Caracas Is Burning As Maduro Warned May Face Military Coup

With all eyes focused on Ukraine, the situation in Venezuela has once again escalated as protest leader Leopoldo Lopez' arrest (and possible 10 year jail sentence) prompted more violence overnight. However, as we warned, the government crackdown is starting to raise concerns about the stability of the government.

• *VENEZUELA PROTESTS ESCALATING INTO NATIONWIDE UNREST: IHS
• *ESCALATION OF PROTESTS PUTS STABILITY OF GOVT AT RISK: IHS
• *RISING VIOLENCE COULD LEAD TO MADURO OUSTER BY MILITARY: IHS

As opposition leader Capriles asks Venezuela's military to uphold the constitution, he exclaims that "the poor' must participate for government to change.

• *VENEZUELA HATILLO MAYOR DAVID SMOLANSKY SPEAKS IN CARACAS
• *VENEZUELA PEOPLE WON'T STAY QUIET: SMOLANSKY
• *SMOLANSKY SAYS VENEZUELA SUFFERED TERROR LAST NIGHT
• *SMOLANSKY CALLS FOR MASSIVE VENEZUELA PROTESTS SATURDAY

The opposition leader speaks:

• *VENEZUELA OFFICIALS SHOT AT PROTESTERS YDAY: CAPRILES
• *VENEZUELA ARMED FORCES SHOULD ALLOW PEACEFUL MARCHES: SMOLANSKY
• *VENEZUELA STRENGTHENING TIES WITH CUBA, RAMIREZ SAYS
• *VENEZUELA GOVT USING VIOLENCE TO HIDE ECO PROBLEMS: CAPRILES
• *CAPRILES SAYS SOME IN VENEZUELA GOVT WANT MADURO OUT
• *CAPRILES ASKS VENEZUELA ARMED FORCES TO UPHOLD CONSTITUTION
• *VENEZUELA POOR MUST PARTICIPATE FOR GOVT TO CHANGE: CAPRILES
• *CAPRILES SAYS HE WON'T BE FORCED TO TALK TO VENEZUELA GOVT

And IHS warns:

• *VENEZUELA PROTESTS ESCALATING INTO NATIONWIDE UNREST: IHS
• *ESCALATION OF PROTESTS PUTS STABILITY OF GOVT AT RISK: IHS
• *RISING VIOLENCE COULD LEAD TO MADURO OUSTER BY MILITARY: IHS

Images from last night suggest this is getting considerably worse...despite Maduro's claims of "absolute calm"

and of course the terrible death of a former Miss Venezuela...

And finally there's this:

Don't forget that #Venezuela's protests started because of lack of food & high criminality. Nothing to do w politics. pic.twitter.com/ZOT0Iv9ukX

— Oliver (@orvtech) February 20, 2014

Comments

[MagicMoney]

Hugo Chavez was a typical demogue, that much I do know. I never said Venezuela was a economic tiger at all, or capitalistic paradise. Can't win a argument, so you create strawman argument...Hmm. Those are your words, not mine, but fact remains this is all too common in human history. There is blood shed, but no socialist comes forward from anywhere to apologize for the mistakes they have done. None whatsoever.... Not one ounce of responsibility. A violent reaction to capitalism is socialism or communism....It's no different than violent reaction of anti-colonialism, hatred of anything of white man, including that of capitalism. Who takes the blame for making the problem worse? I see no socialist stepping forward...... You seem more of apologist for socialism, and not attributing the causes of the problems in Venezuela. People are dying in Venezuela, and what do I hear from you? Well capitalism wasn't paradise. You have black versus white view of the world, and this is why we get problems like this in the world, and through out human history. I knew Venezuela would be made worse when Hugo Chavez was in power from the beginning. Yet we had socialist proclaiming how great Venezuelan socialism would become. Like a messiah. Can't take responsiblity for the seeds you sow? Well too bad, reality slaps you on the side of the face with a vengeance. It's a tragedy what's going on in Venezuela, but when you support government to take care of you, & plan a economy for you may not like the results. So who do we blame again? What do we blame again? Capitalism, or socialism???

[22winmag]

Better dead than Red.

Together we can... kill commies.