A friend and reader sent me an email today and reminded me that my blog has been around one of these days for all of nine years. I checked and indeed it was born on Aug. 4th. 2002, exactly nine years ago today. Which makes me feel, when I think about it, like the picture above…
Exhausted!!!
I thought this would be short and sweet, a two to three year project, which turned into a nine year night job…and counting…
But hey! See that tree at the end of the road, there is still hope! And I happen to be very stubborn and tenacious (Yes, I was born in late April). So, I will be around for a while.
Here is that first post:
Banana Republics 101 Part I
Most people who live in or are from underdeveloped countries take offense when anyone refers to their own or, for that matter, any other country, as a Banana Republic. The term originated in the Central American countries were the United Fruit Co. operated, but has come to signify countries which may not even qualify to be called countries because of the way they are run. I do feel like I live in one, when I try to explain to my friends from abroad any of the following:
-For the first time in ten years Venezuela has economists in both the Minisitry of Finance and the Ministry of Planning. In the past, we have had a Mathematician, a Sociologist, an Urban Planner and an engineer, to cite a few. (Not true anymore in 2011, thyey got rid of the Economists, brought back the Mathematician and Urban Planner)
-Venezuela is part of OPEC, where it gets together with its most important competitors to decide how much each country should produce per day. Interestengly enough, Venezuela is the OPEC country, other than Iraq for different reasons, that has reduced its production the most in the last thirty years. Despite this, few Venezuelans are convinced we should split from OPEC. Thats ok with me, but don’t you think we should even discuss it? (Still the case in 2011)
-There were mudslides in the coastal zones near Caracas in Dec. 1999. Estimates are that close to 40,000 people died. The US Army Core of Engineers offered to rebuild the coastal highway (for free!!) an send ships to Venezuela. The Government refused to accept the aid and the ships turned back. To this day, three years later, the highway has yet to be completed. (Parts of it were rebuilt, some are a mess today in 2011)
-We say we live in a democracy. Despite this, only one candidate in the last ten years was elected in a primary of his party. He lost. (Still the case in 2011)
-There were riots this week in Caracas. Government supporters rioted for two days, shot people, blocked streets and created chaos in the city. The Government announced today that it had asked the Attorney General to investigate the abuses of the police when they used tear gas from a helicopter. The President has banned the flying of police helicopters over the city. There has been no call to investigate the rioters, where they got their weapons or who leads them. (Nothing ever gets investigated in 2011, except to screw the opposition)
Hate to see what a Banana Republic would be like…..
The Devil's Excrement 
August 10, 2011 at 12:22 pm
Miguel, I am happy we met and ate sushi together and that you have kept on informing so many persons about Venezuela’s reality, but… I wish this blog never had to come to life, I wish at least, it wasn’t about him anymore, I wish we were free, because even in our exile, all of us, Venezuelans, are chained to the pain of what he has done to our lives
You are brave and I am glad this blog has been a constant in spite of chaos or because of that very chaos
August 5, 2011 at 10:32 am
Congratulations Miguel. Thank you very much for all the blood, sweat and tears!!!!
Hope you will keep on keepin’ on!!
August 5, 2011 at 10:10 am
Miguel,
you have not been blogging for nine years. May I remind you your on-line “blogging” in Atarraya during the 1992 coup d’état of Chávez against Pérez?
I have tried hard to find those messages in my own Atarraya archives and have posted queries around about them, but I have not been successful. You should do a special post asking your Internet readers to look them up, who knows, maybe one of them kept the files somewhere. If you ever find them and post them here, it would be a truly historic post. You were probably the only one “blogging” the 1992 coup d’état!
August 5, 2011 at 6:26 am
Well done Miguel. As another almost-9-year blogger, I know what a huge effort it is, especially when one lives abroad. But as you say, we have to document the wretched chavista experiment, if anything, as a personal contribution to a better future in Venezuela.
August 5, 2011 at 4:47 am
Greetings from Tallahassee. It is well and good that a man have more than 1 obsession, although I bet the Orchids hate every second you spend on this project.
🙂
August 5, 2011 at 12:57 am
My sincerest CONDOLENCES, amigo. What a waste of life Chavez and his ilk have wrought. Still I’m beyond thankful for your documentation, to say nothing of your insights. Oh that you were President instead of the caudillo.
