Extrajudicial killings happen so often in Venezuela that nobody bats an eye at the figures, and all you need to be part of the statistic is one dose of bad luck.
Daily Briefing
Against Velásquez, Against Bolívar
Your daily briefing for Thursday, October 19, 2017. Translated by Javier Liendo.
What (The Hell) Happened in Miranda
How did the opposition lose a state that had been in the bag for almost ten years? Here are three theories and one conclusion.
Blaming the Victim
In an attempt to explain to a non-Venezuelan audience what happened on Suday’s elections, Quico claims results were authentic. Here's a whole bunch of reasons why he's wrong. And there are many more to come.
Explaining the Non-Fraud Fraud
Venezuelan elections are neither free nor fair, but they're what some would call competitive. That's a story even many Venezuelans can't wrap their minds around. I tried to explain it, in 800 words, to a foreign audience.
It’s Almagro vs. Ecarri, and it’s not pretty
The OAS’ Secretary General just threw some shade at everyone regarding last Sunday’s elections, including MUD. Of course, for some in the opposition its business as usual.
A Staggering Defeat
This isn’t going to be like July 30th, when evidence of fraud began to pile on almost from the moment the polls closed. This is going to be like April 2013, when the opposition signalled fraud but could never prove it.
Down the Sketchy Election Fraud Road, Again
Fraud seems like the only reasonable explanation for tonight's unfathomable election results. It's also the easiest way to paint yourself into a corner.
Previous Briefings
Faking Their Victory
Your daily briefing for Wednesday, October 18, 2017. Translated by Javier Liendo.
The Uncredited Defeats
Your daily briefing for Tuesday, October 17, 2017. Translated by Javier Liendo.
The Worst-case Scenario
Your daily briefing for Monday, October 16, 2017. Translated by Javier Liendo.
Previous Posts
Confusion and determination at three Caracas voting centers
We toured three voting centers rumored to be hit with last minute location changes and found mass confusion alongside with a blood-minded determination not to allow your vote to be suppressed.
Keeping Up With The Kampaign
Regional elections are pretty much here, so here’s a review of each side’s campaign — and a peek into the weird side.
The (electoral) Joker Cards: Null Vote & Abstention
With regional elections around the corner and CNE in full-out sabotage mode nobody knows for certain how many will be able to vote. And this could make a pretty dramatic difference. It sounds scary, because it is.
31,109 Bolívares for a Dolar, Today
The dollar doubles to 31,000 in less than two months – textbook late Voodoo Populism.
Julio Borges, Unplugged.
In an extensive interview, National Assembly Speaker Julio Borges explains his strategy to chip away at the government's sources of international support and credit.
Re-arranging the Pieces
A massive, last-minute relocation of polling stations was just announced by CNE ahead of Sunday's elections, in a move that is dim and sneaky and should surprise no one.
Democratizing the Protest
Elections are happening on Sunday, whether we like it or not. For some, voting is not a choice, it’s their only means of protest.
The Ever Present Niño
Someone needs to tell Basic Industries Minister Juan Arias that the reasons for our recession have nothing to do with El Niño and everything to do with communism.
Come Report in Venezuela (And Be Jailed For It)
Even if Venezuela isn’t as much in the headlines as it used to be, the hegemony still isn’t cozy with foreign reporters poking their noses around the country.
The Dreamers: Meeting Mérida’s Rocket Scientists
It’s no joke, a small group of scientists is developing aerospace technology at Mérida’s Universidad de Los Andes. An odyssey? You have no idea...
Open Letter from Political Prisoners
Over a dozen political prisoners address Venezuelan citizens from the dungeons of El Helicoide prison less than a week before the gubernatorial election, urging them to vote and to man every polling station this Sunday.
How that intervention worked out for Chacao
Venezuela’s government has extended its takeover of Chacao’s Municipal Police four times now. Fear is rising, outcomes are fleeting.
World Premiere: In the Shadow of the Revolution
Former supporters of chavismo and longtime friends of Caracas Chronicles present their latest film project, which looks to dispel remaining myths about a benevolent leftist revolution through the eyes of the very people it claimed to champion.
