For the girls and young women who compete in Venezuela’s beauty pageants — or those who aspire to — beauty is more than skin deep. Venezuela may be thought of as one of the most beautiful countries in the world when it comes to producing pageant queens. Six Miss Worlds,…
With Venezuela’s Economy in Shambles, Its Car Industry Remains a Bright Spot
Skyrocketing inflation and continued sanctions have put Venezuela’s economy in shambles.According to the Washington Post, the South American nation has one of the highest inflation rates in the world, at a staggering 63%.Yet amid these sluggish, bearish conditions, there is a glimmer of economic growth in Venezuela — its used car…
Costa Rican Sweepstakes Scam Swindles U.S. Citizens Out of Over Half Million Dollars
A California-woman pleaded guilty late last year for her role in a Costa Rican sweepstakes fraud that targeted U.S. residents.From about 2007 to February 2013, con artists in on the scam would call U.S. residents — many of whom were senior citizens — from Costa Rican call centers, telling them…
Top Mariners Pitching Prospect Hit by Boat While Swimming, Left in Critical But Stable Condition
Considered a rising star in the world of baseball and one of the Seattle Mariners’ highest-ranked pitching prospects, Victor Sanchez is reportedly clinging to life after being struck by a boat while swimming on Friday. Sanchez, 20, was struck by a watercraft while swimming at a beach in his home…
Venezuela’s Anti-Government Protests from 2014 Show the Negative Side of Social Media
Social media is often regarded as a powerful tool for ordinary people to disseminate information, practice freedom of expression, and promote democracy throughout the world. However, sometimes that sentiment simply isn’t true. Nowhere was that better demonstrated in recent memory than in Venezuela. Protests organized by right-wing groups and activists…
A Year After Student Protests, Venezuela’s Path Still Not Clear
It has now been a year since student protests first filled the streets of Venezuela’s main cities and met a brutal police response. But people both inside and outside Venezuela are still struggling to make sense of the conflict. The final toll of the four months of protests that began…
2014 Worst Year for Free Expression in Venezuela, NGO Report Concludes
For many people across the globe, accessing the Internet via a mobile phone is a matter of convenience. As of 2012, more than half of all local searches started being conducted from mobile devices, as people used their phones to navigate to shops and restaurants. But for many Venezuelans in…
Venezuelan Government Seizes Supermarket Chain
Amidst food shortages and massive lines at grocery stores, the chief executive of Dia Dia, a supermarket chain recently taken over by the Venezuelan government, has rejected the government’s claims that the company was hoarding foodstuffs in an attempt to destabilize the economy, asserting that the supermarkets’ warehouses had just…