Venezuela to seize 'idle' firms
The Venezuelan government has warned it will confiscate hundreds of private companies that are lying idle if they fail to re-open.That's one way of putting it!
President Hugo Chavez said the firms' workers would be given help to set up co-operatives and re-start production for the benefit of the community.
He said the move was needed to fight poverty and end Venezuela's dependence on "the perverse model of capitalism".
Some business leaders fear it may lead to a wider attack on private property.They're worried about their property, of course. None of them are worried about indigenous Venezuelans, though. Are they? Of course not!
But back to Chavez:
"It's against our constitution," he said. "Just as we cannot permit good land to lie uncultivated, so we cannot allow perfectly productive factories to stay closed."Who could argue with such a sentiment?
The owners of land that's not being cultivated; the owners of factories that are not being used. That's who! And how much power do they have? How much influence?
Something tells me we are going to find out. Soon.