Time magazine (http://www.time.com) in its November 4 issue’s front page shows a man looking at Latin America. The article announces a good future for the region, indicating that the area’s growth of GDP will be greater than 4% and inflation lower than 10% p.a.

Unfortunately for us, Venezuela is not yet the bright star in this constellation of hopes, whether astral or real, over the region’s future. With an inflation rate still remaining at a two digit level, a probable economic recovery, but far too dependent on oil leverage and on a need to have a reliable rule of law, Venezuela is bound to make great efforts to overcome the enviable image of Chile in our Milky Way.

Time magazine points out in a few lines its impression its impressions on Venezuela: on the one hand it assimilates it to Colombia, when saying that under progress ratios we would practically fail to produce any movement in the measuring device; in the issue‹s images, it includes among the relevant events of the week a terrifying testimony of the La Planta jail’s tragedy.

However, these news reflecting unpleasant events in our country, should not discourage us; on the contrary, they should be taken as guides showing us how to hold a positive course to the future. In spite of the usual Venezuelan trend to criticize everything, domestically or abroad, one is beginning to see some real possibilities of overcoming some of the causes that have reduced this country to its current pauperization condition.

It is not oil investment, no matter how important it may be, that is going to draw us out of the crisis; neither is it the circumstantial increase of the price of oil, it is rather the need to face the hindrances that have prevented the expansion of an open society.

Inasmuch as President Caldera and his administration are not yielding in their will to go on with the reform of the State and the privatization of government held companies and provided that they do not fear to face. in a logic and coherent way, the issue of social security, Venezuela will began to shine in the Latin American constellation and will deserve the required credibility in order to secure a future being even more promising than that of the other regional nations.