John Otis:

In Venezuela, government supermarkets sell price-controlled food, making them far cheaper than private stores. But Valero explains that people are allowed in state-run supermarkets just two days per week, based on their ID card numbers. The system is designed to prevent shoppers from buying more than they need and then reselling goods on the black market at a huge markup.

Venezuela is rich in oil, but now poor in just about everything else. Economic mismanagement combined with low oil prices and high inflation has created one of the world’s most troubled economies. The government has stopped giving regular economic statistics, but many independent economists say inflation is now north of 100 percent annually.

Rising anger over food shortages — plus byzantine rules about when and where people can buy things — have made grocery shopping in Venezuela a nightmare.

Valero says goodbye to her 7- and 9-year-old daughters. They will skip school and stay home alone in a Caracas slum, with the door locked. That’s because Valero sometimes spends all day standing in line at grocery stores and can’t pick up the girls after class.