Unsafe at home: MLB's Venezuelan stars fleeing country

[Bacchus4.0]

Source: USA Today

Chicago Cubs catcher Miguel Montero, who has made his home in the Phoenix area since 2007, returned this past offseason to Venezuela, where most of his relatives still live.

He lasted there five days.

Uncomfortable with the rampant crime in the country with the second-highest homicide rate in the world last year, Montero renewed his passport in his native Caracas and hurried back to the USA, feeling terrible for the family members and countrymen he left behind.

"I would go from the place where I was trying to get my passport to the house and back. That's it,'' Montero said. "You want to go to your country to relax and have a good time, not to be shut inside your house because you're afraid to go out. … There are safety concerns anywhere in the world, but you watch the news about Venezuela and more people have been killed there than in Afghanistan.''
---------------------
Felix Hernandez, Miguel Cabrera, Carlos Gonzalez and Victor Martinez are a few of the prominent Venezuelans to establish permanent roots in the U.S., but it's not just star players pulling up stakes. San Francisco Giants teammates Gregor Blanco and Guillermo Quiroz have moved to Miami, a favorite destination among expatriates.


Read more: http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/mlb/2015/03/24/mlb-venezuelan-players-unrest/70373988/

[brooklynite]

1. Of course, ANY CIA Agent would say the same thing...

[Vogon_Glory]

2. Maduro's Government Fails A Basic Function Of Any Government

Nicolas Maduro's government fails a basic function of any government that claims to care for its citizenry--to provide protection to individuals, their families, and to their property. This is not a left-versus-right issue: this is an essential role of any contemporary state.

Law and order should not be something restricted to either First-world developed countries or to authoritarian regimes and flat-out dictatorships. The citizens of Venezuela deserve to be safe in their persons and property, too.

[Comrade Grumpy]

14. You do know the whole region is a pretty high-crime area, right?

Would you say the same things about the governments of, say, Honduras, El Salvador, Colombia, and Brazil? You could.

[Vogon_Glory]

38. I Would, But I Would ALSO Say

I would say the same things about the governments of El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala, for example, but I would also say that for some areas and some sectors, street crime, extortions, and kidnappings have gone down (At least in Colombia. I won't say the same for Guatemala and Honduras).

I am also aware that at least three Latin-Caribbean countries are far less crime-ridden than the ones you mentioned: Costa Rica, Panama, and Cuba.

I am not trashing Maduro's administration because it is socialist; I am trashing it because I believe that it has failed a basic function of the modern state--providing protection to its citizenry from criminals.

[LeftyMom]

3. A lot of players used to go down there for winter ball.

Not just Venezuelan-born players, but other players who needed more at-bats or to impress some scouts or more established players in hopes of getting a spring invite (which is how Blanco got his job.)

Not so much these days. Teams probably got tired of having to send players down with a complement of bodyguards.

Damn shame, the Giants had a hell of a talent pipeline coming out of there for a while. Blanco, Quiroz, and that fat guy who plays for the Sawks now, I forget his name.

[CreekDog]

34. "that fat guy"

[Scrabbleddie]

4. Western press always writes hit-pieces about Venezuela.

Venezuela is near-universally presented as a failed state.
Judging by the Western press' uniform assault, what the West won't tolerate is a successful socialist experiment.
Therefore, Venezuela may be lucky to have some problems.

[Little Tich]

5. Venezuela is a failed state, or on the verge of becoming one.

It’s difficult to report any good news from Venezuela, simply because there aren’t any.

[Scrabbleddie]

8. There's plenty of good, if you look for it.

For instance, since Chavez took office, extreme poverty has been reduced by half.
That alone is good enough for me... I wish the oligarchs would quit fomenting coups and
look after our own problems...But they don't care for their own people. Crony-capitalism yes.

There's info at "Venezuela Analysis" if there's not too much contempt prior to investigation.
Do you believe its a dictatorship also? Lots of propaganda going around.

[GGJohn]

9. And yet, Venezuela has the highest inflation rate in LA,

it has chronic shortages of basic goods, it's infrastructure is failing, it's oil out put is declining because of rampant mismanagement and corruption, etc.
Need I go on?

