A lot has changed from 2006... a lot of water under the bridge :0(

RESOURCE INVESTOR: Venezuela didn't seem to scare Goldfields [NYSE:GFI], a South African company, who bought Bolivar Gold for $381 million to obtain the Choco 10 property and it hasn't seemed to affect Hecla [NYSE:HL], a U.S. company, which operates in Bolivar State in Venezuela. According to Todd Bruce, the CEO of Crystallex, the perceived political risk in Venezuela is largely a function of western media bias against the Hugo Chavez brand of Cuban-style socialism. Don't gold companies have to go where the gold is and find ways to operate under different political regimes?

ROB McEWEN: Don't gold companies have to make money for their shareholders?

"...Independent traders, however, ought to understand that the risks of trading assets in Venezuela are not too different than trading shares of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac..."