Venezuela's government accuses US of attacking civilian, military installations in multiple states
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — At least seven explosions and low-flying aircraft were heard around 2 a.m. local time Saturday in Venezuela’s capital, Caracas. The government accused the United States of attacking civilian and military installations in multiple states.
[...]
Venezuela’s government, in the statement, called on its supporters to take to the streets.
“People to the streets!” the statement said. “The Bolivarian Government calls on all social and political forces in the country to activate mobilization plans and repudiate this imperialist attack.”
The statement added that President Nicolás Maduro had “ordered all national defense plans to be implemented” and declared “a state of external disturbance.” That state of emergency gives him the power to suspend people’s rights and expand the role of the armed forces.
https://apnews.com/article/venezuela-us-explosions-caracas-ca712a67aaefc30b1831f5bf0b50665eOpen linkView original on lemmy.dbzer0.com
Fuck the USA
Terrorist country #1
https://youtu.be/8S0aD6QLTxQ
NONE OF THIS SHIT WOULD HAVE HAPPENED IF KAMALA HAD WON.
INACTION TO FASCISM IS COMPLACENCY TO FASCISM
Edit: Seeing all of these bitches coping and seething acting like Kamala would've gone on a global blitzkrieg.
You people are fucking pathetic. Your refusal to live in reality is the real reason the left never succeeds. Your lack of action puts Venezuelan blood on your hands too.
I wish America finally got a woman as president. Broader female representation in government and leadership lead to better outcomes globally, would make the world a better place.
Two words: "Margaret Thatcher"
The idea that a woman president is bound to be better just because of being a female is ridiculous.
I knew someone would say this lmao 😂 and you're right yeah
von der Leyen, Merkel, Corina Machado, Taylor Greene...
Im actually not sure a woman would do better. You would need a person of integrity and honor to be a really good president, and a woman who makes it to president is not going to have that either. The system doesnt let them get there.
They could hardly do much worse. Sure it may not usher in a utopia but the bar is currently several feet below floor level and still dropping.
Haha you got a point there. :)
A fucking rock would be better.
Or just leaving the post unoccupied.
A good woman would be better, but so would a good man. It's the "good" (person) part that guarantees it would better, not the gender.
That sounds like a non sequitur.
I am Italian and we got a fascist as first female premier, so I really could have agreed with you, but sorry you missed the point.
While I wholeheartly agree with OP and believe Harris would have taken a different course than the self proclaimed zionist Biden and would've given voices like Mamdani, Omar, Sanders and AOC much more weight and I'm convinced that women have a much better potential to fundamentally change the world for good (there are micro loan programs only catered to women because they are so much more trustworthy), it's still a women named Marina Corina Machado who cheers for this and wants to sell out Venezuela to the US. And other women who I deeply trusted to do the right thing fail miserably all the sudden:
https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:5ba3zjugf4kis434frdolgr3/post/3mbjb57n5uc2y
My favorite poster on Mastodon regarding the "Both Sides Bad" discussion always has excellent takes on topic of non- and protest-voting.
https://mastodon.social/@benroyce/115830646002048908
Multiple people in his vicinity including me tried to convince US citizens on Mastodon to vote for Harris to no avail. Some of them didn't even know about the Heritage Foundation and their plans and if they knew they said it wasn't in line with Trumps agenda.
Yeah, it's really hard to talk up our candidate's anti-war bonafides after throwing anti-war protesters out of our convention and having her hit the campaign trail with the Cheneys
I would like to start out by saying I would've preferred Harris over Trump, and that the two parties are NOT the same. For example, the FTC as it was during Biden would never have happened under a republican administration.
What makes you think that bombing Venezuela wouldn't have happened under Harris? I can only think of three explanations: because she is a woman, because she is a democrat, or because Kamala Harris specifically is against foreign intervention.
I would like to take this moment to reiterate that I would've preferred Harris over Trump, and that the two parties are NOT the same.
The first explanation sounds weirdly sexist to me, so I won't spend too much time on it. We don't have a female US president to compare with, but look at the voting record in congress and the senate on the use of force in the invasion of Iraq back in 2002. When you control for party affiliation, women were actually more likely than men to vote in favor of the invasion.
I would like to take this moment to reiterate that I would've preferred Harris over Trump, and that the two parties are NOT the same.
Maybe because she's a democrat then? Let's look at some recent democratic presidents, and see how they fared on foreign interventions.
