One week away from the momentous ANC election, let me tell you why everybody’s laughing at the candidates chavismo’s offering.
Daily Briefing
Previous Posts
The Constituent Assembly and the Breakdown of Civilian-Military Power Sharing
The real threat to the government comes not from the opposition, but from the breakdown of "la unión cívico-militar": the basic power symmetry between civilian leftists and the military Chávez instituted in 1999.
#HowToHelp: UWC, a Global Education for Young Venezuelans
Watching Venezuela burn from far away, people naturally feel a need to help. In this installment of our #HowToHelp series, we vouch for Avemundo/UWC Venezuela, an incredibly well-conceived initiative helping build our country’s future.
Constituyente News from a Parallel Universe
A look at the news in a alternate reality where MUD agreed to take part in next Sunday’s constituyente elections.
A Fearful Appointment
The long-delayed and keenly-awaited appointment of 33 new justices for the Supreme Tribunal of Justice (TSJ) is upon us. Who are these people, anyway?
Chaos and Understanding on Both Sides of the Barricade
After the euphoria of last Sunday, we plunge into chaos and confusion – and the worst of it happens between voices on the same side.
#20J: The Nationwide Strike Recap
For 24 hours yesterday, Venezuela came to a standstill during the Paro Cívico Nacional, amid repression and mass detentions. Here's a recap of the day outside the capital.
Previous Briefings
New justices
Your Daily Briefing for Saturday, July 22, 2017. Translated by Javier Liendo.
Announcements and Complaints
Your daily briefing for Thursday, July 20, 2017. Translated by Javier Liendo.
Nighttime Repression
Your daily briefing for Wednesday, July 19, 2017. Translated by Javier Liendo.
The World Heard Us
Your daily briefing for Tuesday, July 18, 2017. Translated by Javier Liendo.
We’re the Majority
Your daily briefing for Monday, July 17, 2017. Translated by Javier Liendo.
Three Times “Yes”
Your daily briefing for Friday, July 14, 2017. Translated by Javier Liendo.
Previous Posts
News from the ANC
As days go by, it’s increasingly obvious that the best bet for President Maduro is to cancel the ANC… so why doesn’t he?
The Eruption of a New Society
Beneath the “buena nota” veneer, Venezuelan society has a deep streak of self-loathing. Could the exhilarating experience we shared on Sunday help change that?
Suddenly, We Have Two Governments
Is it me or did we skip a rather important part of this whole conversation?
Strike’s Back, 15 Years On
I’m old enough to remember the last time we went for a Paro Cívico Nacional. It was an enormous fiasco. Here’s how to sidestep the mistakes of the past.
El Pana Igor: The Story of the Punto Soberano in Uganda
Igor Markov only knew one other Venezuelan who lived in Uganda. That didn't stop him from setting up a Punto Soberano in Entebbe and adding three whole votes to the Consulta Popular tally.
The Audacity of Vote
Millions of Venezuelans literally risk their lives to self-organize a vote right under the dictatorship’s noses. And world media poo-poo it as “only symbolic.” Erm... no.
A Pair of Twos
After yesterday’s referendum, the government’s left with a horrendously weak hand. But I’ve seen enough Texas Hold’Em to know good players win with a pair of twos all the damn time.
16J Thoughts: Who Needs this Useless State?
After a day that dramatically showcased volunteers doing things better than the state, Venezuela lives something that genuinely has no precedent: its own libertarian moment.
16J Mid-Day Update: A shockingly trouble-free vote
Defying expectations of harassment and intimidation, huge crowds of Venezuelans lined up around the country and throughout the world amid virtually complete calm.
16J: Putting the Oppo Radical Wing’s Agenda to the Test
While oppo Keyboard Warriors steam, MUD's more radical parties are putting their agenda in front of the voters. If turnout is high today, the so-called moderates will find themselves badly outmaneuvered.
One Video, No Words
After 106 days of punishing protests we thought the nation's capacity for shock at the regime's brutality was exhausted. Then a video proved us wrong.
16J: Putting Meat on the Bones of Civil Disobedience
For a very long time we were stuck in a cycle of continually appealing to the same institutions we claimed to be disowning. That ends tomorrow.
How to Help: Donde Come Uno Comen Dos
Watching Venezuela burn from far away, people naturally feel a need to help. In this installment of our #HowToHelp series, we vouch for Donde Come Uno Comen Dos, an NGO doing amazing work helping the most vulnerable.
