Episode 10: Venezuelan Victimization

Q: What does a 275% increase in your monthly wage get you?A: If you’re a Venezuelan depending on minimum wage, it gets you the equivalent of $8.That’s enough to buy about nine pounds of meat… for the entire month. And that's after after eight previous minimum wage hikes!In this week's episode of The Elucidators, Steve and Soumi discuss the long and sad path that has led South America’s formerly most-prosperous nation into near-total economic and social collapse. Domestic corruption, incompetence, and autocracy, along with a surprisingly wide array of international actors -- including Cuba, Russia, China, India, Turkey, Iran, Hezbollah, and of course the United States -- have all played a role in bringing this oil-rich nation to its knees. Also discussed in this episode: the "resource curse" / "Dutch Disease," petrostates, narcostates, left-wing populism, and much more!Here's some additional light reading on this slow-motion disaster:Bloomberg - Venezuela’s Maduro Hikes Minimum Wage Again, This Time by 275%Council on Foreign Relations - Venezuela: The Rise and Fall of a PetrostateCBS News - Understanding the Venezuelan presidential crisis: Who are Juan Guaido and Nicolas Maduro?