Trump invaded Venezuela for its oil. The US will run the country.
Please consider All of the World’s Oil Reserves by Country, in One Visualization
| Rank | Country | 2024 (Billion Barrels) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Venezuela | 303,221 |
| 2 | Saudi Arabia | 267,200 |
| 3 | Iran | 208,600 |
| 4 | Canada | 163,000 |
| 5 | Iraq | 145,019 |
| 6 | United Arab Emirates | 113,000 |
| 7 | Kuwait | 101,500 |
| 8 | Russia | 80,000 |
| 9 | Libya | 48,363 |
| 10 | United States | 45,014 |
| 11 | Nigeria | 37,280 |
| 12 | Kazakhstan | 30,000 |
| 13 | China | 28,182 |
| 14 | Qatar | 25,244 |
That Giant Sucking Sound
Everything that is happening today can be summed up in this.
Oil Jima
American Geologists Discover Oil
US Demands
Oil Reserves
MTG Chimes In
Understanding Desperation
Understanding Tactics
Indictments
Understanding MAGA (and Progressives)
Your President does something that you agree with, but they didn’t have approval to do so. They broke the law, but because you agreed with the action, you don’t stand against it. Your government does this again, and again, you agreed so nothing. After all, they are doing it to benefit you. Now your government emboldened by inaction does something that goes against everything you believe, this time it affects you personally. At that moment, can you be surprised? Can you complain about your President breaking the law and using unchecked power to cause you an injustice?
A question for every American today. Do you want to be ruled by unchecked power, or do you want your rulers to be bound by your constitution, and by your countries law? Do you want a President or a King?
Briktop asked “Do you want to be ruled by unchecked power, or do you want your rulers to be bound by your constitution, and by your countries law? Do you want a President or a King?”
The sad answer is each party wants a king but only when their party is in power.
The Press Is On Board
War Is a Racket
Please consider excerpts from War Is a Racket. It’s a 1933 speech by Major General Smedley Butler, USMC.
War is just a racket. A racket is best described, I believe, as something that is not what it seems to the majority of people. Only a small inside group knows what it is about. It is conducted for the benefit of the very few at the expense of the masses.
I believe in adequate defense at the coastline and nothing else. If a nation comes over here to fight, then we’ll fight.
I wouldn’t go to war again as I have done to protect some lousy investment of the bankers. There are only two things we should fight for. One is the defense of our homes and the other is the Bill of Rights. War for any other reason is simply a racket.
It may seem odd for me, a military man to adopt such a comparison. Truthfulness compels me to. I spent thirty- three years and four months in active military service as a member of this country’s most agile military force, the Marine Corps. I served in all commissioned ranks from Second Lieutenant to Major-General. And during that period, I spent most of my time being a high class muscle- man for Big Business, for Wall Street and for the Bankers. In short, I was a racketeer, a gangster for capitalism.
I suspected I was just part of a racket at the time. Now I am sure of it. Like all the members of the military profession, I never had a thought of my own until I left the service. My mental faculties remained in suspended animation while I obeyed the orders of higher-ups. This is typical with everyone in the military service.
I helped make Mexico, especially Tampico, safe for American oil interests in 1914. I helped make Haiti and Cuba a decent place for the National City Bank boys to collect revenues in. I helped in the raping of half a dozen Central American republics for the benefits of Wall Street. The record of racketeering is long. I helped purify Nicaragua for the international banking house of Brown Brothers in 1909-1912 (where have I heard that name before?). I brought light to the Dominican Republic for American sugar interests in 1916. In China I helped to see to it that Standard Oil went its way unmolested.
During those years, I had, as the boys in the back room would say, a swell racket. Looking back on it, I feel that I could have given Al Capone a few hints. The best he could do was to operate his racket in three districts. I operated on three continents.
Massie
Please play that brilliant speech by Massie.
All Lies
Terrorism vs Intervention
Failure by Design Regardless of Political Party
Staying Awake
Trump on Running the Country
Trump Press Conference Quotes
- “We are going to get the oil the way it should be.”
- “The country will largely be run by the people standing behind me.” Some of the advisers standing behind him include Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and General Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs.
- “We’re not afraid of boots on the ground if we have to have.”
- “We are in the oil business and we will be selling it.”
- “We will have the greatest oil companies in the world going in.”
- “It won’t cost us anything because of the money coming out of the ground.”
- Oil will be used to repay the US for damages, said Trump.
- “I’m not thrilled with Putin. He’s killing too many people.”
- “It’s all a deal. Life is a big deal.”
Observations On Regime Changes
Nation building failed in Vietnam, Cuba, Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, and dozens of other places. We failed to run Iran despite installation of a US puppet following a CIA coup.
The US outright lost the war in Vietnam. We made major messes in Afghanistan, Libya, Syria, and Iraq.
Now Trump is going to “run Venezuela” when we can’t run Chicago or Minneapolis.
The hypocrisy is massive. If the Biden administration proposed running another country, nearly all the MAGA Republicans would be howling.
Now they are OK with “boots on the ground” in Venezuela, for as long as it takes. Amazing.
But hey, I am sure we can successfully steal their oil. Nothing else matters, including the Constitution.
Addendum: The Warmongers and History Illiterates Chime In
“Five years from now, we will have friendly governments in both Venezuela and Cuba, and both countries will be booming economically,” said one reader who obviously never studied history.
Just like Afghanistan, Cuba, Iraq, and Iran?
Please recall the CIA funded Castro, funded Bin Laden, and overthrew the government in Iran.
The CIA initially supported Castro financially to gain influence but quickly became his primary adversary once he established a communist government in Cuba.
How did spending trillions of dollars in Afghanistan work out?
Correct me if I am wrong, but are we still waiting for success decades later?
The Warmongers and History Illiterates Chime In: “five years from now, we will have friendly governments in both Venezuela and Cuba, and both countries will be booming economically……”
Just like Afghanistan, Cuba, Iraq, and Iran?
Please recall the CIA funded Castro, funded Bin Laden, and overthrew the government in Iran.
