Venezuela

Communism is dead in Russia, a shell of itself in China and just hanging on in Cuba. But Lenin's corpse has a rare reason to smile. A new workers' paradise is sprouting in Venezuela, under the direction of the sometimes clownish but always cunning President Hugo Chavez. Most of the rest of the world learned the folly of autocratic socialism back in the 20th century, but Mr. Chavez prefers to repeat mistakes rather than learn from them. He has nationalized oil holdings, created new state-run firms, confiscated privately owned land and politicized finance, while endeavoring to take over telecommunications and power companies.

Girls basketball New Town's Tucker sharp from field in U.S. rout of Venezuela Jannah Tucker (New Town) had 17 points in 15minutes, including 3-for-4 from 3-point range, in helping the United States overwhelm Venezuela, 114-32, on Wednesday and advance to the medal semifinals at the FIBA Americas U16 Championship in Merida, Mexico. The United States (3-0), Group B's No. 1 seed, will face Group A's No. 2 seed, still undetermined, Friday. Colleges Navy hires former Terp Letts as wrestling assistant coach Three-time NCAA qualifier and 2011 All-American Mike Letts has joined the Naval Academy wrestling staff.

CARACAS, Venezuela -- In a breakthrough for the survival of the Yanomami Indians, Venezuela's president has promised to create a reserve in the Amazon for the threatened Stone Age tribe by next spring."

Caracas. -- So much international heat and attention has been focused on neighboring drug producers -- Colombia, Peru and Bolivia -- that drug cartels now funnel possibly half their cocaine through Venezuela. And since the U.S. invasion of Panama tarnished its attractive and secretive banking system, drug traffickers now launder tens of billions of dollars here every year.The forest of luxury apartment towers growing taller and thicker each week is silent testimony, say U.S. and Venezuelan drug officials, to this nation's newest role as a laundry for drug dollars.

WASHINGTON - My purgatory on Earth is being a Boston Red Sox fan. The fuel that provides the fire to my personal toaster oven? The Baltimore Orioles or either one of New York's Major League teams. To this day, if I see more than 20 seconds of the 1986 World Series, I have all the symptoms of a major anxiety attack. So clearly, what I don't need is another visual image associated with the Red Sox that will cause me to have palpitations. Of all people, Hugo Chavez - the madman who is running Venezuela into the ground - has provided just such an image.

CARACAS, Venezuela -- Eight candidates opposing Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez called off a primary election set for Sunday, saying they had unanimously agreed to support Manuel Rosales, governor of Zulia state, who is the front-runner and best-financed among them. The announcement was considered a bow to the financial and political cost of holding a primary and to the assessment that Rosales stands the best chance against Chavez in the Dec. 3 presidential balloting. Previously, the Zulia state governor and seven other politicians had promised to abide by the primary results.

CARACAS, Venezuela -- After a hiccup caused by low oil prices and a shift to free-market policies, Venezuela has reclaimed its position as the nation in the Americas with the highest economic growth rate.The gross national product, which grew 5 percent in 1990, expanded by an annualized rate of 10 percent during the first half of this year, according to figures released here in late August.Memories are now fading of 1989, the rough first year of President Carlos Andres Perez. That year, the economy shrank by 8 percent and a reduction of food and gas subsidies set off riots that killed 300 people.

Caracas, Venezuela. -- When Venezuelan air force planes bombed the presidential palace in Caracas Nov. 27, during the year's second failed coup attempt, wealthy residents of the fortress-like condominiums atop the eastern hills raisedchampagne glasses and cheered. Also cheering were impoverished residents of the 23rd of January barrio slums.It was a rare moment that united the rich and the poor in what had been one of Latin America's most stable democracies until last year. What brought people together were two major factors: an economy spiraling rapidly downwards with the falling value of its oil exports and universal disgust at corruption and the inability or refusal of the government to deal with it.Indeed, polls in October showed that President Carlos Andres Perez had an approval rating of less than 10 percent while the most popular person in the country was Lt. Colonel Hugo Chavez Frias, who tried to kill the president in the first coup, Feb. 4.So when the second coup attempt began with the seizure of television stations by leftists aligned with rebel troops, and air force planes bombed the capital, initially people were quite happy, even if a bit terrified by the violence.

The United States imposed sanctions against Venezuela this month because of its allegedly poor record on human trafficking, straining already stretched relations between Presidents Bush and Hugo Chavez. Bush ordered the sanctions Sept. 10 against six nations the U.S. State Department deemed are failing to combat human trafficking, an underground industry that generates at least $10 billion annually and involves at least 800,000 victims a year. The sanctions mean that Venezuela could lose up to $1 billion in loans from international financial institutions, such as the Inter-American Development Bank for a $750 million hydroelectric plant, and projects aimed at clean drinking water, Amazon rain forest protection and judicial reform.

BOGOTA, Colombia -- Venezuela's firebrand president, Hugo Chavez, took overwhelming control of the National Assembly yesterday after five major opposition parties boycotted a national election for all 167 congressional seats. Venezuela's leftist government increased its slight majority to take nearly all the congressional seats, the ruling party said, as up to 75 percent of eligible voters stayed away from the polls. The outcome will permit the National Assembly to change the Constitution easily, as well as enact major changes supported by Chavez in areas ranging from Venezuela's health system to the criminal code.