When 'Shocks' Are Just Sanctions Working as Intended
The Financial Times headline, 'How Trump’s strikes shocked Venezuela’s capital,' paints a picture of sudden, unexpected events. Yet, Washington's 'strikes' against Venezuela, primarily sanctions, aren't new or shocking to anyone who's paid attention since Hugo Chavez took office in 1999. The U.S. has openly backed opposition figures like Juan Guaidó—who was hosted at the State of the Union in
2020—while imposing debilitating sanctions that OpenSecrets.org shows were heavily lobbied for by a coalition of right-wing think tanks and defense contractors, not just the Trump administration's whim. These 'shocks' are the intended consequences of a long-standing policy to destabilize a sovereign nation, not unforeseen collateral damage. How many times does a superpower need to 'shock' a
country before we call it what it is: economic warfare designed for regime change?