The CIA initially supported Castro financially to gain influence but quickly became his primary adversary once he established a communist government in Cuba.
How did spending trillions of dollars in Afghanistan work out?
Correct me if I am wrong, but are we still waiting for success decades later?
We are still here and that is what counts.
So is Castro’s government and the Taliban.
Winning?
You prefer that we no longer exist? If so then things are clear between us.
If all we do is occupy space, then the fascists have already won.
We still occupy this space because we did not remain passive in the face of fascists of the right and the left more often than not at the same time.
“Things are clear”
How ominious! Can there be only one?
I just want to know where you stand on something of supreme importance to me.
Nice sophistry you got going on there. So it was existential situation: either we take out Castro and the Taliban,.or the US ceases to exist. Riiiiiiiiight.
Did you notice that all of Asia is now communist since we lost in Vietnam? The dominoes are sure taking their time falling.
We can no longer exist if we stop fomenting coups and regime changes every once in a while?
That is not the point. As a Superpower if you did NOT win your objectives, you lost. Prima facia: US vs N. Vietnam & Viet Cong and Great Britain vs a young and Revolutionary United States.
YOU are just a nihilist. like most amerikans. nothing more.
You won’t be here for much longer. How old are you Doug? How many kids you have? How many generations are left before “they” take over? Chew on that for a while from your cozy post in France.
you think that guy doug cares about anyone in the world besides himself. i doubt he even gives a fuck about himself. forget his progeny or neighbors or any humans. he’s a pure nihilist. he’ll probably off himself someday like lots of old nihilists.
I got kids and grandkids so I have a stake in the future. If you are a childless Millennial you wouldn’t understand and you don’t.
you are an obvious nihilist. so is musk. he has hundreds of bastards he sired. you my boy are a dumbfuck and nihilist, to boot. no there, there. i’m a 12 year old girl living in indonesia. so yea, i’m childless, you dumb fucking nihilist.
With hundreds of little Elons, the US will prosper.
Think of it as breeding racehorses that win the Kentucky Derby, or breeding horses for the glue factory.
Does that make me a nihilist?
Here’s the definition of nihilism:
Nihilism is a family of philosophical views arguing that life is meaningless, that moral values are baseless, or that knowledge is impossible.
How does any of that apply to Elon Musk?
He has different values to you, a-hole!
A wealthy man like you with investments and land all over the world would certainly understand the importance of having a prosperous and friendly Venezuela unless of course your extensive business interests and contacts were involved in the drug trade. By the way I have lots of kids and grandkids which is why I am concerned about which way the world is going. How long will I be here? I can’t say but my parents both lived to over 100 so probably I will outlive you. Want me to piss on your grave?
aw dougie, sweetie, that’s not nice. you are just a dumbfuck nihilist. nothing more. you get off on your nihilism on this little blog. i’d suggest seek help, but that’s idiotic with an old fuck nihilist like yourself. just revel in your nihilist cunt life. it’s much easier.
Is that the best you can do? You seem to have a very short fuse before you become irrational.
A long time ago (1980) I realized that the more they brag, the less they have. I worked for a billionaire, but you’d never know it. Why? He never bragged. He was generous. He listened to what I said…. His parting gift, when I left blew my mind. It was a flag. But I don’t brag about it.
This is nothing against bmcc but you reminded me of something a long time ago in a meeting i was in with 2 savy not sure how wealthy, another party and my boss…..I was new & green in the business.
they broke for coffee and I’m alone in the room with one of them. Guy new I was green and intimidated by it all.
He said to me , you know who the smartest guy in the room here is? and not just today, I probably had a blank dumb stare and he said the guy who knows what he doesn’t know.
It took me 10 years to understand that.
Those goal posts heavy? You know…. Rome collapsed from funding foreign adventures. How long do you think we have if we keep this up? Can you spell “100% debt/GDP and budget deficit during an expansion”?
And Mish pulled his punches. We funded Saddam against the mullahs, until we didn’t. We funded bin Laden against the Soviets, until he turned on us. We funded dissent in Ukraine, Syria, Libya and across LatAm because we didn’t like their leaders. And today, we’re doing it in Iran.
Tick, tock, tick, tock
There is a difference between Afghanistan, Iran, Iran etc and Venezuela and Cuba.
Once upon a time, not too long ago those countries were not quite first world but they were close. They were prosperous and the people there were free and they operated under free markets (well as much as the US does).
There is a GIANT difference between trying to nation build in places that have never known Western ways and nation building in those that have and still retain plenty of people who remember that way of life.
I suspect Venezuela and Cuba (if it ever throws off it’s own yoke of dictatorship) will easily move back to a Western lifestyle.
Ah. The “this time it’s different” theory again! Except that in this case, it is not about asset markets, but about foreign affairs.
It never is different. But it’s always marketed that way.
Ironically they ARE in fact all different since no 2 wars or countries are alike. That’s why you can market it that way and hope this time its different!
pro tip. the borders change by the decades and centuries. get some old maps and spend 10 minutes on them. were you home schooled or public schooled in texas. you seem like a cunning little runt, but you also seem so ignorant. never change kid. it’s sort of precious.
sophomore in college ?
Boy, you don’t know much about history do you. Iran was the “Paris” of the middle east not long ago.
https://fpa.org/paris-of-the-middle-east/
And South American countries frequently move from far left to far right on any given Sunday. This won’t be any different.
Beirut was the Paris of the Mideast.
PERSIA and Egypt and Ethiopia and Sudan are probably the only real countries in the region that have existed for thousands of years. saudi and kuwait…….and israel etc are recent made up states by european empires chopping them up to divide and conquer the idiot tribes. for the oil, i meant children of course
I’m a bit older than you and I do in fact remember when Iran was considered a very nice country. That said, it’s been Muslim now for a very long time (centuries).
The South American countries are and have been Christian since shortly after the Europeans arrived.
There is a VAST difference between being involved in a religious war as happens in the Middle East and a regime change that has nothing to do with religion.