Obama: 40 billion in military aid to Israel, expanded drone campaigns in Yemen, Somalia, Pakistan. Surge of 30k troops to Afghanistan. Continued use of black sites and torture camps like Gitmo. Explicit legal protection for the torturers.
Biden: 18B in military aid to Israel as it was committing a genocide. Air strikes on Yemen, Somalia, Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan.
I would like to take this moment to reiterate that I would've preferred Harris over Trump, and that the two parties are NOT the same.
Maybe Harris is an especially anti foreign intervention person then. From her DNC speech I quote: "I will ensure America has the strongest, most lethal fighting force in the world." What do you reckon she wanted that fighting force for? A tea party?
I would've preferred Harris over Trump. It would've mattered a great deal for women's rights, lgbt rights, and to some small extent even a bit for worker's rights. But to pretend the electorate has any meaningful choice when it comes to US imperialism, is, I think, not realistic.
Your reply is a colossal waste of time to cope and seeth.
You try so hard to cope and fail so miserably.
It doesn't matter if you spam fuck you'd prefer Kamala over Trump. What your spreading is objectively, pro-Trump propaganda and outright lies.
This "both sides" bullshit doesn't just only benefit the fascists, its also blatantly untrue for anyone who actually researches the topic.
Was Kamala an angel? FUCK NO!
Are the Dems virtuous and pro-proletariat? FUCK NO!
Are we and the rest of the world worse off under Trump than Kamala? OBJECTIVELY FUCK YES!
I don't know man, I see a pattern of every single democratic president since Eisenhower, no exceptions, enthusiastically committing war crimes, and you're trying to tell me "no, not this one, this one is different". Sounds like one of us is maybe a little bit in denial.
Also, implying that it's a waste of time to look at the past actions of democrats to try and get a feel for what they will do in the future is such a self report.
Idk man, I think you're reading what you want to read and not what I said, and instead are coping hard to justify surrender to fascists in 2024.
There is zero evidence whatsoever that Venezuela, let alone the absolute rapid-fire destruction of the US constitution and rule of law to get us here would have happened under Kamala. Especially since it didn't happen under Biden. Venezuela was only ever really discussed by the fascists and invading it and taking over was in Project 2025
I think you're coping with an extreme reach in this situation. You're pointing to the actions of past Dems to claim Kamala might have very specifically attacked Venezuela unprovoked.
Insane cope. Just accept the left foolishly surrendered to fascists because they became too blinded for their hate of neo-liberals to see they were cutting their own balls off.
So to convince me that candidate A would not do xyz, you keep harping on about candidate B and how they would do xyz. Do you understand why that's not a very convincing argument? We all know about project 2025, we all know about republicans. We're looking at it. That doesn't make democrats any better (on imperial foreign interventionist policies).
You clearly don't read.
You and your camp make the dumb ass claim that Kamala would have likely done the same thing with Venezuela, when I say this wouldn't have happened under Kamala.
I've provided my reasoning for why. You lot absolutely refuse to provide any reasoning or evidence to your side that does t rely on circumstances that don't directly relate to the situation.
Palestine would still be in the state it is now, other that that, you're probably right.
Maybe Mamdani will run for POTUS some day although it's too early to cheer for the guy.
Unfortunately Mamdani wasn't born in the USA. He's an immigrant, and that makes him legally not allowed to be president.
That said, there's many progressives similar to or even better than Mamdani out there, and all they need is the same energy behind them that Mamdani had.
The US famously never invaded another country during Democrat administration? Lmfao
I guess what happened in Afghanistan was just a blowjob.
but she wasn't going to cut all funding to israel
Really glad then that the guy we got instead increased their funding, bombed Iran and took out a world leader just for oil. Clearly a much better situation than the latter would have been.
USA does not like rules and democracy anyway, the USA and Israel even reject the jurisdiction of the international crime court. Neither country is among the 125 signatories of the Rome Statute, which established the ICC in 1998. Afghanistan signed it in 2003 and the state of Palestine in 2014.
Because why would anyone sign something that will hold themselves accountable? Why not just keep the wild west theme so we can do what we want, blackmail who we want, use big companies how we want because we are the most powerful country for now so yeah... the wild wild west
Haha, i think you missed the /s
Probably not Kamala but Hillary Clinton is evil as fuck.
Let me repeat my question from another post:
If Kamala Harris launched a midnight attack on Venezuela she would have been impeached by afternoon.
