A Shaolin kung fu master shows how it’s done.
— Science girl (@sciencegirl) January 3, 2026
U.S. Delta Force Captures Venezuelan President Maduro During Major Assault on Caracas: Defence Minister Vows Continued Fight Military Watch Magazine
The entangled brain Aeon
Anti-Aging Injection Regrows Knee Cartilage and Prevents Arthritis SciTech Daily
Looksmaxxing is the new trans Clavicular’s cybertruck smashes conservative hope UnHerd
COVID-19/Pandemics
Magical thinking will not prevent future pandemics or improve public health Science.org
Review of 200 novel human viruses over a century a reminder that pathogen emergence isn’t rare CIDRAP
Climate/Environment
Wildfire smoke is a national crisis, and it’s worse than you think Grist.org
In Lahore’s Smog Season, This Gen Z Doctor Is Centering Climate Change Inside Climate News
South of the Border
World reacts to US bombing of Venezuela, ‘capture’ of Maduro Al Jazeera
Report: US Attack on Venezuela Killed at Least 40 including military personnel and civilians Antiwar
The United States Captures Nicolás Maduro and his Wife Jonathan Turley
Trump admin sends tough private message to oil companies on Venezuela Politico
Why Capturing Maduro Solves Nothing Modern War Monitor
Decapitation Without Destruction: Why the Abduction of President Maduro Creates a Strategic Crisis for the United States Kautilya the Contemplator
Colombia sends armed forces to Venezuela border amid concern over refugee ‘influx The Guardian
Mexico condemns U.S. military action in Venezuela, capture of Maduro The Washington Times
China?
In this part of the Wuling factory in China, there are no human workers in sight!
Machines handle the tasks here, showing how far automation has come in manufacturing! pic.twitter.com/n306JjfHuq
— Dominic Lee 李梓敬 (@dominictsz) December 16, 2025
China’s robot sports craze could eventually put humanoids in homes CNN
Maduro received Chinese representative hours before Trump’s claim he’s been captured Andolu Agency
China’s Laser Leap: Beijing Is Quietly Winning the Next Arms Race The National Interest
India
The year angry men dominated Bollywood – and what it means for India BBC
The Great Divide: Why Bangladesh-India Relations Are At A Historic Breaking Point? – OpEd Eurasia Review
Why 2026 could be a testing year for India The Federal
Africa
Top 5 African countries with the best quality of life index at the start of 2026 Business Insider Africa
Gen Z’s struggle in South Africa, the most unequal country in the world El Pais
EAC warns Israel move to recognize Somaliland threatens stability of the Horn of Africa China Daily
European Disunion
France Plans 2026 Ban on Social Media for Under-15s, Advancing EU-Wide Digital ID Approach Reclaim the Net
EU urges ‘restraint’, respect for international law in Venezuela after Maduro capture RFI
Europe’s Split With Washington Is Growing — But Its Vulnerabilities in Brussels Are Deeper. Fair Observer
Old Blighty
Data shows rise in racial, religious hate crime on UK public transport Andolu Agency
Growing numbers of over-60s facing homelessness, charities warn The Guardian
Israel v. Gaza, Yemen, Lebanon, Syria, Iran
🚨🇮🇱🇵🇸 FINKELSTEIN: “GENOCIDE IN GAZA IS A NATIONAL PROJECT”
Jewish American political scientist Norman Finkelstein isn’t holding back.
In a scathing statement, he argued the destruction in Gaza isn’t just the result of Israeli government policy, as it also reflects widespread… pic.twitter.com/uV1fGpUsaF
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) January 1, 2026
Severe weather in Gaza hits vulnerable and wounded most in Israel’s war Al JazeeraUN chief ‘deeply concerned’ by Israel targeting NGOs Andolu Agency
UN urges Israel to drop proposed death penalty bill against Palestinians Jurist News
Israel and the politics of fragmentation: The hidden hand behind secessionist projects in Yemen, Somalia, and Libya Middle East Monitor
New Not-So-Cold War
Russia makes largest territorial gains in Ukraine since 2022 invasion France 24
Erdoğan: Russia–Ukraine War Threatens Black Sea Trade The Caspian Post
Why a nuclear plant is a big sticking point in the Ukraine peace plan NY Times
Big Brother Is Watching You Watch
Google is tracking your digital fingerprints again Mashable
Modern Cars Collect Driver Data Without Consent, Raising Privacy Alarms WebPro News
Imperial Collapse Watch
An American works full time SAVING lives: $32 an hour.
After taxes and insurance, she brings home $3,200 a MONTH.
Rent, utilities, and childcare consume $2,800 — before food, gas, or basics.
This isn’t the cost of living — it’s a slow financial chokehold. pic.twitter.com/wJV8S1Y54Q
— MatrixMysteries (@MatrixMysteries) January 1, 2026
Homeless drivers off the hook in California as RV encampments spread in Los Angeles NY Post
Utah meth operation shows how cartel drugs reach streets KUTV News
Trump 2.0
Live updates: Trump says US will ‘run’ Venezuela after Maduro capture The Hill
Trump warns Colombian president after US ‘capture’ of Maduro Andolu Agency
Trump’s move to topple Maduro is fraught with risk – what happens next is unclear BBC
Musk Matters
Tesla annual sales decline 9% as it’s overtaken by BYD as global EV leader TechCrunch
What is the reality of Elon Musk’s pipe dream, Optimus Robot? Cryptopolitan
Did Elon Musk Just Confirm He Is Funding The GOP For Midterms? ‘America Is Toast If The…’ Yahoo Finance
Democrat Death Watch
Republicans overtake Democrats on NC voter rolls The Carolina Journal
Minnesota fraud scandal poses danger for Democrats in Senate race The Hill
Immigration
More than 100 detained in holiday immigration raids across Central Coast, sparking outrage Los Angeles Times
Blackwater Successor Hunts Immigrants for ICE The intercept
Our No Longer Free Speech
Israeli Billionaire’s Call to Limit Free Speech Sparks Conservative Fury Newsweek
Universities treated free speech as expendable in 2025 Blaze media
Mr. Market Is Moody
Why Donald Trump is toasting the fall of the dollar The Times
Oil Market May Absorb Maduro Shock as Global Supplies Swell Bloomberg
The 2025 Housing Affordability Crisis in Charts: What Changed and What Didn’t Investopedia
AI
Your Jaw Will Hit the Floor When You Find Out How Much the Average OpenAI Worker Makes Futurism
Google AI Overviews put people at risk of harm with misleading health advice The Guardian
New study shows how AI could transform drug prescriptions for heart diseases euro news
‘Remove the top’: Grok AI floods with sexualized images of women The American Bazaar
Are AI relationships misunderstood? BU News Service
The Bezzle
Bitcoin ATM fraud hits record $333 million, FBI reveals Cryptopolitan
Meta stock slides after hours as scam-ad ‘playbook’ report puts regulatory risk back in focus Techstock 2
Guillotine Watch
And… it was SOLD! 🥚
Hammer Price: £19.5 million ($25.7 M)
Final Price with Commission: £22.9 million ($30.2 M)
Fabergé’s Winter Egg, commissioned by Tsar Nicholas II in 1913, was auctioned today in London, setting a record price for a Fabergé egg. https://t.co/iv2YgbWUiJ pic.twitter.com/4fRNdeu0f8
— Muse (@xmuse_) December 2, 2025
Fabergé eggs are exquisite jeweled eggs created by the Russian jeweler Peter Carl Fabergé, originally made for the Russian tsars pic.twitter.com/SxLElsYuWX
— Interesting As Fuck (@interesting_aIl) September 3, 2024
Antidote du jour (via)
See yesterday’s Links and Antidote du Jour here
Winner of prize for least comprehensible headline.
