Venezuela: Protests, Police and Spin

Venezuela regada en las calles (20 April 2017). Video Source: Youtube.

Here are scenes from the apocalyptic collapse of Venezuela: protesters erected barricades on 20 April 2017 in Caracas. Thousands are fleeing to Brazil, away from hyperinflation, violence, food lines, starvation, misery, and government denial.

Oil-dependent economies suffer when they don't diversify and oil prices drop. The leftist Maduro government calls opposition to its nationalized command economy "right wing extremists," and it dubs street protesters, like the mobs above, "bandits." Despite his left-wing rhetoric, Maduro donated USD $500,000 to Donald Trump's inauguration fund. Trump obliged on 16 February 2017 by meeting the wife of Venezuela's right-centrist jailed opposition leader and tweeting about it. Right-wing critics call Venezuela's nightmare: "end stage socialism."

@CNN @UNGeneva @UN_News_Centre @crazyglorita @nexnoticias what socialist drug lord of Maduro & Chavez created in Venezuela, hunger & misery pic.twitter.com/hbMCCrw6Q7

— wladimir borges (@wladark) January 19, 2017

While the right and alt-right simply blame socialism for this disaster, there is a more peculiar alt-view circulating online. Another branch of the alt-media (or, as some say, the fake news media) offers their third way Millennial conspiracy-minded analysis, which supports Maduro's excuses for the imprisonment of opposition activists, and impoverishment of his people. It is not his fault; the evil western powers are scheming to destabilize his government.

This view is sometimes racist, fringe, and anti-Semitic in its anti-banking, anti-globalist, and pro-Russian interpretation of why the west's supposed globalist cabal would destroy the country with oil-price-fixing: "Venezuela is left-wing and socialist, but ... [also] anti-globalist." In 2016, Covert Geopolitics argued: What Cabal Wants to Happen in Russia is Now Developing in Venezuela. 21st Century Wire claimed that the Americans and Saudis agreed to lower the price of oil to ruin Russia, and, by extension, ruined Venezuela.

The same Website pointed to a failed western coup plot against Maduro in February 2015 and ominously compared this plot to the US-backed Chilean coup of 1973. When Venezuelans, who once enjoyed the free ride of oil wealth, are driven to eating cats, dogs, pigeons, donkeys, anteaters, flamingos, zoo animals, and garbage, the country's leader can always make jokes about the benefits of dieting and blame the CIA for his de facto coup in March; his comments are partly echoed in the anti-globalist alt-media:

"Moreover, there is a curious air of familiarity about many of the recent events in Venezuela – the collapsed economy and currency, the apparently spontaneous emergence of opposition groups and the persistent and unanimous press vilification. These all suggest a well-known methodology at work. A methodology that we’ve seen used before, in part or whole, in Ukraine, in Syria and in Libya to name but a few of the most recent examples.

Oil price has certainly played a pivotal role in these recent developments by bringing the economy to a boiling point. Add to this, the possibility that clandestine western intelligence agencies are, once again, working to undermine political foundations in South America and we can see a possible return to the 20th century geopolitical chaos which had previously plagued the region for decades."

Below the jump, see some shocking videos which have come out of Caracas in the past hour; there are also some news reports from recent weeks, followed by older Youtube videos and reports. The older material reveals the build-up to the present situation.

Today's raw videos, sourced directly from Youtubers' mobile devices, reveal horrifying human chaos. That disorder eludes formal political discussion or spin about left-right, oil prices, globalism-populism, or Russia-CIA. Social media reveal that this nightmare exists beyond spin, even though spin will certainly follow the nightmare.

GM says plant in Venezuela has been taken over (20 April 2017). Video Source: WXYZ-TV Detroit | Channel 7/Youtube.

DISTURBIOS EN VENEZUELA 2017 MUERTOS (20 April 2017). Video Source: Youtube.

Situacion en Venezuela 21 e abril Fuertes enfrentamietos a "Plomo trancado" (20 April 2017). Video Source: Youtube.

Muerto un GNB e incendiada una tanqueta durante protestas contra Maduro | Venezuela 19 de abril (20 April 2017). Video Source: Youtube.

DISPARAN A MUJER EN LA CARA ROSTRO VENEZUELA (20 April 2017). Video Source: Youtube.

Venezuela. -Comparte. (20 April 2017). Video Source: Youtube.

Caracas - Venezuela - El Valle Protestando Sin Miedo (20 April 2017). Video Source: Youtube.

Venezuela Libre (20 April 2017). Video Source: Youtube.

Jardines del valle venezuela caracas (20 April 2017). Video Source: Youtube.

Venezuela barrio san andres en caracas (20 April 2017). Video Source: Youtube.

One commentator thought that the body in this shocking video was faked. Another thought that Venezuelan government-hired gangs would not do this to a fellow Venezuelan, and that these must be government-sponsored Cuban 'Black Wasp' operatives: "Hablan de unas tal "avispas negras" que son de cuba, que el gobierno disfrazo de GNB, bueno, es lo único que le hallo sentido, Un guardia Venezolano por mas malo que sea no dejaría así a un Venezolano, que podría ser su hermano, primo, amigo etc.": No creo que un Venezolano de verdad, trate como un perro a otro Venezolano (20 April 2017). Video Source: Youtube.

Venezuela: Anti- government protests - BBC News (11 April 2017). Video Source: BBC/Youtube.

"Why shouldn't we enjoy ourselves just because the country is burning?" (16 June 2016). Images Source: Daily Mail.

My Life in Venezuela - Robbed again!! (29 September 2016). Video Source: Youtube.

How we deal with water scarcity in Venezuela (1 October 2016). Video Source: Youtube.

My Life in Venezuela - Our streets with no maintenance in Caracas (13 October 2016). Video Source: Youtube.

Life on the line: Inside Venezuela's crisis - Talk to Al Jazeera (In the Field) (16 July 2016). Video Source: Al Jazeera English/Youtube.

Occupy Tower: Living in the world’s tallest slum - the "Tower of David" (31 July 2015). Video Source: RT/Youtube.

Venezuela divided (27 August 2014). Video Source: Al Jazeera English/Youtube.