<center> https://fortunedotcom.files.wordpress.com/2018/05/rts1rlrs.jpg</center>

People in Venezuela are facing a <b>collapsing economy right now</b>, government corruption, and widespread social unrest. Consumer prices in the country have [allegedly increased more than 800,000 percent in the last year](https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/venezuela-s-consumer-prices-rose-833-997-percent-past-12-n933836). Many people are now left living in poverty and struggling to get by; their life savings [decimated by hyperinflation](https://www.euronews.com/2019/02/15/venezuela-all-my-life-s-savings-were-destroyed-by-hyperinflation-thecube). 

## For those who used to send care packages <b>out of enjoyment</b> or for special occasions etc, now they are sending it [because it's become a necessity and they are trying](https://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-fg-venezuela-food-20171022-story.html) to keep people from starving to death.

<center> </center> The currency in the country has been <b>extremely devalued</b> in recent years to the point that people have [been using it to try and make art to sell on the streets](https://steemit.com/economy/@doitvoluntarily/weaving-worthless-central-bank-notes-into-art-to-survive). It's becoming increasingly expensive for people to buy the things that they need or find basic necessities, and government efforts have only seemed to <b>make matters worse</b> as things [continue to spiral out of control](https://www.businessinsider.com/venezuelas-inflation-rates-highest-in-the-world-food-prices-sky-high-2016-8). 

> "it’s a tale of corruption, social unrest, self-serving politics, capital controls, price-fixing, and a global commodity bust." - [G Friesen](https://www.forbes.com/sites/garthfriesen/2018/08/07/the-path-to-hyperinflation-what-happened-to-venezuela/#70d301c415e4).

<center> https://i.ndtvimg.com/i/2016-10/venezuela-opposition-reuter_650x400_61477532171.jpg</center>

For those who are living outside of the country who still have loved ones residing in Venezuela, they're [struggling to try and send care packages to their friends and family](http://www.qchron.com/editions/queenswide/handled-with-care-aiding-venezuela/article_d8d752f9-925e-5aa6-a7d0-806be83bf7e7.html). And they continually face <b>high costs of shipping, unexpected and frequent delays, and sometimes their package won't make it to its destination at all</b>. Still, you'll find that many people living abroad having been passionately trying to find ways to send help back to loved ones back home who are still suffering hard times. 

Thankfully, social media has been helping people who are still living in Venezuela to be able to connect with one another and trade, to try and find what they need. 

You can find different <b>[food swap groups](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-05-04/in-caracus-venezuela-a-haircut-costs-five-bananas-and-two-eggs)</b> that have been set up on sites like Facebook, where they are bartering for different goods and services. 

## The people through creative and voluntary means *have done more to help themselves and [each other than the government has](https://www.pri.org/stories/2018-07-03/fish-flour-barter-new-currency-collapsing-venezuela)*.

<center>https://www.aier.org/sites/default/files/Files/Images/Blog/Venezuela-barter.jpg </center>

No matter how bad the situation might be however, <b>the last thing that they need is for the United States to get involved</b>, to cater to the neocon dream of [further worsening the situation](https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2019-01-29/ron-paul-we-must-leave-venezuela-alone).

Various economists have proposed that there are a number of actions to take that might turn things around and start to reset the damage that's been done, one of them being to <b>[attempt to immediately establish stability](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-08-09/ending-hyperinflation-in-venezuela-is-so-easy-and-so-hard)</b> by [replacing the bolivar with the U.S. dollar](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-08-09/ending-hyperinflation-in-venezuela-is-so-easy-and-so-hard) or by possibly switching to another “stable currency”; [among other suggestions](https://www.forbes.com/sites/stevehanke/2017/04/03/how-to-stop-venezuelas-fatal-inflation/#333303cb5d0d). Although, we know that ultimately *[no fiat currency is immune to hyperinflation](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-02-19/britain-targets-brexit-deal-within-days-as-may-heads-to-brussels)*. Then there are the other more “*drastic*” solutions that have been proposed *by few* which suggest that a free market economy should be sought *with an adherence for the protection of natural rights*; promote currency competition instead of the centralized mess that's been experimented with for decades. Then, the people wouldn't be so susceptible to the profoundly negative results that can and have come about from central banks.




Pics:
[pic 1 C Jasso—Reuters via fortune](http://fortune.com/2018/05/15/kellogg-leaves-venezuela-crisis/)
[pic 2 - ndtv](https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/venezuela-opposition-escalates-anti-maduro-protests-dozens-injured-1516488)
[pic aier](https://www.aier.org/article/venezuelans-revert-pre-money-era-barter)

<center> https://steemitimages.com/DQmaW48YhsgLS2fxaYkXCuon3tFpQEEh1tSUCU3jjJXv7RT/%40doitvoluntarily.gif</center>

## Related Posts:
## [Venezuela: Starving For Some Freedom](https://steemit.com/venezuela/@doitvoluntarily/venezuela-starving-for-some-freedom)

## [Consumer Prices In Venezuela Rising More Than 40,000% Annually](https://steemit.com/money/@doitvoluntarily/consumer-prices-in-venezuela-rising-more-than-40-000-annually)

## [Inflation In Venezuela Now Up Over 4000%](https://steemit.com/money/@doitvoluntarily/inflation-in-venezuela-now-up-over-4000)