“The South American countries are and have been Christian since shortly after the Europeans arrived.”
You don’t travel much do you, those countries have been secular a very long time. I spent a few months in South America last year, the churches are all empty but then again so are the ones in the U.S.
https://www.kswo.com/2026/01/03/local-pastors-discuss-declining-church-attendance-among-younger-adults/
This is how corporations maintain control in the US too. Chaos and being undependable leads to the system looking for stability in the corporate structure of companies. If the political system is a disaster, well we always have the board of directors
It was more likely a colonial way of life, rather than a western one.
Sure. We all want these countries to succeed. And I’d applaud internal revolt against despotic leaders. But Venezuela is not our country. We Americans went purple with rage when Putin spent 50K on Facebook in 2016. By what right does the President decide to depose a foreign government? We earn the right to uphold sovereignty only when we ourselves respect it.
Bingo! +100
Yes you are right. But if not magnanimously handled by Lincoln or Truman/Eisenhower it can be disastrous. How much OIL can Trump take or hand out contracts from Venezuela for costs etc before they hold America responsible for Theft. Not the rich Venezuelans who will get their cut but the majority????
How did spending trillions of dollars in Afghanistan work out?
Well,
As for spending trillions in Afghanistan, Bush tried to arm and train the warlords to confront the Taliban (not only minimal $$$ but recognition of the inability to win in Afghanistan (any numbers of failures over 2,500 years). It was Obama who vastly increased the US presence there.
“During the Bush administration, approximately 5,500 troops were committed initially. Under Obama, troop levels peaked at around 100,000; Trump reduced them to about 8,600; and Biden’s administration saw a complete withdrawal by August 2021…” And we know how that turned out.
By the way, I am not advocating foreign entanglements. Other countries can go F themselves, including Britain. Ukraine, Israel…
As for JD Vance, the mere existence of indictments means jack shit. There are enough federal laws that all citizens are committing multiple felonies a day. Call me when you guys pick up that ham sandwich that you could indict any time you want.
He’s just trying to ‘splain why Trump invaded Venezuela.
well the nazis had laws that the jews violated. and the jews had laws that jesus violated. laws are made up BS to carry out the will of the state. the good bad and ugly.
Castro established a communist government after the Bay of Pigs invasion sponsored by the US & CIA. It was the price of protection that the Soviets required.
the more interesting transition was batista the indian rise to power. on anti white fervor like trump is doing as a white only bs.
Was Maduro unpopular? Yes.
Was maduro illegitimate? Yes.
So we are all good now that he is gone, right? The oil will flow.
If only Venezuela was that simple and straight forward.
Let’s put aside the legality or the ethics of the US actions in invading a sovereign country and arresting its leader for a moment.
The first thing that people need to understand is that Chavez and Maduro were not the problem, but the symptoms of a highly divided and polarized Venezuelan society.
It is important to remember that Hugo Chavez came to power via a legitimate and free election by Venezuelans. Venezuelans voted for the guy despite repeated pleas and warnings. They voted for the guy who years before tried to do a violent military coup with tanks and take over the country.
Why?
Because a massive segment of the Venezuelan population felt disfranchised and abandoned by a money elite that had houses in Miami and would spent vacation in Europe while the majority of the population lived with scraps. That level of discontentment and social class mistrust is what fed the movement that kept Chavez and Maduro in power for over 2 decades. And despite the fact that Venezuela is a failed state and Maduro was an unpopular, incompetent and corrupt leader, a good chunk of the population distrusts María Corina Machado and her movement at least as much if not more, as she comes from and represents that same selfish and out of touch Venezuelan elite that eventually made the Chavez presidency possible. Even Trump has acknowledged that much about her.
Many Venezuelans might be genuinely happy that Maduro is gone. Many Iraqis were also genuinely happy that Saddam was gone. Many Libyans were also genuinely happy that Gaddafi was gone. But now comes the hard part: Pulling together a country where its leader, legitimate or not, was forcefully removed by a foreign power, A country that has no national coalition, no national civic ideal. A country that is highly polarized, fragmented, without solid national institutions and where social classes greatly mistrust one another.
I fear that Venezuela’s problems are far from over and a US take over of its resources will be anything but simple or straight forward.
BEST POST OF THE DAY ON THIS SITE. my anthropology pals know. my CIA operator pals know. i cannot think of any others that do. hat tip. mish is smart but lacking in depth of world.
Agree.
I agree with your post – except that I’m not sure Maduro was unpopular. I’m not saying he wasn’t. I’m just saying that anything reported by the US government or its state-affiliated media arms carries no weight with me. They lie about everything all the time, so I have no idea whether Maduro was popular or not.
Don’t know how popular he is with the people.
My nephew in Colombia says that the remaining regime members are known to be loyal to Chavez/Maduro.
And the VP – the anticipated US puppet – she has been calling for armed resistance to occupation. So we’ll see how she gets along with the Americans, lol.
Libyans were happy under Qaddafi!
you are wrong. it’s worse than you think. the war mongers which are all the voters who vote D and R. meaning 98% of amerikans. they get what they want. all those examples included plus viet nam and 9.11.01 blowback. it’s too twisted for most peaceful humans like you to comprehend. i’m a libertarian and figured out where i lived as a young fella watching my moron brother to to nam. my moron neighbors who voted for that. i was about 10 when i figured it out. the rest is bullshit. 98% of amerikans love warfare and world wide imperialism. since at least 1898. and much earlier imho.
Sorry I am late to the party but I come bearing gift: A 3-Star Mishelin award for this post because you are right, the triggered can’t handle the truth and it only gets worse from here.
And now you know the rest of the story, the only way out is with an exit strategy. I hope this new war illustrates it vividly but for the slow, there will be many more illustrations and those will be a lot uglier.
There is the small issue of screwing up Russian interests in the area which includes oil, a staging post for influence in LatAm and (apparently) a load of business operation by senior russians.
On top of that Telegram in Russia is (apparently) full of jealousy of a successful special military operation.
