The end of an era in Venezuela; Chavez Plays the Oil Card

Years of threats and bluster over the operations of U.S. and European oil companies in Venezuela comes to an end as Hugo Chavez's nationalization drive took over Venezuela's last privately run oil fields, intensifying the decisive struggle with international oil companies over one of the world's largest known petroleum deposit.

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The latest move by Chavez has put Latin America back on the U.S. radar with his outspoken leadership and by forming economic ties with Latin American nations outside the U.S. influence. With Chavez's series of sweeping reforms, he is laying the groundwork for 'Bolivarian socialism.' He represents a welcome alternative to the US, whose efforts to heal the southern hemisphere's economic gloom through the World Bank and the IMF has largely failed.

However, let us remember the philosopher Karl Marx at this point who was right about very few things, but he was very correct when he observed ' 'History repeats itself, first as tragedy, second as farce."

It's a farce that Castro's successor, the Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is repeating all of Castro's mistakes, which is not good for US but even more disastrous for Venezuela itself.

Chavez made his move but it seems like he has bitten off more than he can chew. Nationalizing Venezuela's industries will ultimately stunt Venezuela's economic growth.

' Venezuela's national oil company, Petr'leos de Venezuela, is already showing signs of stress.

' Scaring away the big oil companies could make the region starve of investment capital and the technical knowledge needed to work with heavy, tar-like crude oil.

' The companies already appear to be taking a tough stand, demanding conditions - and presumably compensation - to convince them that Venezuela will be a good place to do business.

' Ideological allies like China and Iran will make up for any investment shortfall is a risky gamble on Chavez's behalf who is determined to reduce Venezuela's dependence on the U.S. market.

' The Big Oil companies might be constricted of the most lucrative oil patch outside the Middle East but socialist-inspired revolution will hamper Venezuela's ability to transform it's valuable heavy oil into riches for years to come.

The U.S. dependence on Venezuelan oil makes the move threatening as for now onwards regime change in Caracas becomes an ultimate aim for Washington but at the same time Chavez is aware of Washington's predicament and seeks to exploit it. In this regard, there is a chance that his 'Bolivarian revolution' might gather momentum. Whatever the future holds, the political situation in Venezuela bears close watching, as the only alternate model to the dominant neo-liberalism unfolds.