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Strap in 'cos at ~2000 words this one is fairly long.The notion that mice could handily emulate human physiology has always strained credulity. After all, a mouse is a short-lived, four-legged, nocturnal, burrowing rodent. It beggars the imagination that the evolutionary selection forces that shaped its physiology remotely resemble those that shaped that of humans. It then follows that mouse physiology likely offers little by way of concordance to that of humans. And yet since post-WWII, the role of mice, and to a lesser extent, rats, has only become more deeply embedded in biomedical research.There are two parts to this predominance of mice and other rodents in experimental biomedical research; one, how this came about in the first place, and two, why it continues to remain the norm. As is often seen in history, the first resulted from the accidental confluence of a series of historical precedents in the first part of the 20th century while the second is dictated by prevailing cultural and economic imperatives in biomedical research, a process where the longer it continues, the more the ensuing historical precedence assumes perceived importance. A utilitarian mindset that presumes the expediency of such animals also helps sustain the process.Amateur mouse fanciers turned breeders, the rediscovery of Mendel, the birth of mammalian genetics, the creation of the modern scientific infrastructure: the chain of early 20th century events that led to mouse predominance in experimental biomedical researchIn the early decades of the 20th century, Abbie Lathrop, a mouse and rat fancier, was breeding fancy mice and rats on her Massachusetts farm and unusually for that time and especially given her non-scientific background, she kept excellent breeding records to boot.Around the same time, after languishing in obscurity for >3 decades, the rediscovery of Mendel's now famous pea breeding experiments jump-started American genetics research, creating a confluence of right resources, right finding and right timing since Lathrop's treasure trove of inbred and quasi-inbred mouse strains proved a godsend for mammalian genetics pioneers such as William Ernest Castle who were then just beginning their careers. In turn, Castle trained the next generation of world famous mammalian geneticists such as George Snell and Clarence Cook Little.Little was an excellent entrepreneur who took some mouse colonies from Lathrop's farm and ended up creating a rodent breeding facility at Bar Harbor, Maine, that over the subsequent decades morphed into the Jackson Laboratory, even today a pre-eminent global source of lab mice, rats and other experimental animals.Snell's research on those pioneering inbred mouse strains led to the discovery of the Major histocompatibility complex - Wikipedia. Having inbred mice with a single MHC haplotype proved not just crucial for this discovery but was also handy to use to maintain segregated mouse colonies, a key tool necessary for reducing confounding variables in biological experimentation.Meantime, the US emerged post-WWII as the wealthiest nation in the world and set about establishing the scientific research infrastructure and agenda that pretty much every other country ended up replicating in some shape or form.Vannevar Bush laid the groundwork for an unprecedented policy of government funding of scientific research and development in Science, the Endless Frontier, his 1945 report to the US president.Implementation of this policy over subsequent decades made the NIH and, to a lesser extent, the then-newly formed NSF, behemoths of US biomedical research funding. Such R&D funding at US universities transformed them into preeminent centers of scientific research.Legislative acts such as the GI bill further empowered US universities to train and graduate a scientifically trained workforce, a process that has only grown in the subsequent decades creating a workforce glut that academia can barely absorb.Guinea pigs had come to dominate biomedical research from the late 19th century. However, guinea pig colonies were expensive to maintain; they bred in small numbers, availability of few inbred strains meant that uncontrollable variables were introduced into each experiment, their housing and feed were expensive. In contrast, mice are relatively hardier, and easier to breed, feed and house.Mouse (and rat) animal husbandry thus proved far easier to standardize at an industrial scale and replicate in universities and other research institutions in the post-WWII years. The knowledge, expertise and influence of people like Little played no small role in the spread of mouse and rat as the models of choice in experimental biomedical research.Back then the American economic model was much better at fostering competition so other lab animal suppliers such as Charles River, Harlan and Taconic soon emerged, creating the current industrial pipeline of lab animal supply, consisting largely of mice and rats, that currently dominates biomedical research.In short, the fundamentals favored post-WWII predominance of mice and rats in biomedical research. Where the earlier guinea pig predominance left its mark on the English language, they have themselves long since ceded ground to mice and rats (below from 1).In a way, the baton passing from guinea pig to mouse as the pre-eminent animal model also represented the torch passing from Europe to the US as the global biomedical research leader. Where even into the 1920s, widespread acceptance of research findings required the imprimatur of European researchers, typically French or German, post-WWII till date it's the US all the way.Cul-de-sac or the mouse that roared: Be it ever so counter-productive, prevailing historical, cultural and increasingly economic imperatives dictate mouse predominance in experimental biomedical researchFollow the money. Cliched, overused and yet it remains on the nose for explaining mouse predominance in biomedical research.The industrialization of molecular biology since the 1980s has only served to further accelerate and deepen this predominance. For example, as the technological capability to knock-out and knock-in genes became easier starting in the late 1980s, the trend began among the powerful stakeholders within the scientific community such as the granting agencies, and scientific journals and their peer reviewers to initially seek, then to insist and lastly to demand that results of in vitro cell culture knock-out and knock-in studies be validated in vivo.The by then well-established industrial pipeline of inbred mouse strains easily stepped in as the obvious choice for such in vivo tests. That started off a new wave of creating mouse strains with various genes knocked-out or knocked-in, a trend that continues unabated till date.Thus as molecular biology took off, mouse animal husbandry expanded, further cementing its predominance, creating hundreds of new genetically engineered mouse strains, strains whose study now consumes the entire careers of thousands upon thousands of biomedical researchers studying various physiological systems.Biochemists to endrocrinologists to all manner of other specialists who'd previously used molecular biology tools to study their favorite molecules and processes at the cellular level using in vitro cell lines now swarmed into the mouse husbandry business, creating unique mouse strains, maintaining their colonies and studying them while specialists in other fields such as developmental biology and immunology had already glommed on to the mouse model decades earlier.While developmental biologists still hedge their bets and continue using fruit flies, nematodes and even zebrafish as model experimental organisms, from about the 1970s many immunologists went all in wedding themselves to their mouse models so much so that grotesquely, knowledge of mouse immunology is today miles ahead of knowledge of human immunology.To add insult to injury much of that vaunted knowledge rests on shockingly shaky grounds. Consider just one example, perhaps the most important of all, which stems from the most popular mouse strain used in all of biomedical research in general and in immunology in particular. This turns out to be a strain called C57Bl/6 (2). Prone to obesity, it entirely lacks a whole MHC molecule, the one called I-E, due to a translocation event at some point in its breeding history. Thus, its immune responses could in no way, shape or form be considered representative of those of even a prototypical inbred mouse strain, let alone be considered an adequate surrogate for any human immune response.Of course the most pernicious and stickiest ingress of the mouse and other rodent models proved to be in the drug development and drug approval processes, a choice sped up in the wake of the thalidomide scandal in the early 1960s, with the 1962 passage and implementation of the Kefauver Harris Amendment - Wikipedia, which codified and granted the FDA the authority to approve new drugs for marketing and sale. Rather than their scientific suitability, a cultural dependence on preclinical rodent models has since driven regulator preference for such data and of course, the longer this goes on, the longer the weight of historical precedence accrues perceived importance.We humans are preternaturally talented at outsourcing. Among ourselves, we effortlessly contrive convoluted and seemingly inconspicuous processes that unerringly steer the most undesirable jobs in the economy towards those deemed most undesirable, the poorest and most otherized, among them refugees and immigrants.I'm sure we would likewise seek to outsource our diseases just as easily if we could but we can't. And yet in our uniquely muddled way we've chosen to outsource as much of the risk in drug development to poor benighted animals who have no say in the matter and decidedly cannot provide informed consent, or at least not in a manner or language we could comprehend; muddled because no animal could conceivably be a scientifically adequate surrogate for human physiology, and yet we unabashedly choose to wallow in such a fanciful notion.Why do we do this? Same answer as for so many other human decisions, because we can, being a species just smart enough to cause real and lasting havoc.Thus, mouse strains serving as surrogates for human physiology, regardless that such extrapolations be ever so tenuous, has only become more deeply embedded in biomedical research, with newcomers simply unquestioningly learning the ropes from earlier generations and taking our almost single-minded reliance on mouse models to ever newer heights.Every now and then, a certain amount of caterwauling about the lack of suitability of mice as experimental models bubbles up in the scientific literature. Issues include the inherent limitations of inbred mouse strains in being able to recapitulate basic wild mouse physiology, let alone their ability to emulate those of their human counterparts, how mice are housed, what they are fed, how lack of housing “enrichment” prevents a full manifestation of their “mouse” traits such as foraging.In addition, everything from cage design, ventilation systems, light cycle, temperature and humidity settings to diet to how they are handled are just a few of the factors that profoundly influence the readouts of every single lab mouse experiment. But then prevailing economic, read scientific career, imperatives being what they are, things settle back to the uneasy status quo of mouse predominance.This system is now creaking, sagging and almost hopelessly broken. Mouse husbandry costs are considerable for any biomedical research lab, even more so in this era of ever-shrinking research funding, which only intensifies competition.Rigorous statistical procedures now considered the norm in clinical research such as randomization and blinding continue to remain as alien in experimental animal research as proverbial aliens on planet earth. Even the most basic of standard statistical analyses routine in clinical research such as meta-analyses and systematic reviews remain impossible for experimental animal research data simply because experimental procedures and data collection choices remain unstandardized and thus vary vastly between labs and often even between different experiments within the same lab.Ever increasing pressure to publish plus tight budgets mean that not enough mice per group and not enough repeats of any given experiment have become more the norm than outlier. The possibility that things are stretched almost to breaking point shows up in the form of shoddy, irreproducible data (below from 3).Astonishingly the economics of animal research remain hardly explored even though they could potentially explain every relevant issue about modern biomedical research. Even in that, EU numbers are somewhat easier to find compared to those in the US since the US Animal Welfare Act excludes mice, rats and fish, though it does have other regulations to ensure animal welfare. Thus, of the ~11.5 million experimental animals used in the EU in 2011, ~61% were mice and ~65% of total animal usage was for basic R&D (below from 4).Bibliography1. The Mouse Trap: Can One Lab Animal Cure Every Disease?2. The Trouble With Black-63. Hartung, Thomas. "Food for thought look back in anger–What clinical studies tell us about preclinical work." Altex 30.3 (2013): 275. https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/88e1/b6ec27357a21ae7314dbf434098ae665b0db.pdf4. Meigs, Lucy, et al. "Animal testing and its alternatives–the most important omics is economics." ALTEX-Alternatives to animal experimentation 35.3 (2018): 275-305. https://www.altex.org/index.php/altex/article/download/1134/1131Thanks for the R2A, Daniel Kaplan.

The next twenty years are going to showcase some of the most monstrously terrifying while holistically awe-inspiring feats of engineering in the history of warfare.To set the scene, imagine a time in the not so distant future. A despotic regime in the Horn of Africa is growing wealthy as their people toil though life in comparatively medieval conditions. A once nameless local warlord has grown to become a regional threat, disturbing the balance of power and trade from Central Africa to the waters on the far end of the Indian Ocean. He is backed by powerful Eastern allies caring enough for his nation's mineral wealth to ignore his history of human rights violations to the neighboring peoples who have fallen under his shadow. Emboldened by the regime's newly acquired military hardware, the dictator invades his neighbor to the South.AirSatellite imaging has shown diplomatic initiatives to prevent the invasion have failed. The dictator has already started his attack. Ground forces have crossed the border simultaneously with a series of air strikes. Armed with next generation aircraft, they are an imposing threat to dated military of their targets. As the air raid sirens blow, they scramble to arm and launch their small force of outdated warplanes built more than 40 years ago. In previous wars these planes were considered to be invincible, but today many of the pilots wonder if they now are little more than their own glorified coffins.Elsewhere, on a base in the the Arabian Sea the order has been given to launch a squadron of hypersonic fighter drones.Son of the BlackbirdEnvisioned as an unmanned aircraft, the SR-72 would fly at speeds up to Mach 6, or six times the speed of sound. At this speed, the aircraft would be so fast, an adversary would have no time to react or hide.