I was about to write the similar comment. I had to click just to see what this is about. Since the clickbait worked, maybe it will start some garbled title trend.
Boy Howdy!
That’s 4 minutes of my life completely shot to hell…
I don’t understand why UnHerd asked a Columbia University student to write a column.
Pretty sure the pandas are AI. Here are some photos of real bears from National Geographic:
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/giant-baby-panda-cubs-china-conservation
I immediately had the same impression — AI-generated, or CGI.
The page where this image originates is full of similarly-themed and obviously CGI/AI generated pictures, and the site hosting it, stockcake.com, touts “Millions of free AI stock photos”, and “Sign up to use AI-powered tools — Join 300,000+ creators • Free forever • No credit card required”.
That term ‘creators’ is a bit of a stretch. All they did was to take other people’s work and used a computer to bodgy up their own version which puts the real, original creators out of work.
And people wonder why I despise Silicon Valley culture.
The hosting site is totally open about it. Witness:
“Recreate this image — Sign up to generate variations — 50 free credits daily — Commercial license included — No credit card required”
Respectively:
“Apply stunning effects — Sign up to use AI tools on this image…”
The well of artistic creation is truly and hopelessly poisoned.
A post by a sort-of respected medical researcher on twitter had an AI-generated image and someone replied that it would be better to not use this stuff. The researcher (what a nerve) told the replier to make an image for him if they didn’t like the AI.
Someone else replied “f off with your anti-AI propaganda”.
Anti-AI propaganda? Where are people’s heads at, my god.
Makes me wonder if the reply was generated by… wait for it….. an LLM AI Bot?
I replaced the AI panda image with a real panda trio. Some pictures are too good to be true.
The new photo is great, thanks. It’s a bear band lp cover photo. I think they play bluegrass.
Thanks Haig. Much more pleasing to the eye <3
i watch broadcast TV via youtube.
My suspicion is that 33 – 49% of youtube adverts are made via generative AI.
Hollywood and NYC national broadcasters, as we know it, are dead men walking
The handwriting has been on the wall since Max Headroom.
“Live updates: Trump says US will ‘run’ Venezuela after Maduro capture”
That’s going to be a neat trick. Does he plan on phoning in his orders? Will he send Venezuelan-Americans back in to run the country for him without the need for a messy election? Can’t be done without boots on the ground but is there an appetite to do so?
Mark Sleboda on Danny Haiphong yesterday opined to the contrary, that the absence of defensive fire against dozens of helicopters and the orderly handover of Maduro by his guards to the Americans means the military was bought off in advance and in on the plot. He thinks there will be no problem maintaining order in the near term with threats and bribes.
Haiphong also said the house of the defense minsiter was hit but he survived becuase he got to his bunker.
The US took out a lot of the lights in Caracas before they went in and also hit airbases to take out air defenses. MANPADs require either initial visual targeting (the IR can then take over) or radar, so no lights would impede MANPAD use. More from the Financial Times:
And Kutilya the Contemplator:
https://chandragupta.substack.com/p/decapitation-without-destruction
So this is not proven. People want tidy explanations when a lot is still not very well known.
Yes. To be honest, this is what I would have expected from a military without recent combat experience, subject to an attack that was a complete tactical surprise, carefully prepared and with an overwhelming capability advantage. Against a large-scale conventional attack, they would probably have done quite a lot better, because they would have had more time, but you have to anticipate, plan for and train for a limited and targeted attack of this kind, which it’s clear the Venezuelans were not expecting. Any such attack achieves most of its effect from surprise and it seems surprise here was total.
That said, it’s not clear to me that the US has gained a great deal except in PR terms. There is no reason to suppose that the new government (same as the old government, effectively) will do what the US wants, nor that the US is prepared to actually try to invade the country. to make it do so.
I’ve been reading that Maduro was guarded by Wagner mercenaries, which makes me wonder. This would be a stain on their record if they got rolled with barely landing any punches of their own.
I suspect they just provided his personal protection against assassinations, conventional kidnapping attempts etc: things like vehicle escort, manning security barriers, and the like.They would not have been expecting something like this, nor equipped to deal with it.
Venezuela was up against the might of the western colonial empire.
And in the fine British tradition of never believe anything until it has been officially denied, I would say the UK was definitely involved “British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said his country was not involved in the United States’ strikes on Venezuela” from Al-Jazeera.
So this was probably US muscle + UK colonial rule tactics + Israeli electronic warfare.
The US attack was not a bolt from the blue. Venezuela had been facing an obvious enemy buildup on their doorstep for many weeks. Everybody knows that “decapitation” is part of US and Israeli doctrine–virtually SOP. In any case, enemy attack on one’s command-and-control is always to be expected in war.
Recent examples: Israelis killing Nasrallah. Russian SF tried to nab Zelensky at the beginning of the Ukraine war.
Even if we disregard the risk of capture, Maduro should still have already been in a HQ bunker, or making frequent moves, simply because of the risk of an air strike, made by an enemy known to have stealth aircraft and advanced ECM.
Now think about just how good the US intelligence had to be, to conduct the kidnap–how accurate, how timely the information they needed. On this basis alone, treachery would be a reasonable hypothesis.
