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Socialism Stinks
I just spent a week in Panama. Stayed at a decent (i.e., everything you’d expect in the First World) hotel, including a great in-house gym. Multiple Oly 45-pound bars. Full plate racks. One couldn’t ask for more. Okay, one could: They didn’t have any kettlebells, but what’re you going to do?
My usual routine is to wake up at 0500, look at Drudge, and hit the gym. Hotel breakfast starts at 0600, and I wanted to be there when it opens, get my chow done, then have almost two hours to prep for the day before we launched around 0800 for our workday/conference.
I had the same waitress every morning. She was a badass. Beautiful. Attentive. Knew me by name after the first day and that I wanted a pitcher of ice water and a steel carafe of coffee (negro solo) at my table after I’d run the buffet line. Because no one else was at the breakfast buffet when it opened, I got to know her a little.
Oh, and did I mention she was beautiful? Not, “Wow, this chick’s hot for a waitress beautiful,” but “Wow, this chick should be in movies” beautiful. She was bright, articulate, had a mastery of English, and seemed to have an encyclopedic knowledge about current affairs, as well as the history behind those affairs.
“What,” asks Mongo, “in the wide, wide world of sports are you doing schlepping grits in a hotel? You’re so smart–“
“Soy un abrogada. “
“Well, what’n hell are you doing here?”
She’s Venezuelan. An economic refugee, trying to pull enough of her family over to keep them fed and vaccinated, and trying to send enough money back to her extended family to let them buy rice and tortillas (don’t even talk about being able to provide protein).
“Yeah, but this job doesn’t pay squat, and you’re a lawyer, darlin’, there’s got to be something better you can do.”
“Mr. Mongo [pronounced Meester Mongo; broke my heart], you don’t unnerstan’. I’m just happy I have a job I can work in the day, not a job I have to work in the night, like so many others. Entiende?”
“Wull, wha…? Oh.”
Entiendo, baby.
I hate socialists.
Published in General
I see the “r,” is there not an “r?” ‘Cause if not, I gots to check my meds…
From Marginal Revolution:
Zimbabwe and Inflation: Who Wants to be a Trillionaire?
Good post Señor B. Mongo.
Siempre Fiel
Somos pocos pero locos.
Well done.
Yay if Bush was the war mongering maverick everyone totted him to be, he would of immediately sent U.S. troops into Venezuela when they had that coup and temporary had Chavez out of power. I wonder how much of being bogged down in the occupation of Iraq had to due with that choice. Chavez still blamed the America for it and I was at the time I wish. The thing I can’t understand is most of their gas is refined in the U.S. yet we don’t embargo them from even that.
This is why I refuse to ever go to Citgo they have been on my boycott list for over a decade (they are owned by the goverment) If you are a Conservative and actually hate what has been done to this woman and millions like her, to the best of your knowledge not give a single cent to these communist Gang bangers.
Why no one has the political will to seize all of Citgo’s assets in the U.S. and put them into receivership to be sold off at a future date when the goverment is free and fair I don’t know.
The only reason I think there might not be the political will is we get a lot a our oil from them (at one time is was about 20%) and politicians don’t want to be seen as increasing the price of gas. I would pay a slightly higher price from additional transportation cost to not be propping up a dictatorship like that.
He would not have had to do that. All he would have had to do is tell the coup plotters that we would not stab them in the back, particularly if Chavez and his comrades were to die of sudden acute lead poisoning.
Contra Obama’s stabbing Sisi in the back after he deposed Morsi in Egypt. O let the Ruskies get their nose back in Egypt’s tent.
Was hanging it in an undisclosed South American country a few years ago and met a dude (unfortunately) who said that many, many of the upper middle class sold all of their worldly possessions at fire sale rates soon after Chavez was elected; and got the hades out. Then rebuilt lives from the ground up without the support of family or friends. Wonderful thing that socialism. One should also assume that Venezuela has incurred one heck of a brain drain. Sr. B. Mongo’s (smoken’ hot) waitress provides evidence that that has happened and is still ongoing. Makes me wonder if Venezuela has not set up some sort of its own Iron Curtain.
I’m sure that the Women’s March on DC and across the country was not aware of that – many of the “sponsors” were in fact socialists, communists, etc. yet they can’t fix their country’s basic problems. Where were the women at the march standing up for her? Just holding up signs of your private parts doesn’t make for compassion –
Where I work in I/T, half of my team is in Texas and the other half is in Brazil. Someday maybe I will write a story with the tales they have told me about living under the heel of the Socialists there. If I told you the taxation stories they have told me, you’d call me a liar because they sound made-up. I’ll tell one here for the crowd:
One of my favorite team members is a guy whose family is from Japan, very common in Brazil. Also common in Mexico, I found out.