“Hypersonic aircraft, coupled with hypersonic missiles, could penetrate denied airspace and strike at nearly any location across a continent in less than an hour,” said Brad Leland, Lockheed Martin program manager, Hypersonics. “Speed is the next aviation advancement to counter emerging threats in the next several decades. The technology would be a game-changer in theater, similar to how stealth is changing the battlespace today.”A hypersonic plane does not have to be an expensive, distant possibility. In fact, an SR-72 could be operational by 2030. For the past several years, Lockheed Martin Skunk Works® has been working with Aerojet Rocketdyne to develop a method to integrate an off-the-shelf turbine with a supersonic combustion ramjet air breathing jet engine to power the aircraft from standstill to Mach 6. The result is the SR-72 that Aviation Week has dubbed “son of Blackbird,” and integrated engine and airframe that is optimized at the system level for high performance and affordability."Meet the SR-72" - Lockheed Martin Press ReleaseAs the drones take off a nervous international film crew in a hotel more than 3200 km away prepare for the impending attack. As the minutes tick by a lucky cameraman on the balcony spots the enemy's planes in the distance. The tiny specs of silver grows ever more dangerous in the sky as four squadrons of enemy fighters become visible. Twenty six minutes after the invasion began the warplanes are now visible to the capitol city. As their profile becomes clearer the camera captures something its operator can't even see. He sees the jets in the distance and then a flash of light and smoke - first the lead plane followed soon after by all of the other fifteen in his formation. He thinks that they have fired their missiles, but then sees in the distance through his camera's zoom the puffs of smoke were actually explosions in the sky. Sixteen white clouds were showering debris on the city outskirts. A few moments later the city is rocked by a violent tremor and the deafening roar of a thousand screaming lions as windows throughout the city shatter and fall to the ground. No enemy planes are anywhere to be seen as the clouds of fallen invaders dissipates into nothingness. A few minutes later a second boom can be heard, this time much more faint. As its echoes fade the sirens are quieted and silence is all that is heard throughout the city.CyberspaceThe dictator sat at the head of a granite top table in the situation room of the jewel of his domain, the Republican Guard Headquarters Building with his most accomplished and senior staff to either side. They looked above the massive table to monitors on the far wall. As their forward strike fighters continued on their doomed mission, little did these leaders know that an enemy agent had already infiltrated the deepest recesses of their most guarded strongholds, and in fact, that very room. As they gleefully watched their monitors in the situation room, expecting to see the results of a stunning victory, the room abruptly went dark. Sudden night fell on the leadership with the deafening silence of the sudden halting of every light, screen, computer, and air vent in the building. The after image of the screens in the pitch blackness of the room was the only thing the dictator and his Generals could see. As the dim green square in their vision faded, fear and confusion took over when they realize that they are cut off from their information of the battlefield and their command over it."United States Cyber Command (USCYBERCOM) plans, coordinates, integrates, synchronizes and conducts activities to: direct the operations and defense of specified Department of Defense information networks and; prepare to, and when directed, conduct full spectrum military cyberspace operations in order to enable actions in all domains, ensure US/Allied freedom of action in cyberspace and deny the same to our adversaries."Stuxnet is a computer worm that was discovered in June 2010. It was designed to attack industrial Programmable Logic Controllers or PLCs. PLCs allow the automation of electromechanical processes such as those used to control machinery on factory assembly lines, amusement rides, or (most infamously) centrifuges for separating nuclear material. Exploiting four zero-day flaws, Stuxnet functions by targeting machines using the Microsoft Windows operating system and networks, then seeking out Siemens Step7 software. Stuxnet reportedly compromised Iranian PLCs, collecting information on industrial systems and causing the fast-spinning centrifuges to tear themselves apart. Stuxnet reportedly ruined almost one-fifth of Iran's nuclear centrifuges. Stuxnet has three modules: a worm that executes all routines related to the main payload of the attack; a link file that automatically executes the propagated copies of the worm; and a rootkit component responsible for hiding all malicious files and processes, preventing detection of the presence of Stuxnet. Israel, through Unit 8200, has been speculated to be the country behind Stuxnet in many media reports and by experts such as Richard A. Falkenrath, former Senior Director for Policy and Plans within the U.S. Office of Homeland Security.The helpless dictator and his highest ranking officials clumsily scurry and stumble amid the confusion and chaos of the situation room. Groping in the darkness one finally reaches the door, opening to reveal a likewise dimmed out hallway, stirring with frightened secretaries and officials. So deep in the building was the central administration section of the Republican Guard Headquarters that natural light from the outside had no chance of reaching them. The first few minutes ticked away as they fingered their ways down the hall, led by the soft glow of lighters in their pockets and the few flashlights that had been found in the office. The dictator's security team stormed the room as they grabbed their leader to take him to his secure command center. The Generals, now left behind, guided themselves to a point of light at the end of the hall. An exit sign was visible at the end of a hall above a door, natural light peeking out from around its perimeter. They opened the door to the blinding light of the setting sun.As they regained themselves, they looked out over the balcony of the building. They could see their dictator being rushed into a car and it screaming into the street. Within the car the dictator desperately tried to regain control of his country. He and his closest secretaries pulled their phones from their pockets to realize all the devices were now dead. All communication lines had been lost. One of them screamed out to destroy their phones since they may be being tracked. Frustrated, he threw his phone to floorboard and stomped it with his foot, followed by all the rest. As his car made its way down the momentous parade route of the Ministry of Defenses's new complex of buildings he saw that none was lit as it should be at this hour. Each had gone dark. In the distance he could see only the dark silhouettes of the National Palace and the Headquarters of the National Police, contrasted greatly by the bright lights in full illumination of the city behind them. Behind him he saw his grand Republican Guard building, now just a shadow, backlit by the rising of the full moon.He could never have known that days before a secret agent had slipped deep into nation's defense system. It had arrived when he had made one of his grand propaganda broadcast in the days and weeks leading up to today's attack. After a digitally broadcast display of his army on parade he gave a speech, invigorating his populace. After the grandiose display a commercial was broadcast telling his citizens of a news application where they could learn more about their great leader's plan to empower the people of their nation. A link was displayed on the screen where his citizens were asked to download the free news and information source. Tens of thousands of his people did as they were instructed. Had he only known that the program they downloaded was not the one he had provided. Unbeknownst to anyone, they were redirected through a series of proxies to a new program, one similar in every way, from look to functionality to the one the dictator had mentioned... that is, except for major difference. Embedded in the program was a new process. This additional program tracked the information of everyone who downloaded it. From a base far away, an information network was being created with the ID's, contacts, messaging identifiers, locations, bank account activity, medical history and locations of thousands of different users. Subtle messages were being generated and sporadically sent out across all user's social media and email accounts. Faithful believe in the words of their friends, family and coworkers endorsement of the very real, well-known and verified national news source encouraged millions of people to download the application. This truly viral media campaign had, in fact, been among the nation's most successful advertising campaigns. His national secretaries believed the great success was due to the people's great faith in the dictator and his dream for their nation. In days building up to right now, a virtual map of all the most influential systems and people had been developed automatically by the intrusive worm. Information on millions of his people was now accessible, most importantly many of his top aides, officials and officers. Entrances had been created into the most important networks in his country, from his military networks, the national banking system, his secret police force and intelligence networks and even into the power and sewer grids. As darkness fell over his city, a shadow that had loomed in his presence began to rise.His car made its way to his secure bunker deep within the Ministry of Defense's Complex in the capital. Helplessly he looked out his window when his car came to a stop. He screamed at the driver for an explanation of the delay when he looked ahead to see the streets ahead in hopeless gridlock. As the lights when dark in the Ministry, so did the traffic lights throughout the entire city. Now there was nothing directing the millions of people heading home from work on what seemed like a normal day. It was the only civilian system affected, yet it left the entire city and all its people in a complete standstill. As he looked out he saw the line of cars clustered before him and the growing congestion building behind him. He was trapped and completely vulnerable. Most were just normal commuters but now many were desperate government officials fleeing the Ministry. Realizing the danger he was in, his security team opened his car door and rushed him out of the vehicle. They would have to make the rest of the three mile trip on foot.He wouldn't reach his destination though. Among his entourage was the driver of his vehicle and his personal confidant. Not realizing the danger it posed, he had never thought to destroy his phone. Though the device appeared to be broken and disabled, as he discovered when attempting to reach Central Command, a message was still being sent.........."9°00'49.2"N, 38°45'44.9"E"..."Heading North by Northwest"..."3.2 meters per second"...SpaceAn overland invasion force has yet to receive word of their forward air strike's failure and the collapse of the Ministry of Defense in the capital. They view the radio blackout as a temporary interruption and continue on their mission as ordered until command can come back online. Formations of tank and troop carriers storm in through the African savanna. They can be seen nearing a local village by villagers high in the mountains. The dust their convoy column has risen is visible for miles. As the village comes in sight from the top of the hill, their column reforms and goes offroad. Spread out across the valley they loom upon the frightened villagers.High in orbit above the continent a satellite shifts into position.Project Thor is an idea for a weapons system that launches kinetic projectiles from Earth orbit to damage targets on the ground. Jerry Pournelle originated the concept while working in operations research at Boeing in the 1950s before becoming a science-fiction writer.[1][2] The most described system is "an orbiting tungsten telephone pole with small fins and a computer in the back for guidance". The weapon can be down-scaled, an orbiting "crowbar" rather than a pole. The system described in the 2003 United States Air Force (USAF) report was that of 20-foot-long (6.1 m), 1-foot-diameter (0.30 m) tungsten rods, that are satellite controlled, and have global strike capability, with impact speeds of Mach 10.[3][4][5]The time between deorbiting and impact would only be a few minutes, and depending on the orbits and positions in the orbits, the system would have a world-wide range. There is no requirement to deploy missiles, aircraft or other vehicles. Although the SALT II (1979) prohibited the deployment of orbital weapons of mass destruction, it did not prohibit the deployment of conventional weapons. The system is prohibited by neither the Outer Space Treaty nor the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty.[4][6]The idea is that the weapon would inflict damage because it moves at orbital velocities, at least 9 kilometers per second. Smaller weapons can deliver measured amounts of energy as small as a 225 kg conventional bomb. Some systems are quoted as having the yield of a small tactical nuclear bomb.[5]In the case of the system mentioned in the 2003 USAF report above, a 6.1 m × 0.3 m tungsten cylinder impacting at Mach 10 has a kinetic energy equivalent to approximately 11.5 tons of TNT (or 7.2 tons of dynamite). The mass of such a cylinder is itself greater than 9 tons, so it is clear that the practical applications of such a system are limited to those situations where its other characteristics provide a decisive advantage. Some other sources suggest a speed of 36,000 ft/s (11,000 m/s),[8] which for the aforementioned rod would amount to a kinetic energy equivalent to 120 tons of TNT or 0.12 kt. With 6-8 satellites on a given orbit, a target could be hit within < 12–15 minutes from any given time, less than half the time taken by an ICBM and without the warning.As the raid nears the city, frightened villagers look back to their assailants. As they do they see a series of streaks dart across the sky. The momentary points of light rain havoc upon the enemy vehicles. Tanks are flattened and thrown across the landscape as troop vehicles disintegrate in plumes of dust. As they watch with awe three more flashes of light steak across the sky. They collide the Earth with a massive eruption of violence and astonished bewilderment. With fear and amazement, massive dust clouds rise from the impact sights as each eject a wave of force emanating from their points of impact. The waves spreads across the plain, felling trees and kicking up the grasses. The waves continue on towards the village, first one, then another and then another. They are knocked from their feet and look back on the blast. The area is nothing more than a massive cloud of dust which is now settling everywhere around them. Their attackers are all gone. [1]SeaCombating a rise in piracy within their maritime jurisdictions, various world governments have adapted to be responsive with faster, lighter navies armed with fleets of advanced new ships combining stealth capabilities with high fire power armaments and speeds outmatching their agile rivals.As the regime begins to breakdown in Africa weapons and soldiers flow out and join up with local pirate factions looting shipping lanes across the Indian ocean. Little did one ship know, that it was already being closely followed by the US Navy's next generation of naval weapons.The littoral combat ship (LCS) is a class of relatively small surface vessels intended for operations in the littoral zone (close to shore) by the United States Navy.[1] It was "envisioned to be a networked, agile, stealthy surface combatant capable of defeating anti-access and asymmetric threats in the littorals."[2]The Freedom class and the Independence class are the first two variants of LCS by the U.S. Navy. LCS designs are slightly smaller than the U.S. Navy's guided missile frigates, and have been likened to corvettes of other navies. However, the LCS designs add the capabilities of a small assault transport with a flight deck and hangar large enough to base two SH-60B/F or MH-60R/S Seahawk helicopters, the capability to recover and launch small boats from a stern ramp, and enough cargo volume and payload to deliver a small assault force with fighting vehicles to a roll-on/roll-off port facility. The standard armament for the LCS are Mk 110 57 mm guns and Rolling Airframe Missiles. It will also be able to launch autonomous air, surface, and underwater vehicles.[3] Although the LCS designs offer less air defense and surface-to-surface capabilities than comparable destroyers, the LCS concept emphasizes speed, flexible mission module space and a shallow draft.The concept behind the littoral combat ship, as described by former Secretary of the Navy Gordon R. England, is to "create a small, fast, maneuverable and relatively inexpensive member of the DD(X) family of ships." The ship is easy to reconfigure for different roles, including anti-submarine warfare, mine countermeasures, anti-surface warfare, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, homeland defense, maritime intercept, special operations, and logistics. Due to its modular design, the LCS will be able to replace slower, more specialized ships such as minesweepers and larger assault ships.