From the videos I’ve seen, some helicopters were plainly visible. Fair targets for old fashioned ack-ack, let alone MANPADS.
The Grayzone podcast yesterday by Max Blumenthal and Anya Parampil was interesting on this issue. Both are very familiar with the Venezuela situation and have relevant contacts there and in DC. While they were careful in their comments, they strongly implied that there had been negotiations behind the scenes in the preceding weeks toward just this outcome. They didn’t say it quite this directly, but my interpretation was that Maduro was given the choice to leave voluntarily and would not, so the “choice” was made for him (actually Parampil did state this as a possible scenario). They did not directly accuse Delcy Rodríguez or others in Maduro’s administration of complicity, but they did point out that for some reason the Trump administration seems willing to deal with them, at least temporarily, and noted Trump’s rather brutal dismissal of Machado in his press conference. And while they kind of danced around this, they did raise questions about the relative ease with which the kidnapping took place.
For those interested:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iTgkGSeJfhg
Fwiw, there is something analogous between MAGAism and Bolivarianismo, in the sense of riling up disaffected masses against established elites. However, I doubt socio-cultural affinity probably doesn’t mean much to Trump (I personally thought Maduro was more a “jobber” than a real believer, which Rodriguez seemed to be–then again, that’d make her more like MTG whom Trumpuro hates…)
I suspect that the reason that Trump dissed Machao was because she “took” his Nobel Peace Prize when clearly it should have belonged to him.
From A Martyanov:
“I know, it is going to be hurtful to many but they don’t call those countries banana republics for nothing, banana republic being a euphemism for corrupt regimes and toy armies. Some news (from there)–the chief of Maduro’s security detail as well as a number of others have been bought by the US. In fact, there was a Russian military group which rushed to Maduro residence but it was held off by the fire of … yep, Maduro security people. By the time Russians dealt with those traitors, Maduro was already gone. The chief of security detail has been caught and was executed already. So, this is update for you.”
Polar Scientist was commenting yesterday that there was fire exchange and that US group left under fire.
if wagner were anywhere near this fight you know we’d be seeing pix on US .mil social media of some roided-out JSOC beardo showing off his RUS ghanima. they either never existed or weren’t trusted by maduro not to be bought off (never trust a merc with your life)
And another question: will the billion dollar a day fleet off the Venezuelan coast now go home? As to the question of whether Trump knows what he is doing we all know the answer.
Antiwar site says that 40 people were killed from the raid’s bombing and some American troops may have been injured. MOA says among the bomb targets was Chavez’ mausoleum. Classy.
At any rate the attack’s true purpose–throw a small country against the wall to show who’s boss– has likely been accomplished. That this brilliant idea never seems to work will be ignored by Trump as he builds his arch of triumph to himself in DC. No doubt it will include a bas relief of Maduro in handcuffs.
I just saw Douglas Macgregor on Judge Napolitano. He thinks not, or at least not all of them. The US has ~15,000 tropps which he thinks will be committed, as Trump indicated (he talked about boots on the ground), presumably to do things like secure key government installations and protect oil assets. They will require logistical support.
If Trump tries, those troops will be stretched thin. The accepted ration for an occupation is twenty troops for every 1,000 population. And Venezuela has a population of about 30 million. So will there be a Green Zone in Caracas then?
Getting troops in isn’t difficult compared to getting them out.
Trump says US will ‘ruin’ Venezuela after Maduro capture”. Fixed it for ya
Not so jolly Old St. Nicolás
We greet you today
You are such a special guest
Please come in and stay
We have been so very good
Doing what we should
Now we celebrate with you
As we sing and play
Marco wants a brand new ball
Mike Lee is somewhat enthralled
Good St. Nick, please leave a gift
For us one and all
Each January we await
This great day of cheer
It brings joy and happiness
We are glad you’re here
Not so jolly Old St. Nicolás
Help us be like you
Being niggardly to young and old
Shown in all we do
Wholly unhappy, gentle man
Now the stories told
We now read and share with all
Your great departure & fold
‘We Will Never Again Be a Colony of Any Empire’ said Delcy Rodríguez, who assumed the role of interim president following the US abduction of Nicolás Maduro.
https://www.commondreams.org/news/venezuela-vice-president-trump
Her father was tortured to death by the CIA.
Last night I did a Bing! search on, “Elliott Abrahms is The Devil”
Top return: 2024, The Nation. Trump loves loves LOVES the Deep State in his pocket.
https://www.thenation.com/article/society/elliott-abrams-liar-whitewash/
Here’s Abrams January 2025 (barf bag warning) Next up: Little Marco’s Cuba.
(“They” love to play dominos in Latin countries).
https://www.cfr.org/blog/let-freedom-ring-caribbean-2026
https://www.cfr.org/expert-brief/assessing-venezuelas-future-after-nicolas-maduros-bold-capture
His Keyboard is on fire!
compare abram’s bullshit to this:
https://www.counterpunch.org/2026/01/03/venezuelas-communes-socialism-of-the-twenty-first-century/
like everything else, i suppose i’ll hafta actually go there to know for sure.
(and why is abrams still on the loose?…and being listened to?.i would have cast him into an oubliette, long ago.)
Great Link. Thank you. Should be a featured link in the next few days?
BTW, I blew it— those C F R links were January 2026. I am not with the New Year date.
Interesting bit on Rodriguez from the AP:
Strong ties with Wall Street
A lawyer educated in Britain and France, Rodríguez has a long history of representing the revolution started by the late Hugo Chávez on the world stage.
She and her brother, Jorge Rodríguez, head of the Maduro-controlled National Assembly, have sterling leftist credentials born from tragedy. Their father was a socialist leader who died in police custody in the 1970s, a crime that shook many activists of the era, including a young Maduro.
Unlike many in Maduro’s inner circle, the Rodríguez siblings have avoided criminal indictment in the U.S.
Delcy Rodríguez developed strong ties with Republicans in the oil industry and on Wall Street who balked at the notion of U.S.-led regime change.
Among her past interlocutors were Blackwater founder Erik Prince and, more recently, Richard Grenell, a Trump special envoy who tried to negotiate a deal with Maduro for greater U.S. influence in Venezuela.
