Exporting Rice

Another example of the joys of socialism -- from Yahoo/Wall Street Journal:

U.S. Rice Farmers Cash In On Venezuelan Socialism
Steve Orlicek, a rice farmer here, is living the American dream. He owns a thriving business; he vacations in the Bahamas.

His good fortune springs from many roots, including an unlikely one: He is a prime beneficiary of the socialist economic policies of Hugo Ch�vez, Venezuela's late president and critic of what he called U.S. "imperialism."

It is a paradoxical legacy of Mr. Ch�vez's self-styled socialist revolution that his policies became a moneymaker for the capitalist systems he deplored. During his 14 years in power, he nationalized large farms, redistributed land and controlled food prices as part of a strategy to help the poor.

But these policies turned Venezuela from a net exporter to a net importer of rice�from farmers like Mr. Orlicek. "The rice industry has been very good to us," Mr. Orlicek said, sitting in his newly renovated home, appointed with a baby grand piano played by his wife, Phyllis.

It isn't just rice. Production of steel, sugar and many other goods has fallen in Venezuela, leading to occasional shortages. Until recently, Venezuela was largely self-sufficient in beef and coffee. Now it imports both.

It never works. Ever. The only places where it appears to work are nations like Norway where there is a large source of income (offshore oil) and a relatively small population. Even Norway is backing away from this as their oil deposits will not last forever. Norway appeared to be a successful socialist government but at the expense of frittering away its legacy and engaging in deficit spending. When the oil runs out, Norway will have an entitled population with no money to pay for it.