[11]The pirates are occupied hunting down civilian traffic in the area... to busy to notice the ship rapidly gaining on them. Traveling at more than 50 knots these next generation littoral ship is one of the fastest vessels in existence. In little time at all it has closed with the pirate's ship. Desperate to evade, the pirates attempt to flee. Wishing to avoid a confrontation the Captain issues an edict for the ship to shut off it's engines using its latest version of the Long Range Acoustic Device in twelve of the major languages of the region. Fearing capture and acting in desperation the pirates turned their boat towards the US Navy ships. It was clear that they were attempting to ram the vessel. Warning shots were fired from the 110 cannons across the enemy bow. The ship continued to close. The cannons were zeroed on the ship and with the Captain's command the ship was torn to shreds by successive bursts of the overwhelming cruiser.A life raft was spotted behind the wreckage. The XO informed the Captain that it appeared they had jumped ship hoping that the ramming would sink the LCS. If the pirates were able to get back home having captures a video sinking the US Navy ship they could become wealthy men for the bounties that circulated among the area's various black market cartels. Today, however, they wouldn't be so fortunate and tonight they would be spending the night in the ship's brig. This was the second such arrest this week by the fleet with another seven expected before the end of the month. [2]MedicineCorporal "Cy" Fannon is augmented with an artificial eye and hand after losing his in Venezuela. The "Cy" stands either for cyborg or cyclops. No one really knows which and no one is brave enough to ask. He's quiet, but when he looks at you with that creepy as hell robot eye, you'll do whatever he asks just to get him to stop eyeballin' you.After Venezuela, Fannon was given the opportunity to be med-sepped with full medical benefits from the VA. He was also presented with the opportunity to prototype some new of the DARPA tech ready for the field. He took the road of fool hardy and stayed in to be a human guinea pig for some robomed company's hopes of creating the future of robot warriors to put the rest of us out of a job.Futurists and researchers in prosthetic technology say that nearly everything depicted in [science fiction] films is possible; indeed, current advances in robotics, neuroscience, and microelectronics are bringing the visions of science fiction closer to reality every year. Over the next two decades, scientists expect to introduce bionic appendages that respond to thoughts, and chips implanted in the brain with the potential to download data directly into human memory banks.Devices including "neuroprosthetic" limbs for paralyzed people and "neurorobots" controlled by brain signals from human operators could be the ultimate applications of brain-machine interface technologies developed under a $26 million contract to Duke University sponsored by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). The contract is part of DARPA's Brain-Machine Interfaces Program (http://www.darpa.mil/dso/thrust/sp/bmi.htm), which seeks to develop new technologies for augmenting human performance by accessing the brain in real time and integrating the information into external devices.His first major augmentation was his neural unit installed into his skull. You can see the scar under his high reg, but it's not like the brick they've been installing in amputees for the past decade. Even if they don't have to move their arms and legs like robots anymore, half of them would fall over from the stupid giant controller unit. I don't even know how they sleep. Cy's got it all on the inside. I really don't know that all works. What powers the damn thing? Half of us wonder if the thing is fryin' his brain or something, either with microwave transmissions or just because he has a stinking computer console in his grape, but as long as he doesn't short circuit, I guess he's fine.Next, he got his arm. They've really perfected the art form with arms like his. Honestly, I didn't even know he had the thing until we went out to the bar one day back in San Diego. He crushed a beer can into a marble. I thought I was going to piss myself. It wasn't until he pulled off a flesh panel to show the gears, wires, and techogizzitry that I realized he had the prosthetic limb. It was all Star Wars or something. It's honestly a bit of an advantage. I know you're not supposed to say that a dude who got his hand blown off has an advantage, but as long as he keeps his arm still he always quals expert at the range and has the grip of a bear. Ok, he has to oil himself like some sort of freaky Marine Corps version of the Tin Man, but still I kind of wonder if he is better off with the robot arm.Lastly, and most obviously, is his freaky robot eye. He didn't take the natural ones. No, he went full Terminator. It's an on board camera with multiple sensors that far outperform us "norms". He can see with that thing far beyond normal people. He can focus the thing to full zoom at better than 20/1 vision, more than 20 times farther than any of the rest of us. What'll really freak you out is that he can see in infrared and night vision. It isn't as good as the installed unit of helmets, but he can see heat, which is so freaky. I don't really know what one would do with all that, but I suppose it's nice that he always knows which beer is coldest. I guess that is a good trade off. What's probably the most important though is that he can record everything. At night he'll go through and plug this cable into the port of his eye, review and upload all the important stuff he saw that day. I kind of wonder what he does with it. Makes me really worried to change in front of the guy, but oh well. His depth perception is still off though. When he is letting the system idle with the range finder off, Sergeant has fun throwin' stuff at him, knowin' that he has no hope of reacting correctly. In a way it helps us remember that he has vulnerabilities and isn't some sort of ubermensch gearing up to lead the robots in their take over of Earth. [3]Diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa as a teenager, Pontz has been almost completely blind for years. Now, thanks to a high-tech procedure that involved the surgical implantation of a “bionic eye,” he’s regained enough of his eyesight to catch small glimpses of his wife, grandson and cat.The artificial implant in Pontz’s left eye is part of a system developed by Second Sight that includes a small video camera and transmitter housed in a pair of glasses. Images from the camera are converted into a series of electrical pulses that are transmitted wirelessly to an array of electrodes on the surface of the retina. The pulses stimulate the retina’s remaining healthy cells, causing them to relay the signal to the optic nerve. The visual information then moves to the brain, where it is translated into patterns of light that can be recognized and interpreted, allowing the patient to regain some visual function.In any case, Corporal Cy is one messed up freak, but he is a crazy good Marine. He's specialized in ways the rest of us couldn't compete with. He is special and a great asset to the squad. He's unique in the Corps and all his augments make him perfect for his role with the team... as the squad's field operator.LandIn a valley to the South of the recently created Camp Mēga a pack of autonomous robots maneuvers through the valley. They are delivering supplies to the recently activated forward operations base. The four robots run in line through the dry river beds and plains, navigating the rocky feet of mountain cliffs. These are the GammaDogs, the latest's version of transportation vehicles built by the robotics firm Boston Dynamics, a subsidiary of SoftBank. They make thousands of these runs delivering the gear and equipment across the thousands of miles of terrain in the scope of military operations. They deliver everything from gear and equipment to medical supplies and food for the local villages and even care packages from home. They also have specialized combat variants which support the front line patrols by carrying packs and heavy ordinance of the troops in the field. When on their own, each time they make the journey it is a new one, so that their patterns are never discovered by enemy insurgent forces.BigDog is funded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) in the hopes that it will be able to serve as a robotic pack mule to accompany soldiers in terrain too rough for conventional vehicles. Instead of wheels or treads, BigDog uses four legs for movement, allowing it to move across surfaces that would defeat wheels. The legs contain a variety of sensors, including joint position and ground contact. BigDog also features a laser gyroscope and a stereo vision system.Built onto the actuators are sensors for joint position and force, and movement is ultimately controlled through an onboard computer which manages the sensors. Approximately 50 sensors are located on BigDog. These measure the attitude and acceleration of the body, motion and force of joint actuators as well as engine speed, temperature and hydraulic pressure inside the robot's internal engine. Low-level control, such as position and force of the joints, and high-level control such as velocity and altitude during locomotion, are both controlled through the onboard computer.On March 18, 2008, Boston Dynamics released video footage of a new generation of BigDog known as AlphaDog.[4] The footage shows BigDog's ability to walk on icy terrain and recover its balance when kicked from the side.[5] The refined equivalent has been designed by Boston Dynamics to exceed the BigDog in terms of capabilities and use to dismounted soldiers. In February 2012, with further DARPA support, the militarized Legged Squad Support System (LS3) variant of BigDog demonstrated its capabilities during a hike over tough terrain.Starting in the summer of 2012, DARPA planned to complete the overall development of the system and refine its key capabilities in 18 months, ensuring its worth to dismounted warfighters before it is rolled out to squads operating in theatre. BigDog must be able to demonstrate its ability to complete a 20 mi (32 km) trek within 24 hours without refuelling while carrying a load of 400 lb (180 kg), whereas a refinement of its vision sensors will also be conducted.From one of these cliffs a shepherd watches with amazement. These must have been the "mule cars" he had heard spoken of at the market the last time he visited the village. Now he could see them in his valley. He marveled how at times they reminded him of the bison stampeding as they maneuvered through the valley below. Only these bisons moved too perfectly. Every action was with intent and with purpose. In a perfect line they leaped, bound, climbed and ran faster than he could believe possible of a machine. The small train of robots continued without pause where there was no road nor trail, leaving only puffs of smoke where their feet impacted the dry earth. Wanting to show his friends and family the wonder he saw today, he pulled out the phone from his pocket to capture the moment. [4]IntelligenceAbove surveillance drones escort the train of GammaDog transport vehicles. They're armed with a battery of cameras and other detection equipment, able to see in 3D and infrared detection. Sonar systems allow them to make three dimensional maps of the area for battlefield planners. This latest model can fly in two modes, as a glider for endurance surveying or flapping its wings as a bird or, more precisely, as a bat. These bats measure just two feet in length. They are capable of surveillance silently from several hundred feet above the target to perching indiscriminately on the ledge of any building. It's powered through a solar membrane on its wings providing hours of additional flight time after the battery would have run dry. The COM-BATs are equipped with networking capabilities to share view points across multiple angles and a wide area. They communicate everything in real time to operators or higher level intelligence programs. Traveling in flights groups of four or more, they provide numerous layers of immediate information to troops in the field, war planners, and battlefield observers.Scientists at the University of Michigan College of Engineering are developing a six-inch robotic spy plane, modeled after a bat. Colloquially known as the COM-BAT program its purpose is gathering data such as sights, sounds, and smells in urban combat zones and transmitting the information back to combatants in real time. A $10 million grant was given for this project, which is being developed in the Center for Objective Microelectronics and Biomimetic Advanced Technology. The robotic bat is planned to perform short-term surveillance missions supporting advancing troops in the battlefield. It could perch at a street corner and send data regarding its immediate surroundings, or could land on a building for longer surveillance assignments. Real-time reports of its activity will constantly be sent to the commanding unit.The University of Michigan researchers are focusing on the microelectronics. They will develop sensors, communication tools, and batteries for the new “Bat” micro-aerial vehicle. Engineers envision tiny cameras for stereo vision, an array of mini microphones that could home in on sounds from different directions, and small detectors for nuclear radiation and poisonous gases. The robotic bat will also have the ability to navigate at night, using low-power miniaturized radar and a very sensitive navigation system. Its lithium battery will recharge using solar energy, wind, and vibrations, and the bat will communicate with the troops using radio signals.The robot’s body is designed to be about six inches long and to weigh about a quarter of a pound. Its expected energy consumption will be 1W. They will work to develop quantum dot solar cells that double the efficiency of current solar cells. Furthermore, they expect their autonomous navigation system, which would allow the robot to direct its own movements, to be 1,000 times smaller and more energy efficient than systems in use today. If the planned improvements will indeed be successful, the researchers believe they will provide the bat with a communication system ten times smaller, lighter and more energy efficient than currently available systems.Today, one of the tiny planes has spotted something through its on board infrared camera. There is a man on the ledge above the pass. One of the BATS leaves the group of escorts to investigate. With his cameras the plane circles above the unsuspecting man. The plane relays images to a remote operations intelligence server. The server's image recognition software sees that the target is a military aged male. He has with him an AK-47, though this is common in such a dangerous country. However now the man has pulled from his pocket a device the program recognizes from its database to be one of the old phones of a few decades ago. The system analyzes the angular projection and determines that this man could have attempting to capture images from the mule team down below. The event is flagged "Orange".The Orange rating triggers the server to initiate a series of queries to determine more information on the target. The GPS location was cross-referenced with the country's land listings and it was found that the land was leased to a family by their patriarch Solomon Selassie. Another query to the nation's record office of public health pulled a birth certificate and health care history information. That information indicated Solomon to be too old to be the man seen in the recording, however, Solomon had a son, Yared. Yared's age and medical information matched the apparent height and age of the target. Further investigation of his record showed school records with photos. Facial recognition with aging calculated a high probability that the target in question was indeed Yared Selassie. A search for information on Yared connected the search program to his account with the local phone company service provider. A data package had indeed just been sent from Yared's device to another device in Yared's network.Fortunately for Yared, he had no known background with the now displaced regime. He also had no criminal record and was not connected with any known agents of the regime in the last 10 years. His ID had not been one of those gathered during the initial cyber infiltration a few weeks ago so no logs of him existed yet in the military's watch list, which indicated that he had little contact with the rest of the world and with the regime at all. By all known accounts, the program results seemed to indicate that he was indeed a peaceful shepherd farmer living deep in the African savanna. The event would be logged as Yellow for cautionary and suspicious activity. He would have an identity file created under the database where his information would be easily accessible and the event would be called any time in the future if Yared may come into investigation. Any future suspicious actions by him would likely result in his apprehension.His GPS location was also flagged Yellow. In the event of future activity there, Yared would likely be a source of information if not also suspect. The Selassie home was also flagged White - for informational - along with the rest of the family and known contacts of Yared. If Yared were to ever become considered dangerous, they would be considered sources of potential information or potential accomplices and the house would be watched. Today, however, Yared was not in danger of arrest. Logs were created in all the relevant databases and a report was generated on Yared, the location and infraction in question. The report would be delivered to the Provisional Constable's email. The entire process up to this point had been automated and no human would have any knowledge of the event until the Constable read his email. It would be one of a few dozen he would receive that week. He would probably forward this one on to one of his deputies and in a few weeks the deputy would dispatch an officer with security detachment to investigate the Selassie house. They would discover the reason for taking the