Prior to Mr Chavez nationalizing large farms, redistributing land, and controlling food prices to help the poor, Venezuela was a net exporter of rice. Venezuela is now a net importer of rice. And that's great news for some Americans.
But don't cry for me, Argentina -- oh, that's Argentina, not Venezuela -- whatever --
[Is it just me, or does she remind you of Hillary in this clip, especially the line, "I had to change"? But I digress.]
American capitalists are getting rich, exporting rice to Venezuela. I can't make this stuff up. I would have completely missed the story had a reader not mentioned it to me, front page of today's Wall Street Journal.
Steve Orlicek, a rice farmer here, is living the American dream. He owns a thriving business; he vacations in the Bahamas.
His good fortune springs from many roots, including an unlikely one: He is a prime beneficiary of the socialist economic policies of Hugo Chávez, Venezuela's late president and critic of what he called U.S. "imperialism."
It is a paradoxical legacy of Mr. Chávez's self-styled socialist revolution that his policies became a moneymaker for the capitalist systems he deplored. During his 14 years in power, he nationalized large farms, redistributed land and controlled food prices as part of a strategy to help the poor.
But these policies turned Venezuela from a net exporter to a net importer of rice—from farmers like Mr. Orlicek. "The rice industry has been very good to us," Mr. Orlicek said, sitting in his newly renovated home, appointed with a baby grand piano played by his wife, Phyllis.And so it goes.
What an incredibly good story, front page. I missed it because I was reading the digital edition and "rice" in the headline did not attract my interest. I doubt I would have missed it had I been reading the print edition. Lousy excuse.
A big "thank you" to the reader.
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