Difficult to see how the bear doesn’t feel seriously poked and feel the need to do something about it. They seem to have accepted the loss of Syria, this one feels more significant.
I think there will be some regimes unfriendly to Russia who are feeling a bit exposed to a pride restoring special operation by Russia.
Note – this comment is a dig at Trump not Russia.
Trump says US is going to rule Venezuela!
It worked in Japan. Though McArthur ended up understing putting the emperor on trial would result in chaos.
Thanks very much for the excerpt(s) from “War Is A Racket” — I’ve long known this phrase and its attribution to to Major General Butler, but I had thought that this was just him being quoted; I didn’t know that it was part of a speech by Mr. Butler and later, a book.There’s certainly a lot of truth in it!
We should rightfully point out – turns out all the repeated “drug boat” sinkings off shore was only Trump trying to build a case for his ultimate ambition of stealing Venezulian oil. Of course we’ll run their Country. We have to make sure we missapropriate thier oil.
Trump wouldn’t get out of bed unless there’s some personal benefit. The US dramatically looses credibility in the process. (But then again it was major damaged when we reelected Trump.)
Trump proves Rock Bottom has a basement.
For sure Mish. Apparently no lessons learned from Vietnam, et al. You can’t long term force a Government on another country. Their populas will not support foreign forced leadership.
And then there’s our constantly short-sighted political expediency. (Supporting “least bad” foreign politicians like the Shah. Case in point. In the ’70’s my brother worked at Lear Jet. At the time they were the jet kings. I recall my brother talking about the solid gold toilet and other gold “necessities” they were installing. And their populas was supposed to be ok with that giant sucking sound for their leader. (Kind of sounds like us now doesn’t it. President Trump is Gold Finger 2.0)
“It is terribly unfair for ~Russia~ _some country_ to have so much of the world’s natural resources.” (Madeleine Albright)
Usonian refineries were designed to refine Venezuelan crude. Enough said.
Let’s think about the outcome of WW2 if the USA had not intervened. Or had not assisted in rebuilding in the aftermath.
But yes, the US consistently errs in foreign policy, regardless of what Congress does, or the President. The underlying reason IMHO is the group-think that dominates the US Government, and a national stance that the American way is the only/best way, and everyone else should conform.
The analogy tends to the schoolyard bully, not the helpful guy the world needs.
At the same, China flexes its muscle in Africa and Asia, and Russia clearly has interests in South America. Does the US suck its thumb, or what?
The USSR destroyed 80% of the Wehrmacht, not the Usonians, unlike what you may think from watching WWII movies from Hollywood.
“I drink your milkshake.”
Of course it’s about the oil! How could any sane person think it would be a good idea to allow Russia and China to gain influence, access and control over the worlds largest oil reserves? Do you have any idea the implications of this? It would be absolutely disastrous and just exponentially move them closer to achieving their objective of unseating the US as the worlds sole superpower.
https://static.zohocdn.com/zmail/zm/app/images/smileys-2x/clap.fb8817a05dfbc2c3259363e5dd571ce2.png
Maybe Trump will offer Venezuelans US citizenship if they agree to become the 51st state. And maybe eventually the rest of the Caribbean. Those countries have been under so much oppression of socialism and communism they would never want to vote for Democrats.
Just like Canada
OIl, and at some point Venezuela is gong to get hotels and resorts and golf courses. Whether they want them or not, they’ll get them all paid for by oil.
It was more than oil -metals also – It was/is a resource grab
Are you saying we are at war with Venezuela?
Has the draft started?
Are we bombing their power generation systems?
Taking out oil Fields?
Bombing Hospitals?
Killing innocent civilians?
Rounding up their citizens here in the US ?
hmmmmmm not much of a war…
If Venezuela had no oil then we probably would not care much but also they probably would not be doing the illegalities that they are charged with.
And agree the sooner we are out of there the better for all most likely.
Phew. And I thought bombing a country was the same as a war. I’m glad you straightened me out!
A larger question? How many years if not decade will it takes to rebuild the oil infrastructure in Venezuela?
With a safe environment free of terrorism–rebuilding will produce dividends very quickly.
REAL POLITIK COMMENT ON MY FAVORITE BLOG, ZEROHEDGE. THE PUPPIES I CALL FRIENDS AND FAMILY, IN AMERIKA HAVE NO CLUE IT SEEMS FOR MY FIRST 65 YEARS, ANYWAYS. “What happened to the heroin market after the US invaded Afghanistan? Most of it was grown by Afghan farmers, working g in fields patrolled by US troops. We thank them for their service.
Who created the cocaine industry in Columbia! The CIA. And the US military flew the product into mainland USA, into an airforce base in Arkansas, for instance. The money earned went to fund wars and revolutions in Central America and elsewhere.
Color revolutions which place headchoppers like al Jolani in Syria, Islamist separatists fighting against Russia in Chechnya, mosques all across Central Asia, run bu radical Islamic ‘scholars’ during the 1990s – all paid for by US dollars earned by the US in the drugs trade.
You talk about “narcoterrorists”?
LOL
A powerful Nation goes to war,if it’s economy is bad.In this case,a distraction from Epstein problem,was also needed.
Give Epstein a break. With time, the truth will come out. With a few exceptions, it will be a giant nothing-burger.
Usonian foreign policy is domestic policy. Like clockwork, every PEDOTUS launches a war of choice under false pretexts after propagandizing the population discontent with him. Works like a charm every time. Usonians can’t see a boot they don’t enjoy licking.
Actually… isn’t there much to ponder on the Trump War doctrine: decapitating targeted despots by buying off their corrupt military to not shoot back, putting on a shock and awe fireworks display, and every US soldier comes back alive and has a beer! Booyah.
Chavez/Maduro were douchebags; they turned a thriving middle class into 8 million penniless refugees, turned a founding member of OPEC into a destitute basketcase of hyperinflation and starving folk eating zoo animals for protein. Unless a they put a Somalian in charge, it won’t get worse.
Big Takeaway: today Caracas tomorrow… Greenland? Those dirty Danes have been abusing endangered reindeer far too long! Time for some Delta Force action.