photo and if everything was determined to be all clear the family would be advised not to take any more photos of military equipment again. The family would be scanned with the Biometric Automated Toolset. Their photos, fingerprints, DNA and numerous other identifiers would be logged to their identifying files. After that the Selassie family's life would go back to normal, though a new mountain of information on them would be readily available for intelligence agencies and perhaps more dangerously, the new regime to come once the Americans left.As the report was generated and sent to the Constable, the BAT was directed to call off its surveillance of Yared and return to escorting the transports. Yared watched the train move out of the valley completely unaware of what had transpired. He returned his phone to his pocket, gathered his things and moved his small flock down the mountain back towards his home.Light InfantryCommand is nervous following an up-tic in civilian protests throughout the region. Numerous activist groups are coming out as they attempt of built something resembling a government to replace the shattered regime. Most are harmless and benevolent. Many want to bring about real change for the region and are anxiously seeking to take advantage of their first real chance at leadership roles in more than a decade. Others, however, push for more dangerous agendas. Remnant forces still vie for power, sometimes through democratic means and other times in the form of a new brewing insurgency. Many of the old leadership in the defunct regime escaped overseas and are now channeling money, and propaganda into the country. Enough of the old regime's officers saw the coming storm and saw to it that stockpiles of weapons and ammunition mysteriously disappeared prior to our arrival. Now, many of those weapons, along with thousands more are being smuggled in through the unregulated black market, and are finding their way to the quickly organizing insurgency forces.That's where we come in. We are Marines expeditionary rifle squad of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, 2nd Battalion 5th Marines. We were stationed in the area to ensure that stability is maintained while a constitution is drafted. The squad's marching orders were to conduct an unmounted patrol through the city. Tensions are high since there is currently a massive rally taking place all along the parade route of the old Ministry of Defense's complex. The streets of the complex are crowded with tens of thousands of people. Marine platoons are on patrol in the event that this peaceful rally turns into something far worse. You'd probably have guessed that by now all military activity would have been replaced by all the drones flyin' around, but history has shown us that some jobs, just like these, you just can't trust a rumba to replace boots on the ground. Not that they haven't tried, but after the mess in 2022, they realized the only real future was one that married the drones with infantry into a holistic combat unit. So that explains why there are still morons like me trudging around in places like this.Marine Expeditionary Rifle SquadPurpose: Significantly increase future Marine Air Ground Task Force (MAGTF) ability to conduct squad level combat operations in an uncertain environment across the ROMO for the Joint Force. Improved ability to operate in both traditional and irregular warfare environments while retaining the ability to conduct forcible entry operations from the sea.Attributesgreater lethalityaccurate identification and classification of targetsunencumbered mobilitysecure, reliable, MAGTF- integrated command and controlballistic and fragmentation protectionclimate and terrain protectionability to administer low level medical aidimproved training and leadershipProvide greater improvement to the current rifle squad’s ability as a total package to engage the enemy across a wider range of operations with an increase in survivability and better access to support forces.- LtCol Chris Woodburn, USMCThe squad was composed of the ten of us, nine Marines and a doc in two fire teams and the Staff Sergeant.Our fire team leaders are Sergeant Nguyen and Corporal Piers. They each carry an M-35 Infantry Automatic Rifle attached with M-207 grenade launchers. For the 207, they carry an assortment of goodies they can launch depending on the mission requirements. For today, they are armed with tear gas, flares, and one grenade that can be fired above, through a window or into a dark alley, bursts open and out pops a tiny little drone cam to check out what overhead drones might miss. They also have regular explosive varieties and incendiaries, but today is just supposed to be a routine patrol. More important than their armaments, they're also equipped with networked Tee-Cud helmets. Tee-Cuds are the common name for the Tactical Command Heads Up Display integrated combat helmet systems. They are complete helmet systems with a ballistic visor that covers their entire face. Inside is a broad spectrum networking node that communicates information to and from the higher ups. This feeds into a heads up display that projects an augmented reality layer over everything they see. Team members, allies, non-combatants and enemies are highlighted with a colored filter to seek to avoid identity confusion in the heat of battle. They also have combat relevant data on each of the members of their team from ammunition count to a 3D geographic mapping projection complete with possible fields of fire. The Tee-Cuds run off of the Layar based MZ Scout Systems. Scout is an augmented reality browser and AI that coordinates all the networked visual data. The entire system is voice activated, sensitive enough to a whisper, so different commands will initiate different actions from Scout. Each Marine goes through a certification week where they have to speak a ton of random lines and sentences to create a unique voice ID and only the ID's on the team can operate the system. The team leaders can say "Squad" which will temporarily open a channel with their squad. "View..." can open any viewpoint from different squad members to overhead observation or strike drones, as well as other personnel within the area of operations. Saying, "Command" or the command's designation can open a direct channel with command headquarters for requests of information, backup or to send out a nine line request. The Tee-Cuds give the team leaders an unmatched view of the battlespace and their own team's condition warfighters of only a few decades prior would have died to get their hands on.Next, there are the SAW gunners. SAW stands for Squad Automatic Weapon, which used to be the name of an old weapon system the position used to use, but being that they even today they can somewhat reliably cut whatever they want to in half, the name stuck. That said, they are armed with M3, the largest non-crew served weapon in the Corps' history. The M3 is the automatic machine gun currently used for squad suppression fire. Depending on the situation, the M3 can fire a belt of high velocity rounds, or high mass yield rounds for heavy impact. In the semi-automatic setting it can fire a kinetic impact round that can punch through walls from six hundred yards. The gunners themselves would never be able to lift the damn thing, though, if it weren't for the exoskeleton assist. With the rigging the SAW gunners can carry a load of over 400 lbs for six hours and never break a sweat. SAW gunners, as well as the other members not equipped with Tee-Cuds, wear Scouters. Scouters are units that attach into the helmets over one ear and have a small ballistic visor that completely covers one eye. The Scouters operate on the same Layar based Scout system. It can project limited amounts of information in the same way as the Tee-Cuds on the ballistic lens, but with less detail and scope. It is also voice activated and the commands are all the same. The only difference between the leadership level Tee-Cuds and the scouters is that the scouters don't come with the full heads up display and can be worn separately without the helmet. [5]After the SAW gunners are the assistant light machine gunners. The A-gunners assist the the SAWs. They provide direct fire back-up and can provide emergency assistance to the SAW gunners' equipment in the field. They are armed with the M1300 CSASS, a compact semi-automatic sniper system rifle engineered for squad level sniper support. The weapon can deliver a variety of rounds to the enemy from sixteen hundred yards or deliver deadly fast accuracy with mid-range engagements.The newest members of the squads are designated riflemen. They are equipped with standard M-35 Infantry Automatic Rifles and extra ammo. They also carry the M-483 Light Infantry Missile System. It's a small pod you drop on the ground and arm. Once armed, the squad leader, or the operator, will designate a target and issue the command to fire. From there, the system will fire a self-guided missile about the size of two soda cans directly into the air before it directs itself to the target from above. Besides that, they are boots and if you're lucky they will only almost get you killed once a day. They're really good for getting ammo from the Heavy Dog and digging holes when you don't want to tire out the robots.Last are the field operators. In the mid to late 2020's infantry integration with drone warfare became paramount. As I mentioned before, militaries around the world realized that there are just too many things you can't do with a drone that require on the ground support to accomplish. Swarms of robot jets overhead and mini tank guns look cool in movies, but 90% of the time wars are fought by you actually walking up and asking a bystander if something jacked-up is going on that the good guys should know about. When the bean counters in Washington finally realized that a drone can't exactly prevent looting or arrest someone without having their onboard camera's kicked in by a six year old, they realized that next generation infantry integration was the way to go. With that came the field operators.Field-ops have constant command of drone escorts during patrols and missions. They are equipped with the same Tee-Cuds as the team leaders, but their systems are set up to direct the feeds of information from surveillance and attack drones overhead, paint targets as either hostile or non, coordinate battlefield intelligence with the squad and to also directly command drones in combat. They are equipped with sidearms for immediate emergency protection, but their main offensive weapons are their gloves. Hundreds of sensors in the gloves catch every subtle movement as a command to manipulate drone movement and observational capabilities. At any given moment, the Field-ops are overseeing dozens of nodes all around the battlefield. They are aware of hundreds of moving objects from people, vehicles and drones. They have as close to a complete holistic view of the battlefield as has ever been available to a frontline infantry unit. Working Field-ops is supposedly like nothing else. Even though they are right there with us, many describe their job as an out of body experience. The role used to go squad and fire team leaders, but the tsunami of data bombarding them left them unable to manage both the drones and their teams, so the tasks were delegated to the newly created unit. Their omnipotence is flushed down the toilet, though, when their focus is so deep on planes buzzing overhead that they completely lose track of where they are, trip, and fall flat on their face. Obstacle avoidance is their most requested new feature since they'll find themselves on the ground all the damn time. It's honestly a little embarrassing that they are the future of warfare. A field-ops' idea of a good day is hunkered on a rooftop or in the back of a vehicle controlling the battlefield without fear of tripping over a rock or something. They come off as clumsy and distracted, but when they get in their zone, they are the deadliest thing in the battlezone. They command the swarm and the respect of any enemy they might seek.Along with our doc, the last member of the squad is its leader, Staff Sergeant Ramirez. He's been to every major conflict in the last eleven years; Odessa, Yangong, Valencia. They say that back in the day a squad like ours would have been led by just a Sergeant or even a Corporal, but I guess with the modernization of the new Corps, this is what it takes. The Squad leader is armed identically to the Fire Team leaders. He carries the same M-35 with the 207 attachment and is equipped with the same Tee-Cuds as the others. Besides his experience, he doesn't differ greatly from the two team leaders. This was by design in case he should be incapacitated than one of them could be able to step into his role.This is the modern Marine Corps infantry unit. Two fire teams complete with leaders, SAW gunners, A-gunners and dedicated riflemen supplemented with corpsmen, Squad Leader and with the advent of the Field Operators, the eleven man Marine Expeditionary Rifle Squad was complete.We made our way down the street. Far off in the distance you could hear the sounds of the rally. Here though, all you could hear was Cpl. Fannon picking himself up off the ground again and the sound of the SAW gunner's hydraulic joints. Chatter over the inter squad channels reported the same quiet.We turned another corner into an alley. It was completely devoid of movement and deathly silent. As half the squad made their way into the alley, SSgt Ramirez turns the corner and calls for an all stop. The squad darts for cover along the alley. Fannon started a detailed scan of the area. From one view he noticed a small group of men on the next street. He could see inside a few windows and could see people shutting their windows. From one of his aerial units he noticed a window at the end of the alley with a suspicious pipe moving out of it. He flew the unit around the building to get a clearer view of the window. As his view became clearer he saw a man aiming his rifle on the squad."CONTACT FRONT! SECOND FLOOR!"Support"Contact". The term has been part of infantry training and battlefield tactics for a century. Now the word has evolved to much more. This single word initiates a mobilization of a vast movement of men and machines in a worldwide effort towards the acts of locating, closing with and eliminating the enemy through fire and maneuver.When Corporal "Cy" Fannon gave the call for Contact Front he initiated a command within MZ Scout System that forwarded the alert to seventeen other commands. These commands included Forward Operations North East Africa, the Coordinated Unmanned Asset Command, Marine Air Ground Task Force Central Command, and a myriad of other units. Alarm bells rang out and operators manning stations across the globe came online, now with all of their attention directed to a small alleyway in a small city and one particular squad of Marines. Monitors across the globe lit up with the view scopes of the Marine's Tee-Cuds. A voice came in through the NCO channel. It was a woman's voice.Corporal Piers was surprised. He was a newly promoted Corporal and unfamiliar with assaults from the NCO's point of view. He'd handled engagements before, but now the flood of information on his visor and responsibility to the Marines within his charge left him momentarily frozen. Her voice brought him back."This is the Operator. Standing by for SITREP."With her sudden call to awakening, his training kicked in. He knew of the operators and had experienced them in dozens of exercises when he was given his fire time, but he was still surprised by what he heard over his headset. Usually, everything in training is nothing like the real thing. Adrenaline and confusion are elements that are difficult to replicate in the training environments without Marines actually getting killed. Everything amps up, but this voice didn't. He knew it was their job to watch over the combat patrols and coordinate relief, reinforcements, or additional assets when need. She was calm and relaxed, like listening to the weather girl or the melodic tones of the host for some late night easy listen radio stream. She made it sound as if dropping in on Marines embraced in the heat of combat was something she did everyday. Perhaps she did. As Cpl Piers gathered himself in the midst of the chaos that was enveloping the Marines, she was calm, the collected voice of serenity reminding the Marines that they were not alone.Cpl Piers composed himself not a moment soon enough. What started as a single shooter foolish enough to get caught before the ambush, had in fact been a well orchestrated attack by more than a dozen insurgents. They had prepared the alleyway for what must have been some time in hopes of catching the Marines off guard. Such a defeat would be a massive symbolic victory for the insurgency, ushering in new recruits by the droves. As Piers and the others took up defendable locations in the alley, the scope of the danger became apparent to the Marines. Windows all along the narrow street were suddenly filled with men and metal. Bullets rained down like tears from heaven.Staff Sergeant Ramirez was already on the bounce. He knew something didn't feel right about this alley in the first place. The call for contact only confirmed what his instincts had prepared him for."Operator, this is Echo Six Romeo. Incoming SITREP..."