Fluent in English, Rodríguez is sometimes portrayed as a well-educated, market-friendly moderate in contrast to the military hard-liners who took up arms with Chávez against Venezuela’s democratically elected president in the 1990s.
https://apnews.com/article/venezuela-trump-maduro-military-rodriguez-lead-c0bd39f98a79c18c5501bac939c640fe#
“Trump admin sends tough private message to oil companies on Venezuela”
I can understand the reluctance of the oil companies. Trump is expecting them to invest huge amounts of capital to rebuild Venezuela’s oil infrastructure as well as starting to convert plants in the US to once more handle the heavy crudes that they use to process. And this effort will effort will take many years and is assuming that there is no resistance in Venezuela to them pumping that oil to send to the US while paying Venezuela only a pittance. Say that it will take five years which may prove optimistic. What will this country be like by 2031? Which party will be running the US by then? Why is Trump not offering any guarantees but lumbering all the costs onto them? If I was running an oil company, I would be extremely lurky about getting too much involved and spending too much capital on such a dynamic situation. I certainly be not depending on a Trump promise.
What a framing but, I think Trump is offering protection money/troops/mercs to the oil companies and a reimbusement to big oil investments through these government supports. Sort of like the old protection rackets — I am offering protection in exchange for some money…wouldn’t want anything bad to happen..if you know what I mean.
the below quote could be used about Gaza and Venezuela
“Venezuela would be a crown jewel if the above-ground risk is removed. I have companies saying let’s see where this lands,” said Derentz
“above-ground risk is removed” pesky humans
That kinda sounds like he wants to establish a “security zone” around those oil fields where there will be no people, towns or villages allowed. Kinda like the Israeli method. No doubt they will get some merc corporations to provide all the security in and around there with drones being used as well. Oil field workers may be forced to live in some sort of policed towns in this security zone and only allowed out on weekend leave or the like. If this is so, then they must be really worried about sabotage there. So would I.
Well one thing we know for sure, whatever policy put in place by Trump-as it pertains to Venezuela-will be left as is should a Dem administration take over in 2028.
Iraq being the Cheney Oily-Man symposium on , “We used to, and that’s why we don’t any more…”
‘Science girl
@sciencegirl
A Shaolin kung fu master shows how it’s done.’
If it weren’t for the clothes that they were wearing, somebody should have told them to put their rulers away and zip up again.
I have been staring at this comment for 5 minutes and I absolutely cannot figure out what idea you are trying to convey, rev. Is it obscure aussie slang or something?
A measuring contest.
The ruler is for measuring the size of their respective “members”.
Maine company’s hoodie worn by captured Venezuelan leader Maduro, WMTW.
The photo is interesting and I’m curious what other readers think. Madero is shown with hands cuffed in front giving two thumbs up while surrounded by DEA agents.
That is an interesting photo that. Those DEA agents tried to make it a ‘trophy’ shot but Maduro giving both thumbs up spoiled the whole thing for them.
Maduro was previously negotiating.
Here are some what-ifs.
He wanted safe passage to pick-a-country.
He got some assurances about personal safety for his family.
The next shoe to drop will be revelations about the Venezuelan role in election machines.
They do have form.
>The United States Captures Nicolás Maduro and his Wife
Can China lawfully detain and try Taiwan’s president under Chinese law just because it doesn’t recognize his legitimacy?
Seems to me that the arrest of a Taiwanese president under PRC law could be much easier argued as legal given that Taiwan is not actually officially recognized as an independent nation by the vast majority of the world.
Netanyahu is an international criminal guilty of plausible genocide by the ICJ. Were he kidnapped and brought to the Hague, and imprisoned, or kidnapped by another country to stand trial, I doubt the US would tolerate it.
As for Noriega, unlike Maduro, Noriega was an unelected dictator.
The US charges against Maduro include drug smuggling and dealing in weapons, and if he were a US President doing these things as part of his office (which we know many have done) — if I read the recent SCOTUS decision correctly — he would be immune from prosecution.
A US president may be immune from a US prosecution, but he is now subject to jurisdiction from just about anyone in the world under their laws who care not one bit about SCOTUS.
This made me think of Gaddafi. Maybe this index is how the great USA chooses the African country that needs destruction the most.
Unlike Libya, none of the five countries mentioned are particularly resource-rich, and all depend partly on tourism. Libya is a good example of the old rule that you can only bribe the population with resource revenues, up to a certain point, no matter how repressive your security apparatus is. It’s a story that’s played out many times in Africa and the Middle East, and will again, no doubt.
I thought that list was kind of odd. I’ve been to West Africa more than a handful of times for both work and visiting friends and Senegal, Ivory Coast and at the limit, Guinea-Bissau, are livable countries with tons of potential. I’ve also been to South Africa plenty – though not in the last 10 years – and while it has higher levels of economic development at the very top, it seemed to me not a place for the kind of people who can’t deal with constant situational awareness. Egypt is the real outlier there. The cities need a heck of a lot of infrastructure care.
Gaddafi is also a good example of the old rule that you can only remain in power so long as you don’t threaten the economies of larger countries’ economies, imo. See his interest in selling oil for currencies other than US dollars.
I don’t think those who rose up against him in 2011 were particularly worried about that. Little brown people who don’t speak English have agency too, you know. In any case Gaddafi was very popular internationally after 2004 as an ally in the War on Terror without the tiresome scruples of western states, and it was only when he was clearly going down that the West piled in, hoping to be on good terms with whoever replaced him.
The CIA and M-I6 are very very good at… um… ‘guiding’ the people and events in foreign countries. See: color revolutions. See Hillary “we came, we saw, he died” Clinton. / ;)
Pretty sure those “little brown people who don’t speak English” did not, for example, bomb their own county’s irrigation infrastructure all by themselves and very likely did not wish it to happen – https://theecologist.org/2015/may/14/war-crime-nato-deliberately-destroyed-libyas-water-infrastructure
It’s funny how self-destructive behavior of little non-white non-English-speaking people perfectly matches neocolonial desires of bigwig white English-speaking gentlemen, not to mention military efforts of NATO countries. The Lord indeed works in mysterious ways.
He was by no means “clearly going down” until after the west piled on.
– ‘The United States Captures Nicolás Maduro and his Wife’ – Jonathan Turley
I commented on this yesterday, but as I re-read this I find I’m much more irritated today. Turley lays out the defense he thinks Maduro will use based on the earlier Manuel Noriega case . He defends the “legality” of the Trump administration’s kidnapping though some dubious Obama whataboutism (which I guess is “precedent” here), and explains why Maduro’s defense will fail as did Noriega’s. As he notes, much of this earlier failure, in a “legal” sense, was simply due to the State’s insistence that Noriega was not a legitimate head of state, just a common drug trafficker. The Court just accepted this bulls**t claim. Turley has the audacity to pretend that the preordained verdict was a matter of law! But then he goes further and says this in his conclusion:
“Legally, Trump has the upper hand in this case. Maduro will replay the arguments from the Noriega case. However, he presents an even weaker case on the merits under the controlling precedent than did Noriega.”
