Suffering gets worse in Venezuela

Shipwreck standing on the beach with the sea in the background. Margarita Island. Venezuela. Photo courtesy of DollarPhotoClub.com
Shipwreck standing on the beach with the sea in the background. Margarita Island. Venezuela. Photo courtesy of DollarPhotoClub.com

Still more indications the humanitarian crisis continues to deepen:

  • People killing wild animals just to get a little meat on the table
  • Government can’t even issue passports
  • Use the “Maduro diet”, lose 19 pounds in a year

2/10 – Fox News – Venezuelans killing flamingos and anteaters to stave off hunger amid mounting food crisis – Researchers for a university have found 20 flamingo carcasses, each with the breast meat and torso removed. Carcasses of dogs, cats, donkeys, and giant anteaters have been discovered at city dumps. That illustrates the desperation so many people experience in trying to find meet for their diet.

Experts point out those wild animals can carry lots of little nasties that can hurt humans.

Article explains the severity of inflation by providing some data points. Here is what you can buy for half of the minimum wage for an entire month:

  • 7,800 bolivars – US$2.00 – 2 pounds of sugar
  • 7,800 bolivars – US$2.00 – 2 pounds of corn flour
  • 10,000 bolivars – US$2.50 – 2 pounds of good meat
  • 25,600 bolivars –US$6.50 – total of above three items
  • 40,000 bolivars – US$11.00 – minimum wage for one month

So, about 65% of a person’s monthly minimum wage goes into buying that amount of food which will last for, how long, say, a couple of days for family? How do you feed your family the other 24 or 26 or 28 days in a month?

2/10 – Miami Herald – Food and medicine shortages weren’t bad enough. Now Venezuelans can’t even get passports. – The government cannot afford spare parts or specialized materials to issue passports. Without spare parts, government officials have had to cannibalize some of the passport machines in order to keep a few working. Currently only two out of 11 machines are functioning. Amongst the consequences are Venezuelan citizens living outside the country whose passports have expired – they cannot travel and cannot do anything that requires a passport.

2/20 – Fox News – Study: Venezuelans lost 19 lbs. on average over past year due to lack of food – As a result of what is now called the “Maduro diet”, 75% of the population reports an average loss of 19 pounds of weight in the last year.

The study reports the portion of people in the country living in poverty is 82%.

Portion of people whose household income is not sufficient to buy enough food is 93% that is why meat and vegetables are gone for the died of most people with tubers such as potatoes feeling most of the diet.

Question of the day:

What economic system produced the “Maduro diet?”

 

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