... individual troops can look forward to the JTRS Handheld, Manpack and Small Form Fit AN/PRC-154 Rifleman radio. Developed by General Dynamics C4 Systems. Rifleman is designed to deliver networking connectivity to frontline troops in a lightweight, ruggedized, body worn device. The radio transmits voice and data simultaneously via SRW. Perhaps most importantly, Rifleman radios are capable of interfacing with smart phones.Cutting-edge wireless networking technologies, potentially capable of supporting both JTRS and smart phone devices, are now arriving in the form of mesh networks, including mobile ad hoc networks (MANETs) that can provide virtually instant high-bandwidth networking capabilities for handheld radios, ground and airborne vehicle communications and security and tactical wireless sensors. The military is increasingly turning to wireless mesh networks technology for sensor-driven environmental control, yard management, and security and tactical applications. A mesh network provides continuous asset visibility from any location in the system’s range, noted Mark Lieberman, automatic identification technology program manager for the Defense Logistics Agency, headquartered at Fort Belvoir, Va..John Edwards - Telecommunications Industry Analyst - Defense Systems[dot]comSSgt Ramirez listed relevant information in the hasty situation report. The operator, not flinching and with no obvious distress in her voice, replied back to the NCO channel,"Very well Echo Six Romeo. I've secured a roaming aerial interceptor squadron for your field operator. Echo Four Foxtrot, you should see the new units displayed on the Active Unit Window of your Tee-Cud. Do you see them?""Yes, Operator. I see them," Cpl. Fannon replied."Very well. They should be arriving in the next three minutes. Echo Six, I've opened a channel to higher command, designated "Snakepit". I've also opened a channel with the other patrol unit leaders in the city. CASEVAC has been alerted and are standing by. I'll be standing by for further assistance as needed.""Understood. Echo Six out."The squad was entrenched in the alleyway. Windows all along street slammed open to become places of cover for concealed insurgency forces, ducking away as quickly as they had appeared. They popped in and out to spray momentary bursts of fire on the Marines below, only to replaced by another in another window, and then another and another. The alley was unsecurable. The minimal cover and overhead deployment of enemy forces meant that the Marines would be chow in minutes if something wasn't done.Fannon was a bit occupied at the moment. He was the only one with a clear bird's eye view of the scene with aerial strike capabilities. His view, however, was obscured by the buildings. As he was trying to gain a clear sight on the window, a burst of rifle fire ricocheted next to his head. He ducked away in search of new cover. By the time he felt secure enough to focus on the drones, it had already moved on beyond view of the window. He would have to wait on the next one to make a pass. More rifle fire cracked as it struck the building next to him. The squad may lose its field operator if he didn't secure his most valuable asset: his life."Operator, I'm in heavy fire! I need to find cover and am requesting QRF assist!""Understood field op." She knew who had said it even though he hadn't said much by the indicator denoting which helmet made transition. "Patching in UAV Pilot Quick Reaction Force with special instructions to secure your immediate location."With a few adept keystrokes of the operator's hand, a red light lit in an installation in Colorado. A team of four pilots were already in their seats. They had been watching the feed and listening to the instructions. The operator opened a channel between them and the field op. As he scurried and dodged his way through the alley, he was relieved to see the individual units in his active asset window switch over from autonomous operation to full remote. One by one their icons switched from green to orange and faded to a translucent fuzz on the side of his display. He could now focus himself on finding a securable location for the time being. Fortunately for him, SSgt Ramirez was also aware of his desperation and had sent one of the squad's riflemen, LCpl Dodd, to secure him.As the two sought some mild semblance of safety, the drones above and all around came alive in a way not like before. Under normal operations, they circle around in simple methodically programmed patterns or hovering at points spherically encompassing the squad, waiting for the field op to call for them. Now, all of them were under the direct control of a team of remote pilots thousands of miles away.Interoperability Functional DescriptionThe ability of systems, units, or forces to provide services to and accept services from other systems, units, or forces and to make use of the services, units, or forces; and to use the services so exchanged to enable them to operate effectively together. An example for the use of this policy would be the condition achieved among communications-electronics systems or items of communications electronics equipment when information or services can be exchanged directly and satisfactorily between them and/or their users.Interoperability is integral to the continued success of missions using unmanned systems and represents a long-term objective of the Services and their stakeholders. The urgent needs in theater and corresponding rapid acquisition approach during recent years have resulted in thecurrent fleet of unmanned systems that generally do not interoperate with each other or with external systems. The combat development community is calling for interoperability as a critical element to the future unmanned systems fleet. The ability for manned and unmanned systems to share information will increase combat capability, enhance situational awareness, and improve flexibility of resources. Interoperability will improve the ability for unmanned systems to operate in synergy in the execution of assigned tasks. Properly stabilized, implemented, andmaintained, interoperability can serve as a force multiplier, improve warfighter capabilities, decrease integration timelines, simplify logistics, and reduce total ownership costs.Department of Defense - Unmanned Systems Integrated Roadmap FY2013-2038The individual birds started their maneuvers. They were each taking actions for the different specialties of each vehicle. Four target acquisition units were actively darting in and out of the building's windows seeking runaway insurgents, following them through hallways and as far as the trail would take them. When their scanners found something, other specialist operators were busy tagging each person as either friend or foe and adding an identifier so that the tracking system could keep watch as need be. Hunter strike craft pursued the insurgents relentlessly, able to dart in and out and descend from anywhere upon their targets. In the few seconds since the squad had taken fire, the alleyway had descended into a hornet's nest of firefighting from both man and machine.With the time bought by the swarm, Fannon and the other Marine were able to secure a location in the kitchen of one of the buildings along the alley. Fannon hunkered down in a back corner of the room. Dodd provided security for the two. He now posted himself along the window, regularly checking to make sure the two were safe while Cpl Fannon focused on the battle overhead.As he gained his bearing, Fannon began receiving instructions and information from the rest of the squad, along with communications from the other pilots. Now keyed back into the engagement at hand, he took control of the ships around him and began to coordinate his assets with the rest of the squad's counter offensive. He took back manual control of the remotely piloted unmanned assets as objective necessity dictated.One might wonder why Fannon would take back control at all. While the team back in CONUS was fully capable of carrying out the mission of taking down all enemies they saw with guns, explosive ordinance, and maneuver warfare, there was too much they could not know. They lacked the unit briefings on specific engagements for this particular region, since their area of operations was the entire planet as need be. They lacked a thorough understanding of the area, population centers, business centers and key hotspots and places to avoid fire. Mostly, they lacked clear communication with the entire squad. Fannon, more correctly, the Field Operator, did. What might be perceived as a design flaw was actually a well engineered aspect of the overall future of infantry warfare.They used to just have an open channel to everyone involved in the battles. The idea of a flat system of communication seemed a Utopian ideal. Any boots on the ground could speak directly with the people they needed to to get whatever assistance they would need. Anyone who might be able to help could just chime in if they thought they could be of service. On paper it is miraculous. So long as you were a part of the picture in the slightest your voice was overhead on the channel. Every command, every request, every observation, every opinion, every scream; everyone was talking and not enough were listening. It got to be a real nightmare scenario. Everyone from the General on down would be barking out conflicting orders to the troops on the ground. Debates out rules of engagement would clutter up the messages needing to be sent as terrified Marines lay frozen in forced inaction. Pilots for bombing runs and pilots for casualty evacuation were all speaking and yelling at the same time. Even engineering unit commanders would be giving his two cents on what to be be careful of so as not to blow up their precious fiber optic line more than two miles away. There might be as many as a hundred people squawking at once. And do you know who wasn't listened to at all? Why, it was that Lance Corporal Schmuckatelli on the ground, getting cut to pieces by machine gun fire in the jungle, the very Marine who started the conversation. It was a cluster.So they turned to the NCO's. The Non Commissioned Officers of the infantry squad were elevated to new levels of responsibility. Besides leading the fight, these warriors were now also the information hubs, directed to guide battlefield data and unit instructions from higher to the field troops assigned to them. At any given movement these troops may be relaying information from several different scopes and fields of view. They are now the levies holding back a paralyzing flood of information. The training necessary for their vocation puts them on par with any master level technician or specialty artisan in the world, not the least of which being the field operators. They are all career military and with their training, each holding the civilian equivalent to degrees in various fields from electrical engineering, telecommunications or logistics, they might be living easily overseeing some automated package delivery service, driverless taxi or even building the next gen automated warfare. At home they would have the life, but they chose something different. By being the channel through which all sources of information are funneled, their focused implementation of command and information allow them to direct the application of force on battlefield as if it were the strings of a marionette.Want more future of war? This answer has grown a full length novel mixing the same focus on technology and tactics while providing a character driven narrative I'm sure you will all enjoy. If you would like to check out my book inspired by this answer, The Next Warrior follow the blog The Next Warrior and follow this link to the start of the book.The Next Warrior by Jon DavisAirMeet the SR-72This Stealthy, Hypersonic Drone Could Become The Most Exotic Plane EverCyberspaceUnited States Cyber CommandStuxnetSpaceKinetic bombardmentRods From God - New York TimesU.S. Air Force Transformation Flight Plan, United States Air Force, November 2003 - http://www.au.af.mil/au/awc/awcgate/af/af_trans_flightplan_nov03.pdfSeaLittoral combat shipIndependence-class littoral combat shipMedicineNew Prosthetics Keep Amputee Soldiers on Active Duty - US NewsProsthetics in the VA: Past, Present, and FutureThe future of artificial limbsMichigan Man Among 1st In US To Get ‘Bionic Eye’ - CBS DetroitLandBigDogBigDog - The Most Advanced Rough-Terrain Robot on EarthIntelligenceBat-Inspired Spy Plane - The Future Of Things | Science and Technology of TomorrowLight InfantryHeadquarters Marine Corps - Combat Development and Integration: Marine Expeditionary Rifle SquadSupportA look at the future of mobile military communications on the battlefield -- Defense SystemsUnmanned Systems Integrated Roadmap FY2013-2038 - Page on defense.gov[1] - Kinetic Bombardment is currently still relegated to science fiction rather than actually being planned out for the future of warfare, though it was referrenced as a possible avenue in the U.S. Air Force Transformation Flight Plan , November 2003 linked above. The idea comes with massive logistical and engineering problems that are beyond our current reach. Most importantly is that the delivery of massive tungsten rods into space would be an impossibly costly endeavor and likely be more costly than any possible advantages gained from the practice. Given the recent advancements in the private space industry, however, the idea of space born military instruments like this becomes more a possibility every day.Also, I am still unclear if such a reaction would throw out nuclear fallout. Since there is no nuclear reaction taking place I don't see it happening. Of course I have also read that fallout comes from the churning of already radioactive material below the earth's surface which I really don't get. Either way, I'm not a physicist so if you physicists who have just been yearning to teach me a lesson, please clear that up in the comments. The fate of a fictitious village rests on your shoulders.[2] - The littoral combat ships are not actually the future of warfare. They are happening right now. The US Navy already has a fleet of these ships in deployment. My story involved an slightly exaggerated ship that is an update of the current version. The reason I didn't change the story to focus on some future super sub or next generation aircraft carrier is because of how speculative their future roles will be. What is certain is the role LCS's will play in the next several decades as an important element in ensuring peace along the world's coastal regions. That's why I wanted to focus on them, because no matter what happens, these are going to be a part of the Navy's future.[3] - OK. The eyeball thing is pretty weird. Truth be told, I borrowed the idea from Orson Scott Card's sequel to Ender's Game, Speaker for the Dead. All this to say the character who had one was freaky too. As far as Corporal Fannon's eye, I really don't even know if it will be close to possible to fit all those technologies into such a small platform whether in the next twenty years or ever. Every day tech is improving and bionic eyes are a reality even today, but heat vision, night vision and twenty times zoom, let alone the ability to record. Well I probably stretched my creative license on that one. Maybe making a Marine into a modern day Predator was asking too much, but don't even pretend that you don't want Cpl. Cy's cyborg eye.[4] - A lot of people may be curious why I chose to write a story surrounding a glorified pack mule, but in reality, I think this machine has a much more important role than any future weapon that we might be talking about today. More important than a new self guided rounds or a gun that shoots around corners is the logistical mastery of the field. Armies march on their stomach as it is said and the ability to deliver gear and supplies cheaply and safely will be a massive advantage from modern delivery systems. Add to this that the VA paid out about $57 billion on disability benefits last year and the most common injuries from veterans today are related to stress injuries of heavy, burdensome equipment. Given this information, it makes a lot of sense for the military to utilize a robot as a form of loss prevention on the bodies of future vets its going to provide medical care for otherwise. Finally, the ability of an autonomous system to maneuver through random routes, never taking the same one twice, illuminates the most deadly foe of the War on Terror, roadside bombs known as IED's. By avoiding the major arteries that roads are, logistical support can be delivered without the expense of air drop or helicopters. It provides an unimaginable scaling opportunity for the US military on many different fronts, providing the technology works as we all hope it does.[5] - Yeah, the Scouters are from Dragon Ball Z. That's over 9000! Thank you Google Glass for fulfilling my childhood fantasies that didn't include Bulma.[6] - Those of you who are sharp will have noticed another Easter Egg in this story. More than half the technologies mentioned are built of products and companies currently owned by Google.Liked this? You might also like my YouTube Channel. You can also connect with The War Elephant on Facebook. If you want to help me make more content like this, please visit my Patreon Page to find out more.