He found a great deal on something (it was some kind of electronics) that shipped from China straight to his town. He was complaining that he had to go to the post office by bus (he didn’t have a car) to pick up the package because he had to “pay the tax”.
After considerable questioning from an incredulous me, it boils down to this: At the post office, they opened his package, inspected what he bought, used a computer to determine the value of the item if bought in Brazil, and imposed a 60% tax on that value. He would not be able to pick up the item until he paid the 60% tax on it.
This is typical of the measures the Socialists have to impose on their people in order to pay for all the “free stuff” they promise the people to get elected. If you immediately thought of Bernie Sanders after reading that sentence, kudos to you.
I hate Socialists, too.
Just a nit: she probably said “Soy una abogada” — I’m a lawyer.
Great post. Fun to read, relatable, and poignant.
Just a side note. We had a layover in Panama City back in December. I called my mom in Minnesota from the airport. It was 112 degrees warmer where I was compared to where she was.
Edit: I was unaware of a separate Spanish word abrogado with the r that seems to mean nearly the same thing as abogado according to one online source, but this may be a mistake.
“Soy un abrogada. or Soy una abogada” Maybe she said Estoy un abrogado.
Even if her grammar is not perfect, I bet she sounded sexy as all get out when she said things incorrectly.
I’m not so certain of their uncertainty or disdain; “socialism” (Bernie Sanders-style) is what many of these womyn voted for. They willingly disregard its ugly face…
Good story. I have exposure to the oil & gas industry. It’s rather international and with the larger companies you’ll get experience with people from other countries. Venezuelans were among the nationalities that I dealt with. Just in case you aren’t aware oil is a huge industry in Venezuela. Thought I’d share a few some short story points.
(1) I saw Venezuelans oil industry workers who’d arrive in Houston, TX with multiple empty suit cases. They would just have the cloths on their backs and a wallet and phone. When they flew back to Venezuela the suit cases would be full of American products of all sorts with effort required to get them closed.
(2) In Venezuela (are Argentina) educated couples and individuals would try to get US Dollars and use them for saving. It apparently was a thing too, to get an account with US Dollar. It’s viewed as hard currency and prudent to save and invest in.
(3) A young macho Venezuelan man was kinda amused that Americans would actually stop at toll booths to pay when there was no obstruction or guard. And that more people didn’t keep alcohol in the car.
… There’s others too but I’ll stop here.
Colombians say that Hugo Chavez is the best President Colombia ever had.
Her bad grammar with a sexy accent, or my bad typing due to the Tullamore Dew I drank writing the post. Place your bets.
I’m betting on you, Mongo.
Like this, Sñr. Boss?
Yes, Nanda, exactly like that. I have a hard time typing and simultaneously playing my electric piano, while drinking Irish Whiskey. You get it. Thank you.
I don’t know how I missed this great post. Stories like this should be spread far and wide.
Important story. We lose interest in the US rather quickly, so we have to keep these stories coming. Maduro is going to wait us out as most diplomats will want to put pressure on him but not invade. Trouble is he’s just a Cuban front and the Cubans won’t leave until we and the Colombians push them out. Then they’ll go without much of a fight. They’re playing everybody’s left wing, which is what they do and it usually works. They’ve emptied their jails because the thugs they let out are scarier than the Venezuelan military who’ve never faced armed foes. It’s really a mess. Perhaps we need to keep the focus and not let those thugs into Colombia. Probably the Colombians and a few others should push across the border into Venezuela and hold the escapees in camps until we sort out who are the criminals and who are just fleeing. The Cubans did this in the early eighties and it worked well for them. This without boats will be even worse but must be taken into account.
I would wager that the Colombians are more than up to the task. With their professionalism and experience that they have (against the FARC, against the ELN, against the AUM, and against the BACRIM (Bandas Criminales), I’d proffer that VEN thugs would be in for a short, sharp shock.
Where can I sell out and run to?
Ecuador is nice and not too far from Miami. Cartagena, Colombia they tell me is awesome although I have never been.
Nationalizing the oil companies caused a lot of the tech types to bug out, to the point where the knowledge base for operating those assets is missing.
It’s lovely, there. If you stay in the old part of the city, you expect that at any moment, you’ll see Zorro zipping along over the rooftops.