August 4, 2011 at 8:27 pm
And last, I hope! But doubt it…
August 4, 2011 at 8:17 pm
Diablillo, next year you’ll celebrate your first decade blogging!
August 4, 2011 at 6:33 pm
No me preguntes si te amo,
porque esa pregunta me ofende,
si pudiera colocar moneda sobre moneda
para hacer una torre de todo lo que siento,
créeme llegaría hasta el cielo
These are some lines from an Anonymous poem-
Cheers! Keep writing, pal. You are always very interesting.
August 4, 2011 at 6:29 pm
No importa que te mudes a otra galaxia,
tu siempre estas aquí,
y sobra decir que yo vivo en un mundo dentro de ti.
Porque por más lejos que estés,
por más preguntas que hagas,
no importa el lugar donde estés,
donde tu vives es aquí… en mi corazón
August 4, 2011 at 5:48 pm
David: Miguel yours is truly an tremendoes resource for all of us that live away from the motherland. Thanks for a great job
August 4, 2011 at 5:26 pm
I’ve diffused your blog name around Colombia and Europe for the past
2 years. Your edge on Venez’ financials is fascinating, it tells it all.
Well deserved thanks for those 9 years.
August 4, 2011 at 5:10 pm
Congrats for all the hard work dedication and heart
August 4, 2011 at 4:58 pm
I was early, because my brother is a techie and showed me about blogs very early in the game. I can’t find a list of the chronological order of blogs, but the first one was Zonageek by Sebatsian Delmont, the second one my brother in Tyromaniac and the third one was the Devil.
August 4, 2011 at 4:47 pm
Miguel, you were the first blog i ever read. Since i read yours for the first time i can’t stop now. What you,and other bloggers offer is just unique and can’t be replaced by tv,radio,newspapers or other internet services.
Thank you Miguel!!
August 4, 2011 at 4:46 pm
Nine years indicates a lot of persistence, especially considering the high quality of what you write. Keep up the good work
August 4, 2011 at 4:38 pm
Deinen blog hat uns alle gefreut! (Your blog has given us all much joy)
Er, anyone notice the ‘drop’ in the price of oil today? Substantial. Off the cliff. What happens to the “expected” future oil revenues to PDVSA? Or did they project a continuous 107 dollars per barrel ad infinitum? We live in interesting times.
August 4, 2011 at 3:55 pm
Congrats Miguel. I’m one of those that checks your blogs daily to see what new analysis or commentary you have.
Omar
August 4, 2011 at 3:00 pm
SAme here! thanks for a very enjoyable, very real blog!
Cheers,
August 4, 2011 at 2:56 pm
Miguel, thanks for all of these years. Even from The Netherlands you have a fan who reads the blog weekly! Greetings
August 4, 2011 at 1:31 pm
Congratulations Miguel. I am only following you for 5 years or so. Before that I did not even know where Venezuela was located on the globe ;).
Keep up the good work. There are many of us who enjoy to read what you have to say.
August 4, 2011 at 1:24 pm
Congratulations! A very good work! Keep going! Hope the change is coming, but anyway, your useful analysis should not stop then.
August 4, 2011 at 1:12 pm
Thank you all, there was a lot of Serendipity in all this, if persistence is a role model, then it is.
August 4, 2011 at 1:12 pm
Congrats Miguel.
I really hope you keep this blog going.
I have a feeling that the next 18 months are going to be the most incredible in the history of Venezuela.
August 4, 2011 at 12:55 pm
Congratulations !!!
But, I think Venezuela turn these years from a Banana Republic to a failed country like African Zimbabwe and Somalia. For worse, Some centroamerican countries like Panama, Costa Rica y Dominicana are heaven compare to Venezuela and they are receiving our emigrants.
August 4, 2011 at 12:26 pm
Congrats Miguel. You’re a role model.
August 4, 2011 at 12:24 pm
dear Miguel
Congrats and keep up the good work
Julie Carbonell
August 4, 2011 at 12:05 pm
Congratulations and please keep the good work!!!
PS. I hope that’s not you in the picture….are you growing breasts? 🙂
August 4, 2011 at 1:10 pm
LOL
August 5, 2011 at 10:30 am
It’s from eating all that Chicken. Ask Evo, he knows about that……..
August 4, 2011 at 11:45 am
Here’s to at least 9 years more. Congrats, you do a great job with the blog.