A chilling example of rules based international order…America’s shame. This moron might well start WW3. I think he is plotting against Putin behind his back.
In the niniteenth century, empires (wolves) were negociating their so called backyards consisting of preys to conquerer.
It might be the deal: I give you Ukraine, and in exchange, you let me take Venezuela and don t give them gueran drones that can hit my mainland. China is free to take Taïwan.
Bob Dylan spoke for most Americans when he said:
“You just want to be on the side that’s winning”.
No concept of right or wrong. No principles, No conscience and no empathy or awareness of the destruction that others experience when taken advantage of.
Our exceptionalism is profound and has obliterated significant numbers of excellent cultures that surpass ours in terms of human depth and breath of experience.
Broken families, broken dreams, desolate land and all that despair that comes from losing home, the future and family through war and abusive leadership.
But as long as Trump has his oil and drugs to sell? All is well…
On the other end of 70’s music is:
“Broken hearts are for Assholes”
Frank Zappa
In the 1930s it meant following Hitlers and turned those who did this by oppotunism in courts after WW2
Basic gangsta stuff
All the other talk is kinda besides the point
Americans’ number one concern is making the end of the month; 9.3 Million Americans Work Multiple Jobs To Make Ends Meet.
But hear hear Trump!
Oil is probably part of it
Drug cartel down or weakened, another part
sending a signal to wherever and who ever about what ever, yes that too
I am sure there are more moving parts that will show in the days to come
Trump’s poll numbers in the toilet, Epstein issue on the verge of his undoing, time for a war. This is simple, Trump needs to turn the media pressure off his criminality and sees where Bush Jr’s popularity was after his wars.
My big question is will Venezuela fight back? That would serve trump’s purpose and drag this out over the remaining months till NOV and then if Republicans win he will most likely be “safe” till 2028.
If it get long range guerans drones, it can hit mainland us.
Maybe they could hit trump. I wouldn’t stand near him in the coming months.
If you do anything that uses oil, I dont wanna hear the whining.
What kind of stupid take is this?
ONLY KNOWN DEMOCRACY THAT IS ALSO A WORLDWIDE IMPERIAL WARMONGER, FOR WELL OVER A CENTURY, IN HISTORY OF HUMAN PRIMATES. IT’S OUR EXCEPTIONALISM. THERE ARE STILL MORONS THAT HAVE AMERIKAN FLAGS IN THEIR YARDS OR HOMES. IT’S QUITE HILARIOUS. MANY MEN DON’T EVEN GET THEY VOTE FOR THIS. DEMOCRACY REALLY DOES WORK PERFECTLY.
This is a strategic move. Secure oil so when the war resumes with Iran, this time more visciously, and Iran closes the straights of Hormuz there is a strategic supply of oil. The global war is heating up
How long will it take to develop this oil?
Depends on the insurgency.
1.Epstein
2.Bad economy
Just like helping US ranchers by importimg Argentinian beef
He’s helping the US oil drillers by improving VZ oil production
Who from the US is on the ground running things?
If one were cynical, none of this would have happened if Maduro had given Trump a gold statue and a few million
Probably produced from the mines they stole from a canadian company during Chavez
Didn’t know Venezuelans were in Canada stealing gold or anything else. Must have been a really quite invasion. sarc
I don’t know much about Massie. But he is one Republican who stands up for the Constitution. Why are most other Republicans afraid of their own shadows?
uniparty of war mongering cunts who voted for them. 98% of amerikans and congress all the same. massie is the freak 2 percent. love him.
One word “Primary”. They love those sweet govt jobs, occasional show, no work, great benefits. Funny they hate the govt yet they love that govt job.
Cheney and Dumbya proved that stealing doesn’t matter, right? 90% approval rating at the time.
Perversely and sadly, Might (at least conditionally and transiently) makes Right. Ultimately the truism of what goes around comes around … will, very likely, be operative. The consequences of the ‘US Special Operation’ may extend the longevity of the US Hegemony in the Southern American Hemisphere and extend globally the power of the US dollar. Oil is currently the important usable energy source and will provide the power needed until thorium and nuclear reactors are dominant.
The people of Venezuela will suffer this transition period.
The US economy and the global asset-debt macroeconomic system is non consequentially independent of this comparatively tiny occurrence.
Depends how much Venezuelan Wealth is looted and the puppet installed.
“until thorium and nuclear reactors are dominant.”
Here again China leads the world, we’re not even in the game.
Live by the sword, die by the sword.
Donald Trump wants to run Venezuela, and dominate the western hemisphereDonald Trump wants to run Venezuela, and dominate the western hemisphere
The ultimate target here is Cuba. Cuba is hugely dependent on Venezuela for oil and other things. A weak Venezuela means a much weaker Cuba. Do you think Trump is going to let some else supply Cuba?
Odds now strongly favor Cuba as the 51st state. Greenland and Canada will have to wait until the Venezuela/Cuba mess is straightened out.
Also, to stop oil going to China.
No.Epatein and bad economy are the reasons.
Ultimately, it’s about Israel. Venezuelan oil is our plan B if the Saudis and other oil-rich nations back away from Israel. The new Venezuelan puppetress has already promised to move their embassy to Jerusalem. Even Linda Graham told us (from Israel no less!) that Israel told us to do it.
If you mean it’s time to go arrest Benjamin “Bibi” Netanyahu, then agreed…
Bibi was at trump’s New Year’s Eve party at Mar-a-largo. Just another criminal in the group of criminals.
CORRECT
WITH THE CAVEAT, israel is amerika’s bitch now. she’s always been the empires bitch. uk and rome and ottamans…….
You got it backwards. We are Israel’s bitch. Trump is on all fours sniffing Netanyahu’s ass every chance he gets. Netanyahu has Trump on a leash like the bitch that he is.
No.It is about USA itself ( economy) and Trump too, because of Epstein.
