The Hellscape of Socialism By James Reed

     President Trump in his election speeches has been using the example of Venezuela as a case study of how socialist societies break down, ultimately collapsing into a modern hellscape. But how bad is Venezuela, actually? Answer: worse than we imagined. Here are some extracts from a persona account of life under socialism by Venezuelan writer, Christian Caruzo:
  https://www.breitbart.com/national-security/2019/10/13/my-socialist-hell-20-years-of-decay-in-venezuela/

“This is a personal account of what has my life become after twenty years of Bolivarian Revolution— 20 years that comprise two-thirds of my life. I’ve done so many bread lines that I’ve lost count, I’ve engaged in bartering of food and medicine, I’m actively taking expired meds because it’s simply better than nothing, and I’ve adapted every aspect of my livelihood around the tribulations inherent to living in Socialist Venezuela while taking care of my younger brother who can’t fend for himself given his mental condition. It hasn’t been easy since we’re two socially inept siblings, but we keep going no matter what. … Socialism has slowly eroded the functional existence of every aspect of our lives, from our freedom of speech to our economic liberties, our access to healthcare and personal documents to our water supply. Each of these structural collapses – the absence of healthcare, the worthlessness of our currency, systemic corruption in the government and military, and widespread censorship – have affected me personally. Socialism is a trendy topic in the United States at the moment, which means my story is relevant beyond Venezuela’s borders. Over the course of this series, I hope to inform American readers about the realities of existence – and survival – in a socialist country. And I hope that by reading my stories, Americans will be forewarned enough that they remain distant stories, rather than firsthand experiences. …

The Fatherland Card database contains a dangerously high amount of information, from names, numbers, addresses, work information, income, family members, vehicle information, and etcetera. Social benefits and monetary bonuses are now being distributed through this program. If you or any of your family members need a medicine then their goal is for you to obtain it through this; refuse to fall in line and you’ll risk losing access to it. Access to subsidized gasoline through this program has been one of their goals as well. Our gasoline is so absurdly cheap it might as well be free — paradoxically, you will be long dead before you’re able to save enough money for a new vehicle. The only reason this hasn’t been implemented yet it’s because they hit a roadblock due to the precarious and obsolete state of our internet infrastructure. Ultimately, the glorification of Chávez as the Supreme and Eternal Commander of the Revolution, and the creation of a scenario where the people are forced to depend on the government’s breadcrumbs to barely survive, has only served to subdue our citizens, bombarding us with a non-stop ideological narrative that presents them as the heroes that are saving us from a calamity of their own creation, fighting a good fight against the great enemy: The American Empire and Capitalism. Of course, that evil capitalism they fiercely denounce? It’s totally fine for their sons and family members. An obedient, docile, and subservient country, desperate to survive and yearning for a better life, deprived and stripped of hope. Cuba has done it, North Korea has done it, and unfortunately, Maduro’s regime has ramped up its efforts towards achieving this goal — I don’t want this to be our fate.”

     Even the mainstream media now refer to Venezuela as being in a state of social collapse:
  https://www.reuters.com/article/us-venezuela-economy/with-venezuela-in-collapse-towns-slip-into-primitive-isolation-idUSKCN1T823D
  https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2019/02/harvard-expert-tries-to-make-sense-of-venezuelas-collapse/
  https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/17/world/americas/venezuela-economy.html