Noriega was a notorious drug trafficker whose actions were abetted by the US when he was helping us support the Contras against Nicaragua. But he knew where a lot of skeletons were buried (figuratively and literally) and so was legally “disappeared” when he became a little too “independent.” Maduro’s case was *nothing* like this, and whatever corruption took place during his regime (and I’m sure it was there, so there will be “evidence” of some kind), these charges are ridiculously “trumped” up. Everyone knows this. For Turley to pretend that The Law matters at all here simply reinforces the despicable administration framing.
A YouTuber (Judge Nap?) said the case was filed under Trump 1.0 but not pursued under Biden because they could not prove it.
Turley ignores the factual allegations, that it depicts Maduro as the head of some named cartel (forgive me for not searching for it) which Larry Johnson has repeatedly dismissed as a fabrication.
Turley, the very self righteous law “absolutist,” has a flexible view when the law is bent by Republicans. He seemed refreshing when we were suffering under Biden and the opposite now that the supposedly victimized conservatives are back in charge.
Meanwhile Simplicus suggests that the entire operation was theater in which Maduro cooperated since a deal has been worked out for him and his family to take a plea or be let go–another way of making him disappear. This is mere speculation of course.
So how long until we just dismiss Turley as a right-wing shill?
wasn’t that about twenty years ago?
If so, and regardless, a lot of people, “little people” for sure, were killed and injured in the process. The operation is despicable. Nothing more to add.
Olga sez he sez et c.
“This incredible thing…We have to do it again [in other countries]. We can do it again, too. Nobody can stop us.”
DJT on Fox F&F
https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/095d1393af203d13e6c959270673e9dc4ea4936d61a9e06d75367779da3ef9d4.png
homeward bound…
Me as well. The strong will do as they will and the weak suffer what they must.*
Overthrow the strong.
*solidarity
I wonder who will be the Maduros’ lawyers. I would suggest the same team that represents Luigi Mangione.
Turley disingenuously ignores the blatant illegality of the Maduro ‘arrest’ under international law. There is a critical distinction between “prescriptive”jurisdiction, under which a state may criminalize conduct outside its borders which has domestic effects, and “enforcement” jurisdiction, which forbids a state from exercising law enforcement actions (such as arrests) in the territory of another country without that country’s consent. That is the whole point of having extradition treaties.
See Restatement (Third) of the Foreign Relations Law of the United States § 432(2) (sorry can’t link due to paywall); Ghappour, “Searching Places Unknown,” 69 Stanford Law Review 1075, 1100 (2017).
1. International law is irrelevant in US courts
2. Lawyers can correct me, but I also believe illegal arrests are not a defense to prosecution in the US either. If cops or prosecutors get information impermissibly (search w/o a warrant or consent, for instance), that information cannot be used in a prosecution. But my having watched too many vids by civil rights attorneys says you need to be found innocent of the criminal charges, and only then can you file a civil rights claim over the illegal arrest.
With all due respect, I am a lawyer and a retired federal judge. Your statement that international law is irrelevant in federal courts is way too glib. True, the issue is complicated and has been the subject of intense debate since the 1990s, but there is little doubt that for most of our history the “Law of Nations” was regarded as part of the Supreme Law of the Land.
https://tlblog.org/international-law-in-american-courts/
I offer no prediction on whether the illegality of the arrest will prove to be a get out of jail card for Maduro in this particular instance. I do know it is possible to challenge an illegal extradition by filing a federal habeas corpus petition. I handled several such cases when I was on the bench.
secular americans, especially those in the industry, cling so tightly to “legality” as though there is some divine arbiter to whom the wronged could appeal. obviously this whole thing is an illegal farce, and equally obviously team snatch&grab doesn’t give a damn. if (mirabile dictu) he’s found innocent, will he be repatriated and reinstated? c’mon. several decades of abusing and neglecting the rule of law (under both parties) have rendered it a crumbling edifice at best and a transparent joke at worst.
With all due respect, NC Lawyer-
WELCOME TO THUNDERDOME
They literally DO whatever the F they WANT.
☝️“Under what pretext did they bomb Yugoslavia, Iraq, Syria, and Libya? Were there Security Council sanctions? No. They simply decided to do it and did it. That’s all there is to international law: they do whatever they want.” – President Putin
https://x.com/RussiaIsntEnemy/status/2007414655908761746
When Big Bill Heywood of the IWW and the chiefs of the Western Federation of Miners were kidnapped by Pinkerton agents in Colorado and transported to Idaho to stand trial for assassinating the former Governor of that state in 1905, SCOTUS found against the defendants when they tried to argue the arrest was illegal. As far as I know, that precedent still stands — and it was reaffirmed during Bush 2’s portion of the GWOT.
Anthony Lukas’s book, Big Trouble; A Murder In A Small Western Town Sets Off A Struggle For The Soul Of America tells the story. As if there were still a soul.
https://www.wionews.com/world/china-s-100-billion-in-loans-at-stake-in-venezuela-after-us-captures-maduro-1767522844314
What happens to $100B Chinese loans to Venezuela?
“Israeli Billionaire’s Call to Limit Free Speech Sparks Conservative Fury”
Don’t understand the outrage. For many years now a lot of States require people that are employed by them to sign contracts which include the proviso that they are not allowed to do stuff like boycott Israel. I personally would say that this was in direct contravention of the US First Amendment but State and Federal governments – of both parties – were cool with it so what do I know. Thing is, with the Trump regime in charge right now, Trump might decide that this is a fine idea that would please his buddy Bibi and start doing it.
Re cars as spybots–lest readers get too panicky about this I believe even Teslas require owner consent (perhaps it’s an opt out) for the car to continuously phone home to mother via cell towers. On ICE cars like mine you have to subscribe to an Onstar like service that is supposed to automatically call for help in case of as accident or emergency. The linked article says that cell supplied navigation services–on that dash screen– also give the car company continuous access to the computer inside your car.
However the car is still recording data even if offline so if you take it to the dealer for service (or if right to repair advocates have their way any repair shop) then the record of your travels can be recovered.