[Brother Buzz]

11. You know Chavez is dead

And Hugo Chavez's successor, Nicolas Maduro, has fucked up the economy on all fronts; any advances Chavez made in reducing poverty have evaporated to due to rampant inflation.

[Scrabbleddie]

16. I know Chavez is dead.

I've been watching Venezuela closely.
Like Bernie Sanders, I'm a democratic socialist.
I would like to see a modern socialist democracy succeed.
I hope their difficulties are temporary.

[Judi Lynn]

17. As you've probably noticed, they've piled on you.Customary greeding, er, greeting from anti-leftists

Sure, you didn't expect to find anti-leftists at a Democratic website, but they've made themselves at home, and lots of leftists have left.

Welcome to D.U. You are appreciated already.

[Scrabbleddie]

24. Thanks, and greetings to you.

I've visited for years. I don't know anyone here, but it would seem that some are
interventionists at least-- all for the betterment of the natives and cultural diversity I'm sure.

Cheers

[Brother Buzz]

18. Their difficulties will continue as long as the price of oil is depressed

It appears China is positioned to benefit from Maduro's 'U.S. imperialism' posturing. You snooze, you loose

[Scrabbleddie]

25. Yes, and as long as the fascists foment riots, coups, shortages, sabotage etc.

... U.S. involvement in the Ukraine is pushing Russia right into China's lap.
A lobbyist form of government knows no blow-back.

[Adrahil]

37. I see... another "the West is EBIL!!" type. Good day. n/t

[Scrabbleddie]

40. We definately took a dosedive with Dubya Bush.

...of course Dick Nixon (one of my commanders in chief)
wasn't a shining example and... I don't have the time to mention
every atrocity committed for near no reason.
Some of the stuff we do is fubar. We've taken to wasting one country
after the next. We're falling toward Mussolini-style fascism.

Think what you like. Just don't shoot, I'm a do-gooder.

[Little Tich]

19. Take a closer look at Venzuela again.

|Ideology just cannot trump reality. The methods used are disastrous for any country, socialist or not. Maduro is incompetent and will destroy Venezuela. Venezuela could eventually become a security problem in the region, if Venezuela descends into anarchy and lawlessness.

[Scrabbleddie]

27. I'm perfectly aware that ideological tenets don't pay the rent.

I'm as pragmatic as my old gray-haired granny who used to say,
"Hope in one hand, poop in the other and see which one fills up first.

Now speaking of incompetence, Venezuela was that, back before anyone cared.
So you say that you'd like us to intervene? How about humanitarian aid?
I don't see much devolving though. Hype probably. Security problem sounds like some strategist throwing stuff at the wall to see what would stick. You lost me on anarchy and lawlessness that's what Friday nights are for.
In all, you've failed to calculate not even one fu@K that I may have given about intervention.
Sorry, going only as a tourist or perhaps to start a home for wayward girls.

[Little Tich]

31. I'm simply worried about what's going on in Venezuela.

Intervention? I'm sure that South America can handle this themselves, they have already told Uncle Sam to stay away.

And I personally don't think this is just a little hickup that can be solved within the framework of Socialism, I think this is just going to deep.

Last comment to you, if you want it...

[Scrabbleddie]

41. The oligarchs don't want to stay away.

I can almost guarantee you they will not leave Venezuela unmolested.
Millions are allocated to foment civil war... I mean uh democracy.
The gears of war are turning, sanctions imposed.
The country may be a wreck for a long time, but not because of socialism,
but because we deem it necessary.

[Bacchus4.0]

32. Sounds like you aren't familiar with the reality of Venezuela whatsoever

You fit nicely in the chavista camp.

2nd highest murder rate in the world.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/12/30/venezuela-homocide-rate-2014_n_6395960.html

[Scrabbleddie]

42. I wish I did fit in down there.

I could live quite nicely.
You may have just talked me into it.

[LeftyMom]

20. It's dangerous to see what you want and not what is.

These guys have spent 100% more time in the country than you or I. They were born there. Their families are still there in most cases. It's weirdly dismissive and borderline racist for a bunch of Americans to say that a bunch of Venezuelans know less about them than their own country and their opinions are biased and suspect.