USB Goes 350
What do you do when the State pretends to pick your academic authorities? You go full rebel, son!
Whose side is the Clock on, Anyway?
For better or worse, Maduro put a hard deadline on this deadlock. Who’s the clock ticking for, and who is it ticking against?
En Vivo — Voices from Venezuela: Understanding the Crisis — en...
En conjunto con America's Society/Council of the Americas traemos este evento en vivo desde Miami hoy, a las 8:30 a.m.. Vea el video completo de la discusión de este panel sobre la situación de Venezuela.
Two Big Macs
A while back, I bet Raúl Stolk two Big Macs that there’s isn’t going to be an election for the Constituent Assembly on July 30th, like the government keeps saying. I still think I’m going to win that one.
The $400,000,000 Protest Movement
Decision 156 – the Supreme Tribunal blunder that launched the protest movement in March – is back, this time as legal cover to a shady, $400 million shenanigan.
On Haringhtongate and the Dignity of a Fake Court
Each time the Supreme Tribunal hands down a crazy decision, people expect me – as a lawyer – to comment on it. I won’t. Not any more.
4 a.m. in Palo Verde
BANG!! BANG-BANG!!! I was convinced it was a coup d’état. BAAANG! – LOUD. As the fog of sleep cleared, I slowly grasped it was no such thing – my technological condition had just regressed by about three centuries.
Venezuela’s Energy Policy is its own Opposite
Going by recent official statements, Venezuela plans to both privatize more of and nationalize all of its oil industry.
Zapatero is back, bitches!
As Venezuela's highest profile political prisoner is shifted from solitary confinement at a military prison into House Arrest, let's not lose sight of the behind-the-scenes play: the Zapatero Track is back on, y'all.
Muerte Suspendida: Time of the Hero
I remember reflecting after I saw the trailer, trying to wrap my mind around what I'd just witnessed. This movie could not exist. No way. It was too ludicrous to be real.
How to Help: Comparte por una Vida
Watching Venezuela burn from far away, people naturally feel a need to help. In this series of post, we vouch for Comparte por una Vida, an NGO doing amazing work helping the most vulnerable.
AIDS Up Close
Each Venezuelan state has a separate HIV/AIDS program, and some are much better than others. Merida’s has long been the best – but even here, drugs are running short and tests are subpar.
The Trancazo I Saw from My Window
Trancazo Tuesday was a day of mayhem in La Candelaria. This is what it felt like seen from my living room window.
Crónicas de Maracaibo: Kurt Nagel von Jess
Kurt Nagel von Jess no solo fue el cronista gráfico y documental de Maracaibo, también es parte de su historia. Se le extrañará.
Blood on the walls
As a violent mob bursts into Venezuela's National Assembly and physically attacks the majority, the alarm bells for civil conflict and atrocity crimes could not be ringing any louder.
Subversive Pastimes: Reading the Declaration of Independence
The parchment in that gilded cage was signed in this day in 1811. It's the document meant to be commemorating today, on Cinco de Julio. Nobody ever reads it. We thought we'd give it a try.
48 Hours in the Life of Luisa
Show trials, viral videos, unappointments and reappointments, former foes turned friends and friends turned foe. More has happened to Prosecutor General since Monday than happens to a normal person in a lifetime.
Unequally Repressed: Why USB Students Walk while UPEL Kids Rot in...
After fifteen chamos from Universidad Simón Bolívar were arrested, the internet erupted and, soon, they were freed. Students from less prestigious universities can’t count on that.
The Economist Joins Team Screwed
As Bello lays out the pessimists’ case for long-term chaos or dictatorship, even the most optimistic of observers are starting to waver.
Mangokistán Chronicles
In one famously combative corner of Ciudad Guayana, the entire community has come together – from everyone’s aunt to the kids in protest gear – with one simple goal in mind: to keep the roads closed until the government falls.
Leonardo Vera and the Art of Stabilization
What do we need to do to bring our economy back from the abyss? From hitting up multilaterals to reforming the Central Bank Law to launching a brand new currency, Professor Leonardo Vera has a plan.
Barquisimeto Under Attack
A weekend of violent repression, colectivos and chaos in Lara state claims four more lives.
LGBTzuela: choosing between the tricolor and the rainbow flag
Life in Venezuela is intolerable in general. For LGBT+ people, hidden forms of oppression and abuse layer on top of the ones everyone can see. To honor Pride Month, it's a silence we're determined to break.