So I use my own GPS navigator (not smartphone based), don’t subscribe to the manufacturer’s services and have yet to take it to the dealer since I change my own oil. Some among the paranoid even disable the “head unit”–that center dash box that contains the various radios–to make sure the car isn’t talking to the spooks but that’s probably going too far. Simply refusing to cooperate in your own privacy invasion is probably enough. Happy to be informed otherwise by those more in the know.
you have to subscribe to an Onstar like service that is supposed to automatically call
I don’t think that’s as strong an argument as you think it is. If you can subscribe, that means the capability to do whatever is still there in the background. The subscription only means you’re paying for them to provide a service. If you were to subscribe, chances are almost certain that you wouldn’t have to take it in to the dealer to ‘turn it on’…. that would cost too much for them and be a very big negative effect on conversion rates. The car is talking to home, just not telling you.
Back in the summer of ‘21 I was advised by my Sudbury dealer that my brand new Impreza would constantly be collecting driving data. He told me that this data would be used in a court of law were it necessary. This whether or not I subscribed to onstar.
“Well, here’s another nice mess you’ve gotten me into!” Oliver Hardy to Stan Laurel. We do not and cannot know the nature and extent of the “nice mess” that Donnie and Marco have gotten us into. It was all so simple neat and clean. In and out in a couple of hours, nice “perp” photo on the Iwo Jima … the Iwo Jima, think victory, heroism,nice touch, the Gerald R Ford has none of that. No dead Americans, Forty Venezuelans Hey! We win 40-0. God, I love a shut out. What next? Donnie says we will control Venezuela until … all I remember is mumble mumble transition. Marco and Pete will be in charge. Nice move Donnie. They take the fall if, when, it blows up. Your finger already knows which direction to point. Wait a minute. When it blows up? Pretty pessimistic or are you some sort of Trump hater? You do refer to him as Donnie, not respectful. No, not respectful and here’s why. The snatch was neat and clean. Maybe the fix was in, but it plays well. What’s next? A plan or play it by ear? Based on past events my guess is play it by ear. Won’t cost us, he said. The oil will pay for it, he said. Wasn’t the oil going to pay for the Iraq invasion? Seems Venezuela is supposed to roll,over and submit. If not. what is your plan? Who protects the oil companies rebuilding the oil infrastructure? US troops? Mercenaries … those guys are expensive. You snatched Maduro. Two can play that game. Yeah, I know. The US is the big dog this close to home, but it is a “nice mess” until proven otherwise and I have no faith in that.
https://x.com/RepMTG/status/2007485346913607836
💯👍
Thanks. Every usian should read this.
She is still placing the blame on the other.
Conservatives just are not capable of anything else.
F#$% her.
Sure, but presently she’s a critical part of the architecture attempting to split “America Firsters” from Trump’s support base, and push back on our “ironclad” support for ISR.
Gut feeling is the, nonZio faction will be liquidated and with relative ease.
I mean they are mocked online, but who is still in charge.
Disagree with the easy part. Time will tell, one way or the other. I don’t think genZ is buying what bibi is selling.
File under wild speculation…. / ;)
Both Isr and Kingdom Saudi Arabia (KSA) share several interests.
Both want the Yemeni military threats to their govts eliminated.
Both want the Yemeni threat to the Gulf of Aden passage past the Horn of Africa* eliminated. (See the courting of Somalia Land by Isr.)
Both have common enemies in Yemen, Iraq, and Iran.
Both are currently interested in keeping the majority of the world’s oil reserves under the current arrangement of financial control of the US/West.
Which brings me to Venezuela. Much has been made about Isr’s possible interest in the attack. Nothing has been said about KSA’s possible interest in seeing an oil competitor brought under control by the US. And… going way out here… nothing has been said about the T family’s immense financial dealings with KSA. Think of Jared Kushner managing the KSA sovereign wealth fund in the US.
* map: http://www.geographicguide.net/africa/images/horn-africa.jpg
/ end wild speculations. / ;)
Venezuela’s crude is a very different type of oil–heavy–and so not directly competitive with that from KSA.
thanks.
That’s motive, not innocence. To run a refinery requires a mix of crude. If you only have light crude like the Gulf, you cannot make heavier crack products….
I won’t even presume to know exactly what’s going on in Venezuela, especially with so much noise in the ether. Apparently half of the attacks people initially reported (like on the tomb of Chavez) weren’t even real?
But I think there’s one crucial question that I haven’t seen much reporting on: is the government mobilizing the popular militias or not? Besides Yves’ one report yesterday and an article on Telesur (but not at the top), I haven’t heard much either way.
If there is a popular mobilization though and if Venezuela is analogous to the revolutionary trajectory of Iran, China, or Russia, then it’s possible Trump just unintentionally gave PSUV the opening to start a Cultural Revolution (which wouldn’t contradict a backroom deal to “purge” Maduro by American black helicopters).
Like I’ve said before, I don’t claim to know Venezuela or South America as well as other countries, so I mainly fall back onto comparative methods. And I recognize it might not be any more precise or scientific than astrology. The collapse of Assad in Syria surprised me though partly because I didn’t take that approach so I’m just putting it out there.
This former CIA says Venezuela is nothing like Cuba the revolutionary fervor is just not there.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=helSwCCGwvQ
CIA Analyst EXPOSES Plan A & B for Venezuela | Ron Aledo
Neutrality Studies
I’ll have to watch the video later, but again, another reason I bring up the comparative method is it challenges what may seem like the most natural model at first.
For example, if there’s any validity to what I’m suggesting, the analogy isn’t Venezuela ~ Cuba, but more like Venezuela ~ China while Cuba ~ North Korea. Cuba has become a uniquely hardened society with an idiosyncratic system, even if it’s clearly an ally and the ideology is superficially like Venezuela’s. Venezuela OTOH has become more of a dynamic project, where factions are going to act out different trends over time.
Again, it could all be woo-woo and pareidolia, but if there’s something to it and the initial analogy is sound, the clock would be somewhere around the Cultural Revolution in the Chinese context. Also the era of Basiji reactivation in Iran and Stalinist purges in the USSR. The main uncertainty is at what point do you start the clock from: Chavez’ first election, the 2009 referendum, or something else? Because that could mean it’s either at the beginning or the end; whether the popular militias stand down or rise up over the coming weeks and months sort of answers that.
Either way, I could be wrong, but I currently don’t believe this represents a successful soft coup by the US. For one, all analysis and reporting from that angle starts from either taking everything Trump says as true or a sort of depressed “resistance is futile” worldview (which I’ve said before is just really a more resentful form of TINA). And if the analogy holds, even if some high-ranking officials or generals were bought, those are usually some of the very people that get purged in periods like this.