JKF pulled the plug on the Bay of Pigs invasion and paid for it with his head. So Trump seems to know better than to disobey his Deep State masters. Rest assured, another puppet/zionist will replace Maduro. Zelenskyy, Sheinbaum, Milei, let’s add one more to the list of extremely ODD choices for global leadership in heavily Christian countries.
Zelenskyy, Sheinbaum, Milei and … Trump?
Just a thought… Ever think it’s not just the oil, but if Trump makes Venezuela Great Again, then he has grounds to deport a WHOLE ‘LOTTA people as a second benefit since Temporary Protected Status (TPS) would no longer be valid?
I can promise you that this is NO ONE’s strategy.
Maybe not a primary objective, but would very well clear up legal challenges domestically.
It’s a nice thought but it presumes that someone in office actually CARES about that problem. Trump gave a lot lip service to get elected, and to his credit did seal the border, but he knows that American demographics aren’t great and that deporting people will do harm to “his” economy (which is the only thing history will record).
Venezuela could be a re-fueling stop en route to Tierra Del Fuego.
Please elaborate, haven’t heard this angle before.
Of course it’s the oil. And I agree with the broken promises, although my groceries and gasoline are currently cheaper than during Biden.
But I’m wondering – with so many news outlets, commentators, analysts, influencers, why didn’t we know that things were so advanced in the making, that all of a sudden I wake up and the Venezuelan government is no more?
Perhaps because the “news” and the comments are just consistent bickering instead of addressing things actually going on?
Is Iran next?
Hindsight but when Maduro approached Trump with a deal, and Trump didn’t take it, I think it means this plan was already in motion. How far back does it go? Back to Biden even? Many of these big ops carry a ton of momentum and are less partisan and more DoD initiatives. Supposedly Maduro offered Trump a good deal, and it’s kind of unlink Trump to have a taken it. Or maybe it’s the “busy giddy minds with foreign affairs” thing.
there are more plans for more situations than most have a clue about
if you can think of a situation, there are probably multiple plans for it
True, yet a gigantic development. And now I saw an American video which shows (thank God this time they do, instead of just chit-chat) scenes from Iran and a leaked memo about the perilous bank/financial situation there, system in slow-motion collapse. And that the Ayatollah is being missing for 4 days.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H_hwx3HtEKE
In older videos all over YT, Iran was about to start evacuating Teheran because they ran out of water!
If Iran’s government falls, these are world-changing events we’re living: The Persians are not Arabs, and Islam is not their “mother-religion” if I could phrase it like that. It was imposed on them as strict anti-American social control.
On top of that, they’ve been supplying Putin with drones, and sponsoring Hamas etc. etc.
For those who missed this excellent post, which came late in the prior thread, I repost:
This nonsense could have been said right after we went into Iraq or Afghanistan too. The worst part of being stupid is the inability to learn.
Tom Luongo masterminded the whole thing, based upon the old board game Risk.
Damn taking shots at Tom. I personally love the guy. He fills a lot of the picture with fluff and glam but he definitely reads between the lines better than most.
Wow! This all happened today. The situation is very fluid. No one really knows how things will unfold. Yet, it is amazing how quickly people come to definite conclusions about why this happened and what the outcome will be. In many ways, I side with much of what Mish says. Regime change has not worked out very well for us. And probably won’t work out for us in Venezuela.
Regarding the claim that this is “all about the oil”, I am not sure that is correct. Although, that might be how Trump is looking at it.
Similar things were said about Libya, when we got rid of Gaddafi. A dozen years later, Libya is producing 25% less oil; which occasionally shuts down when warring groups interfere; and America is not benefitting from that oil. Same goes for Iraq. We paid trillions to enact these regime changes, and then others benefit. It’s Chinese companies that are mostly benefitting in Iraq.
So I wouldn’t want to guarantee that the US will benefit much from Venezuelan oil.
Regarding Venezuela’s massive oil reserves of 303 billion barrels. Most of it (86%) is pretty undesirable. It is too heavy and requires special refineries to process. there isn’t much interest in that oil. Of the remaining 45 billion barrels of more useful oil, it will take a decade to rebuild the infrastructure necessary to make use of it. And I don’t know who will take the risk of spending the capital necessary to rebuild it.
US companies, like Chevron, will be cautious in committing much more investment in this region, based on their past experiences with regime change. Most companies like some political certainty, and “rule of law” before committing capital. Neither exists here.
Note: The US itself is becoming a region of political uncertainty, and the “rule of law” is disappearing right in front of us. A recent example is Trump cancelling 6 federally approved offshore wind projects. One company, Orsted, is suing, as they had already spent billions and their project was 87% complete. The US as a destination for investment is sliding down a slippery slope.
If the US wants more oil, it is readily and cheaply available from Canada. It’s better oil. There’s more of it. Our refineries are designed to use it. It’s cheaper to produce than in Venezuela. It’s much closer and easier to ship south through pipelines. We should be invading them instead.
Aside from the world’s largest refinery for heavy crude in Venezuela, really the only significant place to process that crude is in Texas and Louisiana. Canadian crude is heavy as well.
We’re the next most logistical endpoint for that oil.
I still believe this is a strategic move accepting the ‘ol “Peak Oil” premise, or rather “Peak Cheap Oil”.
There are different levels of “heavy”.
WTI is typically light with viscosity of around 40 API
WCS (Canadian) is heavy at viscosity <20 API
86% of Venezuelan oil is extra heavy and sour <8-10 API (though 14% is just heavy)
This may appear to be a “strategic” move, but it doesn’t really make much sense after our experience with similar strategic moves in Libya and Iraq. Trillions spent for almost zero benefit.
I rather doubt Trump is aware of any of what you said.
He was enticed by rare earths in Ukraine as well. Would be very difficult to get at.
Very true, but his handlers (and the Heritage Foundation people) do know better. Trump is the puppet behind what’s going on.
Agree. Trump is simplistic. He could very well think that there is a lot of easily accessible oil there for the taking.
Though I am still unconvinced that this is just about oil. It appears to be more about US control and military dominance in the western hemisphere.