The Ten Million Dollar Curveball
It’s easy to huff and puff against the baseball season kicking off next week, but why take our frustrations out on one of the private businesses that still works and cranks out a world-class product?
Calculating Our Diaspora
Venezuelans are leaving the country in a rush. What is surprising, though, is how little data there is on Venezuelan emigration. Here’s an estimate of our new reality.
Snapshot of a Crisis
There’s a picture from Venezuela that has been all over the news this week. It shows how dire the situation is in our hospitals – and who the government really perceives as criminals. WARNING: Graphic content follows.
Introducing the Venezuela Energy Briefing
Figuring out Venezuela’s Energy Industry is not for the faint of heart. Today, we unveil a new report for those with a burning need to crack the PDVSA riddle.
Animal Rescue: El Llanito Edition
On World Animal Day, we meet the people behind SOS Animal, the El Llanito NGO looking out for the very most forgotten victims of Venezuela’s crisis.
Engines Off
In a city where millions rely on them, three out of every four buses in Caracas are out of order. Here we ponder Venezuela’s bus-less dystopia – coming soon to a city near you.
A Path to Recover Venezuela’s Well-being
So much is wrong with Venezuela's economy, that it’s hard to know where to even start. Unless you’re Ricardo Hausmann and Miguel Ángel Santos – those guys know where to start.
Merida’s (shady) Player
Next on our tour of wacky 15O candidates, meet Mérida's Luis Zeppenfeldt. A wolf in sheep's clothing? You be the judge...
Chavismo’s Ginger Hope
Meet Rafael Lacava, the shirtless, shameless firebrand chavismo hopes will be Carabobo’s next executive.
Explainer: The Cash Drought
Anyone in Venezuela can tell you there is a huge issue with getting your hands on enough cash, regardless of how much you have in the bank. Here’s why that happens – and how it feels.
#TheWeeklyArepa Editorial: Atonement
Each Friday, Raúl regales the members of our mailing list with a scrumptious little nugget of wisdom in our Weekly Arepa. Here’s this week’s.
Jailed for protesting, then released… but not freed
Very few people have experienced the recent round of protests like Alejandro has, from inside a cell. Although he’s free now, his captivity is still in his eyes and voice when he tells his story.
You Have the Right to Know
Today is International Day for the Universal Access to Information: a noble UN goal that doubles as a sinister joke to Venezuelans living in the dark under a dictatorship that wants them not to know.
Tienes derecho a saber
El Día mundial de Acceso a la Información se conseguirá en Venezuela con una de las peores deudas de su historia: los ciudadanos se mueven a oscuras ante una dictadura opaca.
Empty Universities
With a massive exodus of both students and professors, and universities struggling with their budgets, Venezuelan academia seems doomed to disappear altogether.
Meeting Bolichico Rodríguez
If you’re a Venezuelan living abroad, you’ve fantasized about the day you meet a "bolichico" in a social setting. Here’s a useful primer to plan for your own encounter.
A Glass of Milk
School milk programs are a widely accepted source of nutrition for children everywhere. Although Venezuela has had such a program for decades, its execution has been less than ideal lately.
Venezuela in Trump’s Travel Ban: An Explainer
Venezuela joining the likes of North Korea and Syria in the U.S. list of risky countries is no surprise. It’s the execution of these promised measures that makes this such a strange case.
Girls Interrupted
Today is World Contraception Day. In Venezuela, the staggering rate of teenage pregnancy is a very real public health issue, and also a social problem.
Where Have the Doctors Gone?
Thousands of MDs have left Venezuela. Facing discrimination and bureaucratic obstacles abroad, they either manage the certification ordeal… or leave medicine altogether.
Venny Bull Blend: The VENZ 2027 coupon drama and what comes...
A seemingly endless flow of terrible headlines suggesting Miraflores is as close to bankruptcy as ever capped off a payment delay on the VENZ 2027 coupon. And the Venny Bulls laugh through it all on a blend of optimism and cynicism.
Another Year With(out) Penicillin
It’s almost a century ago today that antibiotics, as we know them, were first introduced into modern medicine. Sadly, Venezuela struggles to stay out of the pre-antibiotic era.