Keep in mind that the Venezuelan people have been in a hyperinflationary economy for 42 years since Black Friday* in 1983, with the current rate of exchange something like 30,000 Bolivars to the buck.
This is the same situation that we fell into with Ecuador when their economy was hyperinflating around the turn of the century and we jumped in and dollarized the place, along with all of its oil reserves.
To put things in mad perspective, a 1964 or earlier silver Quarter has around $13 worth of silver in content at current rates, a similar coin, a 1965 Venezuela silver Bolivar is worth around 400,000,000 Bolivars after you go through all of the new and improved Bolivars that weren’t all that.
That would be the easiest sell to the Venezuelan people, financial stability vis a vis a greenback economy.
* my brother in law’s sister was an elementary school teacher in Atlanta in the late 1970’s and Venezuela offered her double what she was making in the states, and then Black Friday comes along and within a month she’s making 1/4 of what she could make in the states-exit stage north.
I was there briefly before Chavez came to power 92-93.
The poverty was gross to say the least.
Literally people without lower limbs leading protests.
If they start to revert to that i would assume that they will swing back more in the Bolivarian direction, but that will take time.
It’s the same playbook we saw with the Israeli surprise attack on Iran, just straight up BS being spewed out by the Western media mouthpieces to sow confusion. It might even literally be the same people doing the co-ordinating, or however these “reporter” scum get their blob marching orders. The Israelification of America in real time. Some of the headlines I was reading yesterday were just straight unfiltered bullshit: Venezuela vice president Rodriguez in Russia, four sources say
Thanks, Reuters! Really keeping their audience informed aren’t they? FOUR whole sources supposedly too. And then via Reuters you get the same crap spewed everywhere else, eg: Venezuelan Vice President May Be in Russia: Report
Western English media reporting at this point is a sewer wherever one cares to look, eg: US and Israel ‘planted’ media leaks alleging tensions before Iran attack: Report
re: ‘Remove the top’: Grok AI floods with sexualized images of women – The American Bazaar
One little understood or appreciated reason for the incredible increases in computer video cards improvements in refresh speed, color rendering, animation, detail, etc was/is the demand from the online pron industry. (It wasn’t driven by online gaming nearly as much as by online pron back then.) People interested in that wanted better video cards for their home computers than one needed to display simple data charts, graphs, maps, home digital pictures, or playing Super Mario Brothers, etc. The money pouring into accelerating video development for the home computer came in large measure from the ‘naughty’ market user demands back in the day.
I’m not at all surprised by this Grok AI story. / ;)
Shorter: some people were willing to pay much higher prices for an improved video card to get the video quality they wanted. Those much higher prices paid for better cards drove development faster than it might otherwise have developed.
I remember reading years ago that the initial “profit driver” for new communications technologies is usually “representations of people making the beast with two backs.” This applies to print, photography, electronic audio and video, film, etc. etc.
Remember ‘bootleg’ vinyl records of “blue joke” comics? I had a Moms Mably record once until my Mom found it. Photo cards of “poses plastiques?” ‘Girly’ magazines would come in plain brown paper wrappers, etc. etc.
The infamous remark that no one ever went bankrupt underestimating the intelligence of the public also applies to morals.
The underlying evil of Po—graphy is that it directly enables the sexual exploitation of the weak and the desperate.
Stay safe.
A little more by writer who lives there.
https://www.counterpunch.org/2026/01/03/report-from-caracas-the-us-kidnaps-president-nicolas-maduro-but-venezuela-fights-back-and-maintains-its-revolution/
This from smoothie story.
In fact, there was a Russian military group which rushed to Maduro residence but it was held off by the fire of … yep, Maduro security people. By the time Russians dealt with those traitors, Maduro was already gone. The chief of security detail has been caught and was executed already. So, this is update for you.
No Making Shit Up. The Counterpoint piece does not say that and you have no source for your last para.
Martyanov just dropped his talk with Garland. I have yet to check. But usually Martyanov is not making up things like this one.
It´s obviously an issue: How come this all happen with RU arms and above all personnel on the ground?
The above Martyanov quote is on his page fwiw
https://smoothiex12.blogspot.com/2026/01/reaupload-with-new.html
For what it’s worth, Venezuelanalysis confirms from their sources that 15 members of Maduro’s security detachment died (“were assassinated”) during the invasion.
The source, I believe, is Andrey Martyanov’s blog (smoothiex12.blogspot.com) – word for word. As Martyanov is both quite well connected and prone to some “patriotic over-excitement” more than a grain of salt is warranted and yet it may be true-ish…
Beyond that quote Martyanov´s usual chauvinism – (thanks to Yves for bringing back into discussion that word which as of late has completely vanished from the spaces that I read mostly pushed away by that awful “toxic” term) – in lieu of genuine insight on Venezuela and South America is of rather little help.
So as of now it seems Russian unit when rushing to protect Maduro ran into none other than Maduro´s own guards. There apparently was a stand-off. And when Russians had “finished off ” those they came in too late.
Also S-300/400 apparently were turned off. (how that worked with RUs possibly in charge? I don´t know. That´d possibly be the scene in a movie…)
To equal the Venezuelan blunder with Syria or Iraq is superficial and uninformed in a way he is informed about his very own field of expertise where he is – overaly “exact” – which I cherish because he is professional. But since to his own regret he is not only commenting on military affairs re: Russia but also geopolitics he might wanna step back from some comments. Since even geopolitics is no science there you do need knowledge.
It´s not as if he didn´t point out his shortcomings stating several times, he is no specialist on South America at all – but then his boastful verbage is thwarting the admission the next moment.
The fact that 3rd World countries are “structurally weak” is not due to their cultural peculiarities. Which is why comparing the surrender of the Iraqi Army with a Mossadegh or Venezuela now is totally out of place.
Garland actually has the more interesting quips.
Both agree that Venezuela as a new target is basically admitting defeat and signals eventual retreat of the US from Ukraine.
Martyanov is also hinting at setting a precedent now might well again come back the way Serbia 1999 and Kosovo 2008 boomeranged in form of Crimea 2014 and SMO now.
Despite the flaws I addressed worth the 45 minutes:
https://smoothiex12.blogspot.com/2026/01/garland-and-me.html
Martyanov´s latest own podcast I have not yet watched:
https://smoothiex12.blogspot.com/2026/01/reaupload-with-new.html
p.s. Again I feel reminded by all this of Conrad´s undervalued adventure novel “NOSTROMO”.