Yes ….1,000,000 % Hyperiflation = Oil is the Devil's excrement;Dr Juan Pablo Pérez Alfonzo Venezuelan, Founder of OPEC: saw it all coming. The infamous lines: "ten years from now, twenty years from now, you will see; oil will bring us ruin. Oil is the Devil's excrement ; 'The Devil's Excrement' - February 3, 2003The ultimate outcome seeing corruption, poverty, war, pollution and all this revolving around a grim speculation… Oil the Devil's excrement…the case all along was that we had never been in control of oil, it’s oil that’s been in control of us. A Spanish economist said of his homeland, "What makes her poor is her wealth"--a suitable lament for Venezuelans who have been waiting so long for their ship of money to come in.Money itself cannot obtain objectives. It must he used wisely with an eye to the future. A wave of money can destroy as well as create, and it often does. Will building the biggest and best‐looking schools create the best education?”“Because of the sharp rise in the price of oil, if Venezuela cut its production it would still be earning just as much money,” he said.“If we don't cut production we will have economic indigestion. We will have too much money that we will not be able to put to good use creating super high hyperinflation , corruption and the highest level of crime.”Financial collapse and hyperinflation make Venezuela an economic disaster zone.The crisis is no longer confined to one nation: refugees and migrants are streaming by the millions into neighbouring countries. |Venezuela epidemics and violent crime are spilling over all borders, endangering Colombia’s fragile peace process in the frontier regions.As Venezuela’s President Nicolás Maduro looks to cement his hold on power, his country is sinking into a trough of misery.Hyperinflation has compounded the scarcity of food and medicines. Epidemics of preventable diseases and a child malnutrition crisis are increasingly deadly. Violent crime has spiked.As seriously estimated over four million Venezuelans have emigrated, with hundreds of thousands crossing the border with Colombia each month in search of a new home. Venezuela’s neighbours, once bystanders to its domestic tensions, face a catastrophe on their doorsteps involved with international drug trafiking , extrosion, fraud, thief and murders.It’s the Oil, Stupid!!!“it’s the oil, stupid!” makes sense without being really true. Certainly, as the embodiment of immense wealth and energy, oil appears to be a force capable of defining the destiny of modern nations. Yet this appearance is deceptive. Oil conditions but does not determine the social life of these nations. To understand this, it is enough to observe that oil has radically different effects in different oil producing societies—for instance, the United States and Canada, on the one hand, and Nigeria and Venezuela, on the other. Given its exceptional power, it is necessary to remind ourselves of a true truism: oil does not do anything by itself, but as it is transformed and used by people under given cultural frameworks, specific historical situations and global economic contexts. For this reason, it would be truer to say, “It’s the society, stupid!”As an extraordinarily valuable commodity, it is hard for people to control it, particularly when it undergoes its most dramatic metamorphosis: when it becomes money.As money, oil tends to have similar effects in societies where it is in fact the main source of money. In effect, as the major source of foreign exchange of many oil exporting countries, oil money typically brings about an erosion of their industrial and agricultural production, leading to 70% expensive imports is the generalization of various forms of “corruption,” and the concentration of political power in their states.Venezuela's Inflation Rate: Causes and SolutionsVenezuelan has been suffering from high inflation rates for many years. The figure has been between 25 and 30 % per year. Inflation has continued to rage even though GDP growth has been negative in 2009 and 2010, and will likely be negative to neutral in 2011.The high inflation rate led the government to impose price controls. Controlled prices range from the price of foods to what a parking lot owner can charge per hour. In some cases, prices have been frozen for years, leading businesses into poor maintenance, causing the inability to hire more workers, and driving some to near or full bankrupcy.Price controls have also led to spot shortages. Fresh milk, for example, isn't easy to find - beacause its price is controlled. Long duration milk is found easily because its price isn't controlled. Powdered milk has been difficult to find this week. Sometimes the government tries to attack shortages by importing food. This means we have seen chicken shortages, but later we saw lots of chicken in the markets, some of it in poor condition. Hundreds of thousands of tons of food have been found rotting in import containers held by the state owned company PDVAL. This appears to be caused by a broken supply chain - they bought the food but didn't figure out how to set up the distribution system to get it to the markets. According to analysts, food inflation is largely due to the fact that supply does not meet demand, even though the financial system has dramatically increased loans to the agricultural sector.As long as the government is tossing around money to buy votes, or printing it to pay its bills, then there's going to be excess money floating around, and the price of just about anything they don't control by fiat is going to increase. Their response has been to increase their controls. They want to control housing rental prices. They of course control the salaries of government workers (who are now very underpaid and are starting to complain). Now there's even talk by the Chavez suppporters in the Assembly of controlling the salaries of workers in the private sector - they don't like to see private sector labor making more than government sector labor, so they're going to "equalize" everybody into poverty.The bottom line is inflation continues to rage, they think they can keep on printing their monopoly money forever, price controls are being extended, and the country continues to suffer from both inflation and recession. I know some of you like to gloss over reality, and seek comfort in all those nice statistics about how Venezuelans are such happy people under Chavez. But this is getting really ugly, and you don't do anybody any good pushing feel good propaganda when things are getting this bad. Please go tell somebody somewhere to talk some sense into the Chavistas, because nobody is going to win when the country collapses and people start to riot.The erosion of productive activities as a result of the massive inflow of energy money has been commonly called the “Dutch disease,” a syndrome baptized as such to refer to the negative effects of windfall profits coming from North Sea gas exploitation on manufacturing activities in the Netherlands. I have preferred to call it the “neocolonial disease” not only because these consequences are far more pervasive and pernicious in the narrowly diversified economies of postcolonial nations, but because they include the reproduction of relations of colonial dependence between these formally independent nations and metropolitan centers (as I argued in The Magical State: Nature, Money and Modernity in Venezuela, p. 7).In these nations, these effects also involve the proliferation of different forms of corruption, ranging from the imaginative creation of myriad paths for privately appropriating public wealth, to the less visible and more pernicious consolidation of political and economic relations that trap these nations as mono-exporters; despite projects that claim to diversify their economies, these countries typically remain, as in colonial times, primary commodity producers for the international market. In Venezuela, this has happened under very different political administration, where all imported product was the rule of quality.Clearly, maintaining this skewed international division of labor requires the collusion of politics and business, and thus the formation of a social system and political culture deeply implicated in legitimating and consolidating the vast set of formal and informal mechanisms through which oil is produced and oil money is appropriated. If in capitalist nations based on the generation of value through human labor the business of politics is business, in oil exporting societies based on the extraction of rents through the capture of natural riches, the business of business is politics. This explains why in Venezuelan public life politics occupies such a central space. Of course, politics everywhere entangles vital collective issues with private interests, but in Venezuela the state has become a particularly privileged path to status, power, and riches.Oil fortune has unfortunately helped make Venezuela a typical exemplar—or patient—of this “neocolonial disease. ” This fortune has also turned its state into an incarnation of charismatic powers that appear to be providential—a “magical state.”From the outset, Chávez was critical of PDVSA’s oil policy. Instead of maximizing production, he sought to increase prices and to strengthen OPEC. What’s your evaluation of this aspect of his energy policy? However, whilst in a very severe over supply situation, cutting back production to improve prices is the right practice, maximizing production should be the preferred policy of every oil producing country.This generates employment, increases demand for goods and services and has a multiplier effect on the Gross National Product requiring a high percentage ( 70%) of imports creating hyperinflation. Moreover, very high prices in recent years have not been a result of production cuts. Chávez has made a serious mistake in reducing investment in the oil industry, minimizing maintenance expenditures in a rapidly decaying infrastructure and allowing large production losses at a time when the market (especially the United States) could have absorbed a considerable increase in Venezuela’s production levels, without seriously affecting world oil prices.The so-called Bolivarian Revolution conveys the message that Venezuela dictates the level of worldwide oil prices. Venezuela has not the ability nor capability for disrupting the supply-demand equation at short notice and for a long time, nor has it the lower production costs and significant oil reserves of conventional crudes. Venezuela is a price-taker. Ricardo Hausmann: It is a fact that Venezuelan oil production is way below where it was supposed to be according to the strategic plans Chávez inherited.Today Venezuela should have been producing close to 6 million barrels a day, instead of the current 2.4 million. But under Chávez, the published strategic plans remained very similar. What has happened is a huge increase in the gap between plan and reality. In fact, PDVSA has been grossly overstating the actual level of production. So, it is hard to argue that the current oil production outcome is the result of deliberate policies rather than inability to achieve desired goals. With regards to the international price of oil, Venezuela’s oil output collapse has certainly been a small contributing factor, but commodity prices have been rising across the board, including mining and agriculture. Should Chávez be credited with those price increases as well? In any counterfactual scenario, oil prices would have been much higher now than in 1999.“Sowing the oil” has been the goal of the Venezuelan state since the 1940s. Oil has been treated as a source of foreign exchange to be invested in other areas of the economy. The energy sector itself has also been seen as a field of industrial diversification. Has Chávez managed to “sembrar el petróleo?Far from being a scientific approach to the optimal allocation of oil revenues, the long-time hidden debate on oil revenues flourished. It was first the issue of maximizing oil revenues either by increasing production (vs. decreasing prices) or by increasing prices (vs. decreasing production). A ridiculous trial and error exercise. However, the higher the oil revenues, the more the boasting about nationalism and anti-imperialism. Much ado about nothing. As in the past, but even worse than ever, the sowing of oil became a dictum with no real content….Worse than ever, Venezuela is witnessing hyperinflation, devaluation, production capacity eroded, unemployment, a two-tier exchange rate, poverty, dilapidation and corruption. The essence of the problem Venezuela has, and has had since the 40s, is the optimal allocation of oil revenues. The PDVSA meta-state is not the optimal model for allocating the oil rent nor is the PDVSA para-state. Far from being a scientific approach to the optimal allocation of oil revenues, the long-time hidden debate on oil revenues flourished.It was first the issue of maximizing oil revenues either by increasing production (vs. decreasing prices) or by increasing prices (vs. decreasing production). But it was as well the false debate on increasing the royalties and taxes. In 2001 the oil royalty was set up in 30% (16.6% since the 40s). Why not 31%? Why not 29%? A ridiculous trial and error exercise. However, the higher the oil revenues, the more the boasting about nationalism and anti-imperialism. Much ado about nothing. Ricardo Hausmann: Definitely not.While pre-Chávez policies lead to the creation of steel, aluminium and petrochemical industries, export concentration in oil is at a historic peak. Chávez has even made the export of products other than oil almost a crime. He used the fact that steel and cement companies exported part of their output to justify their recent nationalization. The exchange rate regime coupled with a highly protective trade policy is also antiother exports. There are no plans to create or promote other export industries. Non-oil production is geared to the domestic market and thus is completely dependent on oil as a source of foreign exchange. If the price of oil were to falter, Venezuela would have no alternative industries that could expand to take its role in generating foreign exchange as in 2014.Furthermore, PDVSA Agriculture will complement government activities to provide assistance to farmers and consequently food to the people. PDVSA Agriculture has already started sowing soy on land owned by the company and will soon start sowing sugar cane. This is done with the help of Argentine machinery. PDVSA’s new core business is the People of Venezuela and its new business model reflects this priority. With this new model, we have successfully challenged the existing paradigm of inefficient state owned companies, by demonstrating that while maintaining the status as one of the world’s largest integrated oil companies, PDVSA is also effectively contributing to the development of the Nation. When he became president, Chávez claimed that PDVSA had become “a state within the state”—an enterprise disconnected from the nation pursuing its own interests. Now critics claim that PDVSA has become a“meta-state”: a powerful instrument of the state unaccountable to society. The claim that PDVSA was a “state within the state” preceded the current regime. Chávez, however, placed the state within PDVSA, transforming the company into a “cash cow” to finance government plans not included in the annual national budget, such as 70% of import and distribution of foods, manufacture of consumer goods and government “misiones” (social plans). PDVSA also provides cash for acquiring private companies (Electricidad de Caracas, etc). The few audits of these new activities, more in the nature of a conglomerate than of a company, show inefficiency, mismanagement and financial malpractice.Currently, 18 countries are working with the Venezuelan Petroleum and Energy Ministry and PDVSA to develop the Orinoco Belt. It is well known that Venezuela has 130 billion barrels of proven reserves in this region and, after finishing the certification process trough the Orinoco Magna Reserve Project, our country will have the largest reserves worldwide.The destruction of the managerial capacity of the oil industry and the renegotiation of the contracts with foreign companies (with the departure of those that did not agree with the changes) has diminished the capacity of PDVSA to achieve any desired goal. Contrast this outcome with Petrobras, a company that is now expanding its production internationally, and deploying its proprietary technology abroad. In the meantime, Venezuelan experts are in exile, working for other countries and companies. You would need a very peculiar definition of nationalism to count this as an example of it.Some critics argue that the project of