Trump is all about winning at the expense of others. Invade Venezuela, topple the government, take over the resources. Do it brazenly. Proudly. Give the world the finger and smile while you do it.
Then “negotiate” with everyone else, with the “threat” of military intervention if he doesn’t get what he wants.
My long term concern is how this will isolate the US as we rely on fear to get our way. Successful relationships rely on win-win outcomes; not win-lose.
The last century was dominated by the US as we aspired to be the shining example of democracy and freedom, and inspire the rest of the world to follow our lead. We have now abandoned that and we will all suffer as a result.
Thanks Papa
The math from machiavel begs to differ from what you said
TRUMP HAS ONLY ONE DESIRE. TO BE IN THE WORLD HEADLINES EVERYDAY OF HIS LIFE. FULL STOP. HE’S THE ULTIMATE NIHILIST. ELECTED BY NIHILISTS. AN EMPIRE OF NIHILISTS. HE’S JUST THE BEST AT IT. THE EMPIRE’S ID. HE IS US. WE ARE HIM.
Trump isn’t even aware that his diaper is full and the people around him are holding their noses.
Appreciate the insight 🙂
i think you miss the point. none of those wars were about the oil. it’s about the two most powerful entities in amerika. the MICC and wall street. and also the fact is the voters here love non stop warfare. we jerk off to it all since at least 1898 and teddy. democracy works. whacked out nihilists love to wage war. the examples in world history of empires waging idiotic wars are endless. trying to apply logic and business ledgers to all this misses the entire mark. like firing your arrow in the sky. if you want the root cause, that is too deep for most. it is an empire of nihilist twats that keep voting. the only know empire that is also a democracy in history of mankind. you are a good guy papa. smart with the accounting and energy analysis………..but miss the mark of what amerika is and what amerikans are. democracy works. always has. hat tip the republic, penned by plato and socrates and boys……….
Correct. Those wars were not about the oil. But the narrative sold to the public was about the oil. Which was used to placate the public into thinking it was okay to topple the government, because we would reap the benefits from the oil. The playbook hasn’t changed much.
It’s not about oil, but about competing Cental Banks. FeDR, EU, CN, RS, and BRICS. Why can’t we just have one New Worldwide Central Bank, and call it THE REALLY BIG HUGE BANK.
Just like money, oil is not inherently evil or good. Money as well as oil gives you the ability to exchange resources for what is reflected in what you think. The problem is we have lost the ability to say that something is evil and do something about people and governments think as expressed by their actions. There is no justice in Russia, Iran, Cuba, Venezuela and most of Africa. There is no place on this earth that anyone should starve or suffer genocide but for the thoughts and actions of its own government.
Furthermore, we have lost the mental ability to assuage our past guilt and assess the world as it is. I think it is correct that the best and most just place on earth, the United States, give the people of these places the best shot to rule themselves. We are not colonizers, and this is blatantly proven by places like Iraq, Saudia Arabia and Cuba. If we had the will, we could take over anywhere in the world including Canada. We are not thieves and if anything, we are the most generous and give the most of any country. Say it with me, Castro Evil, Maduro Evil, Putin Evil – but you cannot because you cannot get over the past and make any judgements.
Once fusion power comes online, the need for oil for energy generation will fall drastically.
We’ll be long gone by then.
You’ll be dead in 5 years?
“And The Cult Cheers” Added that for ya Mish, X posts are littered with them screaming this was about fighting for our freedom and removing a ruthless UN-elected dictator from among poor Venezuela! Good Grief
Diesel is vital right now, no other liquid power source has enough power per weight. It takes energy to increase the hydrocarbon molecular weight (propane to butane etc.). Venezuela has the most oil with heavy molecular weight.
This obviously illegal and unconstitutional action is an extreme trek to secure this critical oil for US of A and hurting China.
I have a feeling that this will end up benefitting Venezuelans.
“this will end up benefiting Venezuelans”
Especially those dead civilians that will be put out of their miserable existence./sarc
Venezuela oil is like Oak Cordwood. The rest of the oil is Pine.
The U.S. only cares about 3 things: freedom, democracy and oil.
The Iraq war was not so much about gaining control of oil as it was about driving up the worldwide price of oil which had been depressed for several years. It’s no coincidence that oil fracking in the U.S. became a thing after the Iraq war.
Similarly, the US has a surplus of natural gas that’s been looking for a market. The Nord stream pipeline is no more, and now Europe is buying its natural gas from the US instead of Russia.
It’s a shame that the US and Europe can’t just get along with Russia and China and trade peacefully, but the ‘Western Oligarchs’ care more about personal profit than peaceful trade. So we have war instead.
We care a whole lot about technology “toll booths” now as well – hence the insane AI race. China, as a way to blunt the US’s efforts to rent-seek, is racing to make AI an open-source commodity. I think China wins this over time.
Following WWII, the U.S. maintained a carte blanche moral authority on the international stage. We were the “good guys” on a relative scale. We stood for Liberty, Democracy, and universal human rights. We did not always get it right, and at times we lost our way (in the later years of the Vietnam War). Then came Reagan in the 80s, and again we carried the torch of the “good guys” as we engineered the Fall of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War. We then intervened when Sudam Hussien invaded Kuwait, and we pushed him back within the Iraqi borders. So far so good! Until George W. Bush jumped the shark in response to the 9/11 terrorist attacks and invaded Iraq under false pretences. Our “good guy” stature was significantly tarnished, but it was not shattered. But we were now gun-shy to stand up to the “bad guys” the way we did from 1945 to 2001. We let Putin invade Georgia, and we then let him seize Crimea in Ukraine. These were major mistakes because they signaled to Putin that we no longer had the will and the conviction to stop his aggression. This all culminated in 2022 when Putin launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Putin sees Ukraine, and for that matter, much of Eastern Europe, in the Russian Sphere of influence, and because of this, he feels empowered to impose Russia’s will over this area, especially when he can argue that Russia’s security is being jeopardized. This is a “Great Power” paradigm that the U.S.-designed rules-based order attempted to move past.
