisized society.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Charly2:03 PM

    Pass quite often there on my way to Moroccoy. Always thought that Venezuela would be a better place if a neutron bomb exploded in "Mojon". There must be a better solution as this one would not affect the local squalid infrastructure.

    ReplyDelete
  6. 1979BP, Communism? The Communists knew a thing or two about order, about controlling people.

    Chavismo control is limited to stamping out anything that might be seen as a threat against Chavez. Anything else goes, because they aren't competent enough to act against it.

    ReplyDelete
  7. first anonymous

    you are right, but then again the lapsus is kind of appropriate, ain't it not? :-)

    after all someone got something deducted from its vehicle....

    ReplyDelete
  8. glenn5:38 PM

    Stealing and eating pigs will make you chubbified, right?

    ReplyDelete
  9. 1979 Boat People7:07 PM

    Aren't these things belong to everyone in a communist country?

    It is called SHARING NOT STEALING communism.:)

    ReplyDelete
  10. Since our family is in both Caracas and San Felipe we travel this road whenever we are in VZ. We are always a bit apprehensive. This just reinforces what we know, that VZ is sinking further into anarchy because of the lawlessness of the government.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Anonymous3:10 PM

    I think it is time to secure these roads with private security guards traveling with these trucks in a convoy. Like in many countries where there is much terrorism.
    time for people to stand together and not be afraid to make Venezuela a better place. Venezuela is a beautiful country if the people were educated. Its a pity the people do not follow there religion and follow the principle of the laws of god.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Anonymous3:15 PM

    A stranger in your country living here with my wife I see a great future for this country if only the people stood together not indeviduals but a mass of people become a giant body. Theinternet is a great place to do this if people had some backbone this country could become a world eader in so many things and people would all benefit.
    As i can see it at the moment its dog eat dog. Stand up Venezuela and be proud of your country and change it.

    ReplyDelete

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