Mainstream Media Discovers Sanctions Cause Hardship, Shocking!
The Financial Times runs with the breathless question, 'Can Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro survive Donald Trump’s oil blockade?' (FT, 2025). The framing implies Maduro's resilience is the story, not the U.S. government's intent to collapse an economy. This isn't a natural disaster; it's a policy choice, reiterated by Trump, then Biden, designed to create 'maximum pressure' – a polite term for
collective punishment aimed at regime change. Venezuela, like any sovereign nation, should be able to sell its resources. The implied moral high ground evaporates when one recalls the U.S. doesn't typically sanction allies with vast oil reserves. Funny how 'democracy promotion' often aligns with resource control and conveniently overlooks the suffering inflicted by said blockades. One might wonder
if the concern is truly for the Venezuelan people, or for access to their oil.