Enter Donald Trump, who admitted only truly respects “Strong Leaders” such as Putin, Xi, the Saudi Royalty, and Victor Orban. Why does he only respect these types of leaders as opposed to democratically elected leaders of liberal democracies? Because he is envious of these “strong” leaders and how they hold onto power and act with virtual immunity.
With this Venezuela strike and the abduction of Maduro and his wife, Donald Trump has vanquished our “good guy” statue and returned our world to a “Great Power” world once again after over 75 years of an order that did not depend on size and power, but instead moral authority and playing by the rules.
childish analysis. good guys and bad guys. Fail
I am sure that you think so, but the United States, as Reagan described it, was the Shining City on the Hill. We stood for freedom and democracy and fought against the opposite. So yes, freedom and democracy equals “good,” and tyranny and dictatorship equals “bad.” George Washington set the tone. He could have been a mighty President who imposed his will on the nascent nation, but he stepped aside and, by example, showed the nation that we are a constitutional republic where our greatness does not come from our leaders, but from our foundational principles and ideals.
Some Shining City. Instead of building something, it’s all become financialization.
Well, we now know why Bari Weiss wouldn’t run the 60 Minutes coverage of Trump’s brutal treatment of Venezuelan men who fled Maduro’s regime. If it had run last Sunday, it would be kind of hard to argue that Trump’s removal of Maduro was for humanitarian reasons. Trump does not and never did care about the Venezuelan peope. It’s their oil.
Weiss ist nicht weiss.
“Talk loud and carry a big stick” fits every negative stereotype of the U.S. in Latin America.
It wouldn’t surprise me if Trump, Inc. is buying up coastal sites for hotels in Caracas.
Let the nation-building begin!
The irony is that now, with Maduro’s trial taking place in New York City, New Yorkers will have a front row seat as the prosecution describes in detail what the warmth of collectivism brought to Venezuela. Will Mamdani attend or not?
Mamdani is already moaning in the press about Maduro being held in NY. I suspect he wants to distance himself as far as possible from Maduro’s policies even though he wants to enact them in NY.
If they actually try him in NYC I wouldn’t bet against jury nullification.
I would nullify. I’ve liked him ever since he ate an empanada on TV during a speech.
Judge Engoron will grab his @ss.
he’s in NYC so trump gets the biggest headlines. full stop.
He was formally charged by a Manhattan court in 2020 so the trial will take place there. Rather simple to understand.
I loved the JD Vance comment. He is a criminal. So is Putin and are we planning to take over Russai, how about North korea. I wonder how many countries we will be running by the end of the week. Even better new, We should also be hearing about drug shortages on the streets since Trump will have stopped all shipments. No more overdoses.
I must admit it appears Trump is finally heeding some better legal advice.
Pretty easy to argue it’s not “regime change” if you start out working with Maduro’s own chosen VP after removal of the President.
And send along a couple of DOJ and FBI agents (with their own legal warrant/documentation) in with the massive military incursion to argue it’s an international arrest action.
And make sure you do it before the House and Senate start discussing this coming week the Democrat/Rand Paul war powers resolution blocking the use of US military operations within Venezuela unless authorized by Congress.
Of course, we’re all being gaslighted by these arguments. But they have enough ‘legal credibility’ to convince the reluctant MAGA and to provide initial cover for the outrage – before it’s magically discovered that the situation has changed, and we need to occupy Venezuela.
Mish : Currently the following foreign oil companies are there : Repsol by Spain , Eni by Italy , Moure & Prom by France , Rosueft by Russia , CNPC by China , and Chevron has a small partnership. Don’t lecture us about Trump and the oil. Prior to 1976 Exxon , Gulf , Shell were there . Then they nationalized the oil that’s when US oil companies left. It went to the International Courts by lawsuits from US companies and won ! Years past the US oil companies never were paid by Venezuela for there loss. The Monroe Doctrine applies here because many reasons ! Are you okay with allowing CCP China in our back yard ? There is more at stake than just the oil !
Are you OK with blatantly violating the constitution?
Do you remotely understand history?
The sad answers in order are Yes and No.
Sheesh.
Um, you were with regard to releasing the Epstein files.
> There is more at stake than just the oil !
Perhaps. But oil still motive #1. Straight from the horse’s mouth.
“Listen to Trump himself. You have been taken in by the Narrative.”
https://merylnass.substack.com/p/commenters-this-is-about-oil-period?
Again, as with many things that Trump does, the problem is not with his goals so much; the problem is with his tactics. Unconstitutional? Maybe! Illegal? Most likely! Devastating to our moral authority around the world? Absolutely!
Another stake perhaps?
https://www.timesofisrael.com/venezuelas-maduro-blames-international-zionism-for-unrest-after-disputed-vote/
This is fascism. The president using the US military to hand over another country’s natural resources for the benefit of a private corporation… It’s wrong, plain and simple
companies. not governments or humans.
And yet another reason, perhaps the central one: desperate attempt to save the petro-$. Venezuela was selling their crude in anything but. Same fate as Ghadafi – head rolls.
“The sad answer is each party wants a king but only when their party is in power.” I disagree with this, or at least with the implication of this statement. Sure, the Democrats may want their own king. I don’t know but fair enough if you believe so.
But if we simply judge by actions, and see which party shows the type of behaviour that aligns with supporting the power of a king, then which party has defied the law and judicial orders more? The Republicans under Trump, by a longshot. Whether you prefer their ideology or not, I don’t believe we can deny that Republicans are now the party of kings – unchecked power and decisions made by a single person, regardless of law.
Please recall Biden bragging on student loans “The Supreme Court didn’t stop me.”
And look at all his idiotic energy executive orders.
So you are mistaken. However, I will grant you Trump is orders of magnitude worse.
The problem with Biden’s student loans is it made the situation infinitely worse. Better would have been ‘for every dollar paid back we will credit you with $1.29.’
Even better, IMHO, is require colleges to guarantee 50% of each student loan they accept.
That was my point – both sides are bad, but far from equally bad.