Hugo Chavez is one of the world’s most despicable politicians, and he recently solidified his low rating by confiscating a major mall being developed in Caracas. The rule of law has been shredded in Venezuela and the government now acts like a thief. Given these conditions, productive people have no choice but to escape – or to at least to move their money someplace where it can’t be stolen by the thugs that rule the nation. This is why tax havens are so critical, not just for economic liberty, but for personal protection from tyrants as well (for more information, see here, here, and here). The Associated Press has the sordid details about Chavez’s kleptocracy:

President Hugo Chavez ordered construction halted on a major shopping mall in Caracas on Sunday, saying the government will expropriate the unfinished building. The Venezuelan leader said it would be out of line with his government’s socialist vision to allow the new Sambil mall to take up precious urban real estate – and that unbridled consumerism isn’t his idea of progress either. … “We’re going to expropriate that and turn it into a hospital – I don’t know – a school, a university,” Chavez said to applause during his Sunday television and radio program, “Hello, President.” … The president also has urged Venezuelans to shed their materialism and their taste for designer clothes, sport utility vehicles, Scotch whisky and plastic surgery.