To my friends celebrating Maduro’s end:
None of this is unprecedented or unexpected – it is still inexplicable and inexcusable.
January 3rd, 2026
The USA just invaded Venezuela. Here we are. Been here before though. Nothing new. Not unprecedented. Not unexpected. USA just showing its true color.
Still, inexplicable and inexcusable. Plain wrong. Not the way to do things. I make no apologies for not agreeing with this USA move.
The USA recently pardoned and returned a convicted major drug pin to Honduras. And now we snatched an alleged drug pin in Venezuela to bring him to trial in New York?!?
Well, maybe not inexplicable.
The Hondura drug pin is Trump’s friend. The Venezuelan drug pin is his nemesis. Truly – truly – that simple.
We now live in a country where the singular, only measure to understand any action by this President is whether it will benefit him personally. That is it. Nada mas. Don’t waste your time using any other matrix, any other line of reasoning.
In the case of Venezuela, the War Powers Act – which requires Congressional approval for military action in other countries – be damned. Trump wanted to do this. He did it. (And hey, didn’t Bush do the same with Noriega anyway?!?)
Who is going to be brave enough to say out loud “the end does not justify the means”? Make no mistake about it: Maduro was in power because he defied the results of an election he clearly lost. Maduro’s governance model was corrupt, inefficient, and authoritarian. He had no tolerance for a free press or dissent. All of that is true and factual. None of it, however, justifies a USA President unilaterally deciding it merits regime change by force. Now go tell China not to invade Taiwan. Now go tell Russia not to march into Kiev.
I will say it out loud: The USA’s invasion of Venezuela today – and the killing of over 100 alleged drug runners by exploding their boats – is an international illegal and unethical act which takes us back to the imperialistic days of the 1890’s. The fact that the end – the removal of a despot ruler – may be a legitimate goal, does not make right the means of doing it.
I know, I know: Over 100 years ago the US invaded Columbia and created a country (Panama) only to get the Canal built. Before that, the USA also took advantage of the independence movements in Cuba, Puerto Rico and the Philippines to create de facto colonies. Been there before. Not unprecedented nor unexpected.
And now what?
- Who has confidence that a military led by a weekend TV host and a President who is a narcissist, convicted felon are going to establish an aspirational democracy in Venezuela?
- Who doubts that all of this is about the oil in Venezuela that Trump’s oligarch friends want? (And, oh yeah, remember how well that went in Iraq!)
- Who truly believes that the upcoming elections in the USA in 2026 and 2028 will not be pre-determined to keep them in power in the White House, the Senate, and the House of Representatives?
But most important: Who cares?
In the good old USofA there are football games to bet on, new movies to watch, entertainers to follow, social media postings to make, addictions to feed, amusement parks to visit, cars to buy, houses to furnish, yards to manicure, and so much more to do! Indeed, we are simply overwhelmed with our materialistic and consumer pursuits to care about most anything else. Just keep us delusional with the illusion of safety and economic prosperity – and we will be quiet about the dismantling of the social safety net, the widening wealth gap, and the silencing of the press, academia, the sciences, the arts, and other aspects of culture that matters most.
I hear you: You don’t want to hear about the suffering in Africa, or the plight of immigrants and the poor in our own USA . That is somebody else’s problem to fix, I hear you say; that is the job of philanthropy and churches – just like it was in the 1890s. You are too busy to learn the details – other than what you see in your self-censored fountain of information. Trump just saved Venezuela, I hear you say. You have a celebration to celebrate, I know. The unintended consequences of the invasion can wait, you tell me. Plus, I see how you have now found a renewed sense of believing in your King. He can do no wrong, right? You will say your prayers of gratitude for how great America is, and maybe even send a check to the veterans fund.
Well: I am praying for you too. But I am also taking action. See you at the other side of the protest and dissident line.