Garland brings up a funny idea but the truth behind it is essential:
If Trump were to seize control over Greenland would the Europeans oppose?
Of course not.
Because they´re powerless.
On this note one could argue, Europe is lucky not to be very rich of natural resources the US really needs. Otherwise the insane things happening here would provide material for the next decade of Hollywood flicks and high-octane action-thriller streaming content. Like French and German troops fighting US forces.
https://smoothiex12.blogspot.com/2026/01/reaupload-with-new.html
Here
Santa Clara/San Jose has an interesting heritage.
It was the center for the “Copperheads” or Confederate sympathizers during the American Civil War, a stronghold of the Klan in the 20’s and 30’s (Along with Contra Costa County) and during the 60’s the militant wing of the John Birch society ,the “Minutemen” had their California headquarters there.
Peter Thiel and the Tech Bros fit right in
Anti-Aging Injection Regrows Knee Cartilage and Prevents Arthritis SciTech Daily
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sounds great, where do I sign up to be a crash test dummy?
Put in a whole 7 miles on the trails in Mineral King this summer thanks to my ailing knee, normally it’d be around 150 miles.
Skied once this year and it didn’t feel too bad, as you aren’t really moving your legs all that much when skiing down a mountain, its more hip swiveling than anything else, and relying on gravity.
Remember Jet Stix? I had a pair.
Never had those, but I had Burt bindings for a brief time~
https://unofficialnetworks.com/2024/04/30/most-dangerous-ski-binding-ever-produced/
I’m glad I never had those, lol. We had those leather safety straps at first, the ones that were hard to work with cold fingers.
>The 2025 Housing Affordability Crisis in Charts: What Changed and What Didn’t Investopedia
From the article: “Gen Zers and young families will feel the pinch of still-high costs, with many of them opting for nontraditional living situations to afford housing…”
I vote for “nontraditional living situations” as The Euphemism of 2026. What an anodyne way to describe four people in a one-bedroom apartment, 30-year-olds in their parents’ basement, life in a camper van or RV or a tent in a park, a habitation under a bridge. Almost makes them sound desirable, an alternative to normal living:
‘Will that be traditional or non-traditional, sir?”
“I’ll take the non-traditional. I’m a bohemian poet. Give me the garret on the sixth-floor.”
I think most Gen Zers would describe their housing situation in words other than “nontraditional”. Like hopeless, depressing, humiliating. But this does not detract from the clever wording of the article which obscures the fact that most young people today, to put it in the plain words not used by the article, cannot find a decent place to live at a decent price.
For my 20 year old nephews in San Diego, its an impossible dream acquiring an American Dream now at a million bucks.
It would have been $100k when I was their age…
Their only hope is via inheritance~
I just ran across a link at NDTV[? do not know of their reliability]:
NASA’s Largest Library To Permanently Close On Jan 2, Books Will Be ‘Tossed Away’
https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/nasas-largest-library-to-permanently-close-on-jan-2-books-will-be-tossed-away-10170584
“NASA’s largest library at the Goddard Space Flight Center will close permanently on Jan 2 under the Trump administration’s reorganisation plans.”
This is appalling if true. I saw similar library closings and dumpsters full of bound journals and techical books when Bell Labs shut down their Whippany library. I did not see it but heard a similar closure and discarding of books and journals occurred when the Holmdel library was closed. Many of the books dated from the 1960s and almost all were nearly irreplaceable to say nothing of what they could cost. The Bell Labs Whippany library closure took place in the early 1990s and though there were many advances since the 1960s those 1990s advances built upon knowledge from before often best described and explained in the books from the 1960s, 1970s, and some books from the 1980s.
Trump’s America is well on its way toward reviving a new know-nothing party to serve a country of know-nothings.
It just hurts my heart to see what is happening to our country. I can’t understand how anyone would cheer for this.
The people enabling this are basically stupid “smart” people.
It is time for an American Cultural Revolution. (The damage is already being done to “ordinary” people. Now the task is to ‘share’ the pain with the so called “Upper Crust.”)
That’s gunna put a big spanner into space research by people. Their suggestion is to look on the net or or use the inter-library loan service from other federal agencies – who will unlikely have such specialized books. Maybe they should ask Musk if he wants the books from that library as his people would be able to use them. but NASA is being gutted.
Mighty big of Elon, he’s offering free Starlink to all Venezuelans until February 3rd.
Another true son of the Empire doing his part.
Ha. OpenAI was offering double usage credits for their Codex coding LLM for like 3 days as a new year’s gift or something ridiculous, lol.
Interesting. True. No mention of COVID, though, and the nearly 1.3 million deaths directly attributed to it, and those indirectly, like my father’s, must be causing a great deal of grief as well. If only society acknowledges it, might we be able to contend with the cause of it.
We Are All in a Constant State of Grief (NY Times op ed)
I first noticed the preponderance of lawyer billboards in Phoenix about a dozen years ago on the freeways in town, and Las Vegas had even more of them, but you didn’t see so many in California compared to those locales, but that was then and this is now, and on my drive down to San Diego they carpet bombed billboards with their pleas for fees.
What does this say about us as a society, where slimy lawyers (and casinos-the other player) are held to a higher standard of about 25 feet up?
why post that AI image of a pandas?
Interesting information on Danny Haiphong’s YT channel w/ Diego Sequera live from Venezuela. A fairly concise unpacking with invested corporate interests and their political operatives over some decades. Highlights include McKinsey & Company, Hedge funds/asset mgmt, Marco Rubio [his long term agenda] his affiliation with María Corina Machado, AI techbro barons with a hint of Israel, and how some AI ex Executives are now full birds in the U.S. Military ….
Topping it all of is a planned trip by a large group of investor types to Venezuela. Seeing how they can help with energy and infrastructure whilst spreading freedom and democracy to its peoples …. /s
Rubio said it out loud … This is the Westren Hemisphere and WE don’t need nations that are not pro American by having/sharing trade et al with nations like China/Russia. As I noted yesterday in links Venezuela has a more conservative society than America, more family formation/value orientated. Good to see the currant batch of political operatives in DC being anti family – unless your wealthy and can donate.
From another episode of America is trash, at an employer I know.
Fun times, yes? And we’ve learned from Pro Publica recently that our generic supply is potentially questionable, but the FDA doesn’t want to expose that, so we’re left in the dark about particular plants and particular drug manufacturing runs.
I am so tired of having to play these games as my minimal prescriptions continue to rise in price regardless.
fyi: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gusano