Anyhow, it's not necessarily an indictment of socialism as an idea to say that the implementation in Venezuela under their current leadership is a fucking mess. Lousy captains sink perfectly seaworthy ships all the time.

[FiveGoodMen]

33. "Lousy captains sink perfectly seaworthy ships all the time."

Now, there's a great quote!

[LeftyMom]

23. By coincidence an unrelated blog I read linked to this today:

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/L/LT_VENEZUELA_MASTECTOMIES?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2015-03-24-00-46-46

Radical mastectomies were proven to be *less* safe than lumpectomy and radiation in the late 40s. A country that's practicing World War II era oncology because it can't afford to keep the medical equipment it already owns up and running has real problems.

[Bacchus4.0]

12. Poverty has shot up in Venezuela, Venanalysis is gov funded propaganda

http://news.yahoo.com/poverty-rises-venezuela-according-un-report-001622014.html


With the recent floating of the currency the minimum wage is about $20 a month. So, expect there to be a huge increase in the poverty rate this year.

I

[Scrabbleddie]

21. I said extreme poverty.

... like what my father suffered before getting a job in the tree army (C.C.C.).
Also, you can't get "facts" from corporate media. Like I tried to explain.
Are you comfortable with corporate media's version of reality concerning Venezuela?

[MADem]

26. The "tree army" paid more than twenty bucks a month. It was 22 or 23 bucks a month.

There might have been a buck or two more if you were married.

Your father was better off in a tree army barracks than he would be in a minimum wage job in VZ.

[Scrabbleddie]

28. ...and you had to mail half your pay to help support your family.

He ended up with about .50c a day.They ate good though.

[MADem]

30. Exactly! It was a like a fitness camp--everyone came home in great shape, eventually. nt

[ripcord]

15. Not too sure about that

If you can't even wipe your ass because of a toilet paper shortage how great can things be?

[Scrabbleddie]

43. Man up.

Poor people are happy when they share burdens with other poor people.

[Zorra]

22. We have a lot of freemarket righties here who will never say a bad word about Saudi Arabia,

but they will go on and on about Venezuela forever because they hate the fact that it is a socialist country that is trying to keep global corporations from taking over their country.

Don't let them drive you away, there are many traditional Democrats at DU who want Venezuela to weather this corporatist attack and remain sovereign.

Welcome to DU!

[Scrabbleddie]

29. Thank you, well met.

I can take it... and maybe dish out a little edification.
Cheers, Zorra

[Adrahil]

36. He's ruling by decree. That's the definition of dictatorship.

And now he and his party just accuse anyone that opposes them of being cahoots with the gringo Yankees and throws them in jail.

Remove thine rose-colored glasses.

[Scrabbleddie]

44. The "Bolivarian Revolution" is against neo-liberal policies.

They're tired of us extracting their wealth and having a useless puppet government.
The hyperbolic remarks aren't necessary. (in western press yes)
Special presidential decrees aren't uncommon, and wouldn't be necessary
if not for western aggression. Believe it or not they actually have something to fear.
Our people are there and itching to take over. The recent coup attempt is being dealt with
as any sovereign nation would deal with traitors. (Many have been released already).
The traitors are ours-- like in the Bay of Pigs.

[LeftyMom]

6. And a bunch of Venezuelan baseball players are in on this conspiracy to lie about their home? Why?

Look, you're calling specific named people liars.

Most of those guys took weeks away from their paying jobs and risked injury to go play for the Venezuelan national team in the WBC. A lot of them were regulars at winter ball until recently. They clearly love their home. Why would they lie?

[Throd]

7. What part of that story isn't true?

[Scrabbleddie]

13. There may be a lot wrong with the story.

I haven't researched it.
Generally speaking, the Western press lies and spins
about anything leftist/Venezuela.
I'm just saying, based on my experience
and considering the source, I'd be willing to bet that some of those mentioned are Chavistas.
However they aren't poor so they could be in the opposition.
The article doesn't really articulate that point.

[Dr. Strange]

10. It's the same with North Korea.

"It's a totalitarian state!" the press wails, and yet there are so many pictures of happy, smiling North Koreans.

[CreekDog]

35. and one of them appears to be well fed

dispelling the reports of mass starvation.

[Dr. Strange]

39. Nice post, Dave Skylark.