orimulsion was the perfect opportunity for Chávez to use Venezuela’s resources to promote an ecological and socially responsible energy plan—one favoring electricity for people rather than gas for cars.The Orimulsion projects were part of a technological quest to make the best use of the extra heavy crudes. Associating the price of these products with that of carbon resulted in enormous losses for Venezuela. Mixing lighter crudes to obtain, for example, Merey 16—as ExxonMobil did—allowed for great competitive advantages compared to mixing heavy crudes with water. The introduction of new technologies to improve and transform the extra heavy crudes resulted in a commercial breakthrough that has made these products quite competitive. In conclusion, Orimulsion has turned out to be no more than a good technology to transport heavy crudes as was originally conceived.Since recovering from the oil industry sabotage of 2002–2003, PDVSA has played an extremely important role in helping fund necessary social programs in Venezuela. In 2007, the company invested over $13 billion into such programs, which have helped lower poverty and address longstanding social needs. From 2003 to 2007, the poverty rate in Venezuela decreased from 55.1 percent to 27.5 percent, according to the National Institute of Statistics. Furthermore, these programs also helped nearly a million children from the poorest villages obtain free access to education. Secondary education has been made available to 250,000 children whose economic situation previously excluded them from enjoying this right. Adult literacy programs have taught 1.2 million adults how to read and write. These are just a few examples of the many successes we have experienced in Venezuela.On the other hand, Venezuela is a country with almost 100 years of oil production experience; paradoxically, we do not have a national industrial park to provide the goods and services demanded by the current production levels and even less for Venezuela’s oil and gas business plan, “Sowing the oil.”Dismantling the PVDSA irreplaceable machinery of a professional body of more than 10,000 geologists, petrophysicists, production and refinery engineers, researchers and planners. If assessed in the context of a zero-sum game, the loss for Venezuela is a gain for the world, quite a remarkable achievement. The lack of accountability regarding oil activities. Chávez disregarded the technical knowledge and professional expertise required to efficiently run an oil company. His belief that PDVSA is an inexhaustible cash cow. Collaboration between producer and consumer countries is a key part of the solution, framed by changing the developing model of the so called industrialized countries. It challenges the paradigm of what “development” means for developing countries, offering an alternative way to generate social value.Venezuela’s oil policy was dominated by strong actors that led to the internationalization of the oil policy. They were leading the country towards a fully privatized oil industry that would have been controlled solely by these dominant actors. President Chávez managed to break PDVSA dominance, but he nearly lost his life in the 2002 coup attempt. country towards a fully privatized oil industry that would have been controlled solely by these dominant actors.Likewise, Venezuela maintains a tense relationship with its neighbor Colombia, which is closely allied with the United States. Colombia is the second major trading partner for Venezuela, and Venezuela is dependent on imported food from Colombia, especially as food shortages have arisen in Venezuela in 2008. Venezuela’s attempt to control soaring inflation through food price controls and foreign exchange controls, combined with soaring world food demand, led to serious shortages of milk, 5 6 R eVista • fall 2008 eggs, meat and rice. Venezuela also became involved, with the permission of the Colombian government, in negotiating a humanitarian hostage exchange with the FARC guerrillas. After securing the release of two hostages, Venezuela’s negotiating role was cut off by the Colombian government because of perceived intervention in Colombian domestic affairs. Future perspectives At the end of 2007—a year in which Chávez’s anti-US and anti-“capitalist” radicalism reached its zenith—the tide suddenly began to turn against him.Rising inflation, crime and corruption, scarcity of consumers’ goods, growing divisions within the chavista ranks, and the general inefficiency of the administration had begun to erode the prestige of El Lider.On December 2, 2007, he suffered his first electoral defeat, in a referendum on a series of radical constitutional reforms including the possibility of life-long presidential reelection. Later on, new restrictions on democratic rights within Venezuela, as well as the Colombian assertions of Venezuela’s support of the guerrillas, cost Chávez the sympathy of substantial sectors of an international democratic left that had until then granted him grudging support. The time has come for evaluations of the historical role of chavismo and for tentative drafts of what a democratic post Chávez Venezuela might look like. The forces opposing Chávez in Venezuela are united in the desire to restore democratic freedoms, but their differing political philosophies range all the way from conservatism to democratic socialism…..now comes Maduro !After Chávez, a Venezuelan right-wing government would probably cleanse the country’s foreign policy of “third-worldish” elements and go back to a modest diplomacy tending to repair and deepen the nation’s inter-dependence with its traditional foreign friends. Under such a government, Venezuela would concentrate on being a reliable provider and would totally cease to be a gadfly. On the other hand, a slightly more left-leaning democratic administration— supported not only by the present opposition but also by a portion of honest former chavistas— might try to combine the return to traditional friendships with the retention and improvement of some of Chávez’s more constructive impulses, such as: a wide scope of Venezuelan diplomatic presence, a drive to foster the unity of Latin America and a bi-regional dialogue within the Americas, an effort toward more North-South equity and more South-South cooperation, and an active wish to see a wider and better balanced distribution of power among the main regions of the world.Dr Pérez Alfonzo, leader of OPEC who died, aged 75, on 3 September 1979, was one of Venezuela’s greatest political thinkers of the 20th century. He was an eminent lawyer and professor of civil law at the Central University of Venezuela. “He wanted not only to increase the government’s share of the rents, but also to effect a transfer to the government, and away from the oil companies, of power and authority over production and marketing.“For the producing countries, oil was a national heritage, the benefits of which belonged to future generations, as well as to the present. Neither the resource, nor the wealth that flows from it, should be wasted. Instead the earnings should be used to develop the country more widely.Sovereign governments, rather than foreign corporations, should make the basic decisions about the production and the disposition of their petroleum. Human nature should not be allowed to squander the potential of this precious resource.”He was both a visionary and an achiever — a rare combination. The best proof of this can be found here and now, in the shape of OPEC! OPEC was his vision. But he played a big part in bringing this vision to reality.The Petroleum Pentagon, his book is now drawn.The first pillar is reasonable economic participation for the nation, as the owner of the natural resource. The second pillar is the creation of a government body to control the conservation of, and trade in, hydrocarbons. The third pillar is the creation of a state-owned company to handle oil activity directly, both upstream and downstream, as well as internally and externally, and which could simultaneously deal with existing private companies. The fourth pillar is a “moratorium on new concessions” to individuals and a complete review of the prevailing concessionary system which did not favour the host country. And the final pillar is OPEC, the Organization that establishes international cooperation as being indispensable for the effective implementation of the strategy.Today he seems a prophet. When it hit the jackpot in 1973 , Venezuela had a functioning democracy and the highest per-capita income on the continent. Now in 2018` it has a state of near-civil war and a per-capita income lower than its 1960 level. But the Midas myth dies hard.How could that be? For the same reason so many entertainers go bankrupt. Showered with sudden windfalls, governments start spending like rock stars, creating programs that are hard to undo when oil prices fall. And because nobody wants to pay taxes to a government that's swimming in petrodollars--"In Venezuela only the stupid pay taxes," a former President once said--the state finds itself living beyond its means….Hyperinflation: A cycle begins. The economy can't absorb the sudden influx of money, causing wages and prices to inflate and the nation's currency to appreciate (by an average of 50%, according to a World Bank economist's study). That makes it harder for local manufacturers to compete. Incentives, meanwhile, become wildly distorted. When free money is flowing out of the ground, people who might otherwise start a business or do something innovative instead busy themselves angling for a share of the spoils buying 70% imported products. Why slog it out in a low-margin industry when steering some oil business toward a contact could make you a millionaire?Venezuela’s economy will continue to be tied to the country’s great mineral wealth, fundamentally made up of its enormous oil resources. Among the mono-producing countries dependent on foreign trade, the case of Venezuela is typical of how dangerous this situation is for the normal life of a nation, a position that lacks the possibility of control of the events that can greatly affect its whole economy.“In addition to other unfavourable circumstances that mono-production implies, the fact that the predominant product, petroleum, is depletable is a serious aggravating factor.Thus a doubly deadly dynamic: a ballooning public sector, a withering private one "This is a country that can never, ever sustain itself on oil," Terry Lynn Karl, author of The Paradox of Plenty: Oil Booms and Petro-States, says of Venezuela. "But everyone from the President to the poor believes it can." And therein lies the trap. President Hugo Chavez rode popular rage into office by focusing on corruption. But what neither he nor anyone else will face up to is this: Oil is not an economy. Creative economic activities have spillover effects that become self-sustaining. Oil spills only into a barrel--and from there usually into the hands of a favored few. That's the real reason Venezuela's productivity growth has been roughly half 52% of the Latin American average.http://cepr.net/images/videos/BBC_News_Channel-2018-08-18_02-12-36.mp4Venezuela crisis: Hyperinflation, mass migration, food shortage, increasing number of crimes: murders, kidnapping and grinding poverty has spiralled Venezuela with a total corruption into a deep turmoil.$ 1,583 Million USD for free housing ; Pdvsa reporta la inversión para el desarrollo socialVenezuela, once a rich oil reserve country, is now battering an unprecedented economic crisis. Many in Venezuela blame President Nicolas Maduro for the country’s current condition. Here is a look at the crisis unfolding in Venezuela and how it is now affecting its people…..Dr Juan Pérez Alfonso, Venezuelan, Regarded as Founder of OPEC“I may sadly be the father of OPEC, but now sometimes I feel like renouncing my off spring,” he said wistfully in an interview in 1976.Dr Juan Perez expressed great concern that the flood of money entering Venezuela after oil prices quadrupled in 1974 had undermined the population's commitment to hard work into a group contemplating laziness and made the nation dependent on 70%+ of foreign imports.However, protection within the market and the promise of unfettered wealth arising from Venezuela’s immense oil reserves were undone by what economists came to term the 'natural resource curse'; the sudden influx of money would cause the national currency to dramatically appreciate, wages are driven up, prices inflate, manufacturing significantly slowed ,reduced, requiring up to 70% imports and exports all slump reaction creating hyperinflation.Hyperinflation in VenezuelaThe plummeting oil prices since 2014 is one of the main reasons why Venezuela’s currency has weakened sharply. The country, which has rich oil reserves largely depended on it for its revenue. But when the oil price dropped drastically in 2014, Venezuela which received 96 per cent of its revenue from the oil exports, suffered a shortage of foreign currency. This made 70% of the import of basic essentials like food and medicines difficult.Food and medicine shortage in VenezuelaVenezuela’s cannot produce the majority, now any of the goods and must import over 75% of required goods confirming that imports are down 50% from a year ago, according to Ecoanalitica, a national research firm, CNN reported. Venezuela’s minimum wage is now about the equivalent of $1 a month, making basics unaffordable for many. With a shortage of the import goods, the black market has got a free hand in the country. Prices have been doubling every 26 days on average, according to a report in BBC. According to an Al Jazeera report, many Venezuelans sift through the rubbish and bins in search for food.A survey from February this year found that almost 90% of Venezuelans live in poverty and more than 60% surveyed said that they had woken up hungry because they did not have enough money to buy food, reported Reuters. Apart from food, the country is also facing medicine shortage. The economic crisis has also hit the public health system, making medicine and equipment inaccessible to its peoples.New currency of VenezuelaAmid the growing crisis, the government issued new currency — with new clour notes and denomination — to keep up with the projected inflation. While earlier, Maduro had decided to remove three zeros from the bolivar currency, he later dropped off five zeros. The new currency will be released next month and overhaul would tie the bolivar to the recently launched state-backed cryptocurrency called the petro, Maduro said in a televised broadcast. The new “Bolivar Soberano” currency is worth 100,000 “old” Bolivares.Cryptocurrency experts have said the petro suffers from a lack of credibility because of a lack of confidence in Maduro’s government and the mismanagement of the country’s existing national currency.[PDVSA.USA], said on Wednesday that the United States had revoked the visa of its President chief executive Mr Asdrubal Chavez, cousin of Venezuela’s late president Hugo Chavez,Mass MigrationAngered by the economic crisis in the country, many Venezuelans have started leaving the country. Of the 4.3 million Venezuelans living abroad, more than 1.6 million have fled the country since the crisis began in 2015, according to the UN. The pace of departures has accelerated in recent days, sparking a warning from the UN. The majority have crossed into neighbouring Colombia and then to Panama, Ecuador, Peru and Chile. Others have gone south to Brazil, Uruguay, Paraguay, Argentina.The mass influx of people from Venezuela has triggered a strong response from Ecuador and Peru, Panama. According to news agency AFP, Colombia had criticised its two southern neighbours for implementing travel restrictions, warning it wouldn’t stop migration. Ecuador — where close to half a million people have fled this year alone — then lifted its week-long requirement for Venezuelans to produce a passport, all the while helping those migrants reach Peru. Peru’s citizens largely supported the move, though, worried about the impact that the 400,000 Venezuelans already in the country would have. In Brazil, rioters burning camps ans shelter this month drove over one thousand two hundreds back over the border, to Venezuela; reported Reuters.A man gets off the bridge as people queue to try to cross the Venezuela-Colombia border through Simon Bolivar international bridge in San Antonio del Tachira, Venezuela (Reuters)Colombia says it has already given temporary residence to 870,000 Venezuelans but it can barely cope. In Peru, record 5,100 people entered the country in a single day earlier this month. Colombia has pleaded with its southern neighbours to agree to a combined migration strategy, while Ecuador has called a meeting of 13 Latin American countries next month to discuss the crisis. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will set up a special UN team to ensure a coordinated regional response.Increasing crime rate in VenezuelaAs the country slips into poverty, many are turning towards crime to make money. There were almost 27,000 violent deaths in the country last year, with Venezuela having the second highest murder rate in the world after El Salvador, according to the Venezuelan Observatory of Violence, a local crime monitoring group. Many Caracas residents refuse to go out at night due to security fears, and wealthier Venezuelans often travel in bullet-proof cars with bodyguards. A recent Gallup study placed Venezuela at the bottom of its 2018 Law and Order index, with 42 per cent of surveyed Venezuelans reporting they had been robbed the previous year and one-quarter saying they had been assaulted, reportedWilson Ramos: Inside KidnappedKIDNAPPING SCENEGetting Kidnapped (And Shot At) In Caracas, VenezuelaThe kidnapping in Venezuela started when I walked off the plane, this wasn’t the Venezuela I remembered. The second I walked through customs there were several individuals that walked up to me to exchange money. Of course I said! Who wouldn’t like to exchange money with a non official random person in a back alley of the airport in the most dangerous city in South America?Oil, & PDVSA State oil Company: Petro Caribbe stocks drainedVenezuela cancelled Oil delivery to 11 International customers in June 2018 incapable to pump 1,5 million barrels per day.Legal actions against PDVSA by U.S. producer ConocoPhillips aimed to satisfy a $2 billion arbitration award also have recently worsened the bottleneck as the Venezuelan firm is no longer fully using its Caribbean terminals to store and export.But an increase in production of diluted crude oil, or DCO, formulated by PDVSA by blending naphtha and extra heavy oils while its crude upgraders are out of service, and shipments from Aruba and Curacao ahead of seizure attempts by Conoco helped PDVSA and its joint ventures deliver more barrels to the United States in June.PDVSA exports have declined in recent months due to a stubborn tanker backlog around Venezuela’s main ports and its fast-declining crude output, which has stopped the firm from complying with supply contracts to almost all of its customers.A U.S. district court judge in Houston last week ruled Conoco can depose Citgo as preparation for a court case against PDVSA and others over alleged asset transfers in the Caribbean that Conoco claims were designed to frustrate its efforts to obtain payment under the arbitration award.Venezuela has begun testing sea-borne oil transfers to ease a severe backlog of crude deliveries from its main terminals, according to sources and data, as chronic delays and production declines could temporarily halt state-run PDVSA’s supply contracts if they are not cleared soon.Venezuela suspends oil delivery to Antigua and Barbuda and othersJune 12, 2018 OBSERVER media Antigua and Barbuda is among countries to be affected as Venezuela’s PDVSA says it is suspending petroleum deliveries to about half of the Caribbean countries in its Petrocaribe agreement.The move comes due to falling crude production and low refinery utilisation, according to a Venezuelan Oil Ministry report quoted on the online news agency Platts.PDVSA, according to the Platts report, is indefinitely suspending a combined 38,000 b/d of refined products deliveries to eight of the 17 countries that make up Petrocaribe: Antigua and Barbuda, Belize, Dominica, El Salvador, Haiti, Nicaragua, St. Vincent & the Grenadines and St. Kitts & Nevis.However, the report added that PDVSA will continue to supply 45,600 b/d of refined products in June to Cuba’s Cubametales, including 95 octane gasoline, aviation fuel, diesel, LPG, and residual fuel. Cuba has been one of the countries that has most benefited from the PetroCaribe agreement, receiving average deliveries from PDVSA of 95,000 b/d of crude and refined products.Under the Petro Caribe agreement, Venezuela sells petroleum to Central American and Caribbean nations on favorable terms….They pay 50 or 60% and the balance is financed up to 25 years .Venezuela inaugurated the plan in 2005 with Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas , Belize, Cuba Cienfuegos Refinery, Dominica, Granada, Guyana – which subsequently pulled out, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica Petrojam refinery, Nicaragua, Dominican Republic Refinery , St. Kitts & Nevis, Saint Lucia, St. Vincent & the Grenadines, and Suriname.The original agreement contemplated a supply of up to 185,000 b/d of crude oil and products under preferential conditions…50% / 60 days up to 25years financing. In 2017, Venezuelan shipments of petroleum via Petrocaribe dropped by 40%, or 54,400 b/d, from 136,000 b/d exported in 2015. The Oil Ministry report also said even though PDVSA does not have Mesa 30 crude available in June to supply Cuba, it is evaluating the possibility of buying light crude from third parties. In February, March, and April, PDVSA bought 4.2 million barrels at world wide price of Urals crude for Cuba.PDVSA has been operating its refineries below capacity because of a shortage of crude feedstock and various unscheduled shutdowns. PDVSA this month plans to process 499,000 b/d through its refining system, or 31 percent of its 1.6 million b/d capacity.Russian oil bought by PDVSA for Cuba discharges in the Caribbean -dataJune 25, 2018, 02:09:00 PM EDT By ReutersPDVSA has been unable to fully use its refining and storage facilities in the region, diverting cargoes that have contributed to export delays.Aframax tanker Advante Atom originally was to discharge Russian Urals crude in mid-May at PDVSA's Bullenbay terminal in Curacao, where it would be re-exported to Cuba, one of several such cargoes since January.PDVSA exported 765,000 barrels per day of crude and refined products to customers in the first two weeks of June, a 32 percent decline compared with May, excluding shipments by two of the company's joint ventures, which export separately.Manuel Quevedo, Venezuela's oil minister and the state-run firm's president, last week said the country expects to recover a portion of its lost crude output this year. But there are no early signs of a reversal in the declining trend. The number of active rigs fell to 28 in May versus 54 in the same month of 2017.Secondary sources quoted in the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries' monthly report estimated Venezuela's oil production fell to 1.392 million bpd last month, the lowest since the 1950s.The lack of Venezuelan crude supply has forced the 335,000-bpd Isla refinery, owned by the Curacao government, to seek a temporary operator to replace PDVSA, which has not sent oil to the facility since late April.June’s expected throughput is down 144,000 b/d from the same month in 2017. PDVSA’s system is comprised of five refineries: Amuay, Cardon, El Palito, Puerto La Cruz, and Isla Curacao, which it operated in an agreement with the Curacao government.With the new tankers, Venezuela's fleet stands at 81 ships, up from 12 oil tankers in 2002.Next month PDVSA expects the Boyacá tanker to arrive, followed by the Carabobo tanker and the Junín tanker in April 2014, the release said.PDVSA on Friday, was operating Isla Curacao at just 29,000 b/d, or 8.7% of its capacity, as it was unable to obtain crude supply out of storage, according to a refinery official who spoke with Platts on the condition of anonymity.The alleged suspension in some Petrocaribe shipments is the major second blow to Venezuela’s hobbled oil industry in the past week. A PDVSA official told Platts last week the company notified 11 international customers that it will not be able to meet its full crude supply commitments in June. The source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said PDVSA is contractually obligated to supply 1.495 million b/d to those customers in June, but only has 694,000 b/d available for export. PDVSA cannot supply 800,000 barels per day sold and paid for by international long time customers.Venezuela’s oil production has continued to shrink, plunging for the 10th straight month to 1.36 million b/d in May, according to a Platts survey. That is down 580,000 b/d from May 2017 and 910,000 b/d from May 2016.The drop in PDVSA deliveries may present an opportunity for US Gulf Coast refiners, who are increasingly exporting refined products throughout Latin America and the Caribbean.US refined products exports to PetroCaribe nations, including Venezuela, averaged 398,000 b/d in March, up from 256,000 b/d in March 2017, data from the US Energy Information Administration showed. The bulk of that increase has been going to Venezuela.Venezuela must import and depends on semi refined light oil for mixing heavy crude from the USA.[ CONCLUSIONS The conventional wisdom about leaders like Chávez is that their electoral successes depend on class voting, particularly the support of poor voters disenchanted with the old political establishment, corruption within traditional parties, and the neoliberal policies of the Washington Consensus. There are, however, intuitive reasons to doubt this interpretation, including Chávez’s conflicts with organized labor, potential middle class benefi ts from some of his economic policies and redistributive programs, and the scholarly contention that Latin American populist leaders generally rely on multiclass bases of support. My results show that this intuitive skepticism is indeed warranted; Chávez’s electoral base is not, in fact, disproportionately poor. That is, I find no evidence of a monotonic class vote outside the election of 1998.]This oligarchy, made up of Chavez's political heirs, is the third major component of the real power in Venezuela. Of course, Maduro; his wife, Cilia Flores; and many of his relatives and associates are part of that oligarchy. In this elite there are different “families,” “cartels,” and groups that compete for influence on government decisions, for political appointments, and for the control of illicit markets—ranging from human trafficking to money laundering. The smuggling and selling of food, medicines, and all kinds of products are just a few of the many other corrupt activities that enrich the Maduro oligarchy as well as the Cubans, the military, and their civilian accomplices.Getting rid of Maduro is necessary. But it's not enough as long as three criminal cartels—who are intermingled in business, corruption, and the exercise of power—continue to control Venezuela.Oil is the Devil's excrement".U.S. Drug Smuggling Trial of Venezuelan Leader Nicolás Maduro'sDrug Trafficking Within the Venezuelan Regime: The 'Cartel of the Suns'Venezuela's National Guard Commander Gen. Nestor Reverol (pictured in Caracas) is named in an indictment in federal court in New York City that accuses him of tipping off cocaine traffickers of incoming raidsNestor Reverol, the former head of Venezuela’s anti-narcotics agency and a long-time ally of late socialist leader Hugo Chavez, is named in a sealed indictment pending in federal court in Brooklyn, New York, according to the people.He would be one of the highest-ranking Venezuelan officials - and the only one currently in office - to face U.S. drug charges.Reverol, who leads the branch of Venezuela’s armed forces that controls the country’s borders, could not be reached for comment by Reuters.INTERNATIONAL COCAINE CORRIDOR VENEZUELA“The National Guard has been key to opening up the doors into Venezuela for Colombian drug trafficking organizations and subversive groups,” he said. “They have transformed Venezuela into a massive pipeline for cocaine into the United States and Europe.”US government sanctions on Venezuela vice president for drug chargesNicolas Maduro Doesn't Really Control VenezuelaMaduro doesn’t really matter. He is simply a useful idiot, the puppet of those who really control Venezuela: the Cubans, the drug traffickers, and Hugo Chavez’s political heirs. Those three groups effectively function as criminal cartels, and have co-opted the armed forces into their service; this is how it is possible that every day we see men in uniform willing to massacre their own people in order to keep Venezuela’s criminal oligarchy in power.Another important player in today’s Venezuela is the drug traffickers, whose power is also a constraint on Maduro. Venezuela is one of the main drug routes to the U.S. , Europe and Africa. This status is worth billions of dollars, and the country is home to a vast network of people and organizations that control the illicit trade and the enormous amount of money it generates. According to U.S. officials, one such person is Vice President Tareck El Aissami, and so are a large number of military officers and other relatives and members of the ruling oligarchy.Reuters (With inputs from agencies)Venezuela: The Chávez Effect (Fall 2008)( 96p history data )Venezuela’s economy collapses: All your questions answeredVenezuela's Inflation Rate: Causes and Solutionshttps://antiguaobserver.com/venezuela-suspends-oil-delivery-to-antigua-and-barbuda-and-others/Russian oil bought by PDVSA for Cuba discharges in the Caribbean -dataThe launch of the book "The Petroleum Pentagon"Poverty Reduction in VenezuelaThe Economics, Culture, and Politics of Oil in VenezuelaJuan Pérez Alfonso, Venezuelan, Regarded as Founder of OPEBiografía Juan Pablo Perez AlfonsoChina-made oil tankers arrive in Venezuela - BNamericasOil is the devil's excrementVenezuela's first lady says her nephews were kidnapped by U.S.https://www.vanderbilt.edu/lapop/news/122120.pdfNicolas Maduro Doesn't Really Control Venezuela[1] Tugwell, Franklin (1975) The Politics of Oil in Venezuela. Stanford University Press, p.182[2] For example, while Venezuelan individual income taxes during the 70’s made up only 4.1% of total tax income and corporate taxes made up 70.3%, in neighboring Colombia, the tax burden is distributed much more evenly among different sources, so that individual income tax makes up 11% and corporate tax 12.8% of total tax income. (Source: Terry Lynn Karl, 1997, The Paradox of Plenty: Oil Booms and Petro States, University of California Press, p.89)[3] Source: OPEC Annual Statistical Bulletin, 2001[4] Chávez’ visits to Saddam Hussein and Muammar Qaddafi would come to haunt him over and over again, as his opponents would site these visits as reasons for their dislike of Chávez.[5] As was the case of Dutch gas, which is where the name for the problem comes from.[6] World Development Report 2000/2001, p.297[7] Average annual inflation was over 50% between 1988 and 1998.[8] Terry Lynn Karl, p.235. This was a fate suffered by only 19 countries in the world in 1996.[9] Terry Lynn Karl (1997), p.184[10] Fernando Coronil (1997) The Magical State: Nature, Money, and Modernity in Venezuela. University of Chicago Press. p.4[11] [Source?][12] To list a few name changes: Shell became Maraven, Exxon became Lagoven, Mobil became Corpoven , Gulf became Menoven (sp?).[13] An oil industry expert, who briefly served on the PDVSA board of directors in the days leading to the April 11, 2002 coup attempt.[14] Bernard Mommer (2001) “Venezuelan Oil Politics at the Crossroads.” Oxford Institute for Energy Studies, Monthly Commentary.[15] www.americaeconomia.com[16] PDVSA ranks #24 in terms of return on assets, #49 in terms of return on sales, and #50 in terms of return on fixed assets.[17] Source: Mark Weisbrot and Simone Baribeau (2003), “What happened to Profits?: The Record of Venezuela’s Oil Industry,” Center for Economic Policy Research paper: www.cepr.net/what_happened_to_profits.htm (their figures are based on SEC filings).[18] Carlos Rossi, “PDVSA’s Labor Problems,” The Daily Journal, April 18, 2002.[19] See: El Nacional, “Cuentas Crudas, Precios Refinados”, November 17, 1998[20] For 2001 outsourced oil fields cost $10.94 per barrel of oil equivalent produced, while non-outsourced oil fields cost only $2.03 per barrel of oil equivalent (in 1997 dollars). Source: CEPR Research Paper, “What Happened to Profits?”[21] See: www.soberania.info/tercerizacion_portada.htm The excess costs averaged about $90 million per year for 1998 to 2000.[22] See: Alexander Foster and Tulio Monsalve, “Quien Maneja las Computadoras de PDVSA?” Venezuela Analitica, December 17, 2002 www.analitica.com/bitbiblioteca/tulio_monsalve/computadoras_pdvsa.asp[23] Alí Rodríguez, the former president of OPEC and current president of PDVSA provides a good summary of the policy in: “La Reforma Petrolera Venezolana de 2001” in Revista Venezolana de Economía y Ciencias Sociales, No. 2/2002, May/August 2002.[24] Constitution of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, Article 303.[25] Ibid.[26] Article 5 of the “Ley Organica de Hidrocarburos.”[27] Alí Rodríguez (2002), p.204[28] Chávez’ visits to Iraq—the first of any head of state since the Gulf War—and to Libya, both members of OPEC, would later be used repeatedly by his opponents at home and in the U.S. as proof for his unreliability and dangerous tendencies.[29] President Caldera had named the son of his chancellor to the board and Chávez’ first appointment to the PDVSA presidency, Hector Ciavaldini came from a lower management position. No protests were voiced against these appointments at the time.[30] Carlos Rossi, “PDVSA’s Labor Problems,” The Daily Journal, April 18, 2002. According to Rossi, PDVSA employees referred to the Caracas headquarters as “Hollywood” because every employee had at least one double that performed the same functions within the company.