Thread by @venanalysis

Corporate media outlets have pulled a muscle patting themselves on the back over the fancy titled "Pandora Papers". Will the world's mighty tremble w/ bombshell "revelations"? No, not really. Whatever it is they're selling, we're not buying. Here's a thread on it 💸🧵

In Latin America we've discovered things that weren't hard to guess. Billionaire Chilean president Piñera has used tax havens. As have Chicago boy Paulo Guedes (Brasil) and Colombian ex-presidents. Also some Russians so Putin can be used on the cover

Unlike Wikileaks revelations where wrongdoing by the world's most powerful actors was laid bare for all to see, the Pandora Papers (like other "papers") reach us after going through the digestive tract of the corporate media. So don't expect the status quo to be challenged at all

Outlets like the NYT, WaPo or the Guardian have cheerled every imperialist war in recent history, while the "chosen" Venezuelan media run on USAID+NED money (it's a guess). These outlets are gatekeepers of the global capitalist system and their mission is to shield it from danger

If transparency and accountability was the goal we'd be able to search this database freely, not rely on corporate journalists that half of the time work as stenographers for western governments and the other half for western intelligence agencies

In what concerns Venezuela, we know that if there was anyone who could be remotely tied to Maduro, his mustache will be all over corporate media. Instead, we hear about a corruption scheme we've known about for years involving former oil minister Rafael Ramírez (cont)

(cont) Not just that, but some of the people involved in the Andorra money-laundering scheme are in jail as part of a state-led investigation, others have outstanding extradition warrants. So the best they can get on Maduro (so far) is a case the Maduro govt itself is prosecuting

This of course is not proof of innocence, it does not demonstrate that high-ranking officials are not involved in corruption schemes. But given how little "evidence" is needed to produce "charges" against empire enemies, it speaks volumes

It's no coincidence that this "investigation" is just looking for someone who can be tied to Putin or other "evil" actors. A few sacrificial lambs are thrown in to make it look credible and rigorous, like this legendary buffoon that is the king of Jordan (a western favorite btw)

The goal of this stunt is to "change everything so everything stays the same." That's why you have these hilariously hypocritical displays like senile-in-chief Joe Biden saying the US is going to crack down on wrongdoing. Like a mob boss worried about illegal gambling

First of all, tax havens are legal. Capitalism encourages corporations/people to not pay taxes. Operations like the Pandora Papers are smokescreens to divert attention towards a few "rotten apples" so no one realizes this is a *system* built on exploitation and inequality

Corruption is of course a huge issue,but the discourse that overplays it as an ethical issue and overlooks all else is also a problem. It means placing all the focus on the "illegal" stealing of public wealth so we'll ignore all the ways in which public wealth is "legally" stolen

We'll be forgiven for not buying that an investigation funded by (among others) the Ford Foundation and Open Society is about "speaking truth to power." It's a magic trick. Soon enough corporate lobbyists will deliver legislation on tax haven reforms and the media will applaud

It's independent outlets like Venezuelanalysis and lots of others that actually challenge the corporate plutocracy status quo. A monster might pretend to slap its own wrist, but it won't kill itself. To donate visit: venezuelanalysis.com/donate