Second, he posted that in 2011. Things were still pretty decent from an economic standpoint in 2011.
See how venezuelas national debt to GDB had started to drastically increase years before 2011:
They also had a populist totalitarian leader, which didn't help matters.
And they started to noticeably accumulate inflation prior to the most recent presidential election.
If a socialist country takes lots of debt and inflation I see it like a guy buying expensive furniture and a rolex on a credit he cannot afford. If it were a working and sustainable system it wouldn't be necessary no increase debt, but it seems to fool many people.
Similar trends are noticable in other western countries, but to a lesser extend.
They lost around 66% of their income because the oil market became saturated, devaluing it.
"In March 2017, Venezuela, with the largest oil reserves in the world, began having shortages of gasoline in some regions with reports that fuel imports had begun."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venezuela#Shortages
"Venezuela is suffering gasoline shortages despite having the world's largest oil reserves; Venezuelan refineries are operating significantly below capacity because they are facing operational problems due to a lack of investments and maintenance. Falling output at refineries means that Venezuela needs to import more gasoline, squeezing the national budget even further"
"‘They are importing barrels that cost $80 to $90 and selling them at $0’"
I think Venezuelas economic problems go much further than saturation of the oil market.
Context is everything here. Firstly, he was talking specifically about their income equality situation. How you feel about that figure is irrelevant, it's still a useful metric. Second, he posted that in 2011. Things were still pretty decent from an economic standpoint in 2011. They lost around 66% of their income because the oil market became saturated, devaluing it. One-sided economies inevitably collapse and, when they do, shit goes down. That's what happened in Venezuela. They also had a populist totalitarian leader, which didn't help matters.
http://money.cnn.com/2017/07/26/news/economy/venezuela-economic-crisis/index.html
I don't know all the talking points that the left uses to even provide counter points. Most of what I've see is, from my understanding, down to interpretation and not concrete. Bad things are bad and yes, it's well documented that the government bodies have done some bad shit in the name of science or foreign policy. A lot of that took place during Cold War times where the US policy was akin to, "you have to break a few eggs to make an omelet." I'm not saying it's right, it's just the way it was. Shit times called for shit measures, apparently.
I'm aware of the infamous pay gap and I disagree with it as I also feel it's erased when you factor in all the variables at hand. My belief is that men and women are equal in value but different in ability, into which the pay gap myth fits perfectly. If you have more than anecdotal situations where the woman is literally equal in every way to the man and she's making 71% of her male counterpart, then we'll talk. That situation seems to be a unicorn, though. If it is found, it's a single company run by WWII-era men. That issue will be gone to old age soon. Let women be equal, but give them everything that comes with it as well.