This ^^ and all the republicans would yell: "Look look!! Warhungry Democrats strikes again! IMPEACH!!"
Meanwhile Democrats voted against impeaching Trump earlier this year, so apparently they're good with what he's doing.
She would've gotten the Nobel Peace Prize like Obama.
Harris would have had a full Republican Congress trying to impeach her for anything she did. Checks and balances. Trump has unitary executive theory and power of a king. Next question?
It's a country with more guns than people, what's taking so long?
They spent the last 30 years brainwashing the crazies wit guns, that’s who controls the government. Next question!
As a European, I don’t understand it: You had the chance to vote against Trump but chose not to - whether out of misguided belief that he’d be better for Gaza, that Harris and Trump are the same, or any other of your "questions".
Let me be blunt: if you didn’t use your vote to prevent Trump from becoming president, you’re complicit. You can’t weasel out this responsibility for the failure. The rest of the world will struggle to take you seriously - or trust you - after this."
OP argued that Harris wouldn't have attacked. I doubted that. I haven't argued that Trump was a good choice.
You can't prove a negative. Why would she have?
You are right about the proof so it's all hypothetical.
Like with Cuba, the Democrats have maintained the pressure on Venezuela. Obama killed Gaddafi for his African currency. Democrats must have been involved in the recent changes in Peru, Bolivia and Equador. The USA seem to clean up South America before they have to take care of China.
Harris was willing to do the necessary to have forced firefighters. So if she would be president she would have continued this necessary project.
Nope, Biden cut sanctions on Venezuela and Cuba.
Gaddafi was killed by his own people for being a dictator.
Peru did have elections and some issues, but nothing which could be called a regime change. Similar story for Ecuador. Bolivia had a failed coup, but that is not a regime change.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_sanctions_during_the_Venezuelan_crisis
Technically correct but there is the Hillary quote.
Democrats are no saints. I asked for a reason why Harris wouldn't order the attack. Evading that question like this suggests that she would have given the order.
Once again, you cannot prove a negative. No one is evading your question, your question is just irrelevant because of fucks that didn't vote for her because Gaza. We will never know what she would have done, and what she would have done does not matter now, because of protest voters and Trumpers (which are effectively the same thing in this case, and both are complicit in everything that has happened in the past year). If Kamala were elected, and she did this, I'd be just as fucking upset. But we will never know that she would order this kidnapping.
I'm not stupid, and I would argue that no one here is saying democrats are "saints". I'm not sure where you're getting that idea.
If we can't say what she would have done then the entire discussion doesn't matter.
You are wildly misrepresenting the firefighter situation. Bad faith bot.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/despite-orders-free-prisoners-officials-cling-cheap-inmate-200148253.html
What an incredibly loaded editorial with no actual references or citations. Did you write that shit? No, it's older than you probably are. Opposing early parole isn't keeping prisoners as slaves or whatever the fuck nonsense you said. Your shit is weak.
Where are your references and citations if you feel those are important? You've simply stated that he's wrong and attacked the source but can't seem to provide any evidence to the contrary other than your emotions.
Please correct me.
None of these are good points at all
Then use an easy argument to refute them, please.
Well first why don't you make an actual argument than throwing up a vague list of unrelated "points"
Because they are not unrelated but show that the attack is not a personal Trump project.
Which one of these even remotely suggests that?
https://feddit.org/post/23819517/10764510
They aren't even coherent points, that's why people aren't addressing them directly. They're half baked, partial thoughts that are only somewhat related to the situation.
Thanks for the feedback. To me they are in order and make an argument. Does this help? https://feddit.org/post/23819517/10764510
You sound a lot like the Soviet Union after Chernobyl exploded and the first thing they did was publicly speculating how bad the reactors in other countries are.
I am not comparing Harris to Trump. My argument is something else.
Really fucking weak arguments
It’s a subtle difference only a political scholar could truly understand so I get your confusion.
I haven't received an answer so far to be confused about. Please don't hold back. Please explain with all subtlety why Harris wouldn't have ordered the attack.
He just told you? What about reading the god damn answers: "SHE WOULD BE IMPEACHED!" Harris would probably sanction Venezuela.
Do you think that is a serious argument?
Venezuela has been sanctioned. That's where their poverty came from.
The Republican Party has been obsessed with Venezuela and Iran for decades. It’s about oil. Kamala Harris was not about to commit political suicide over a 40 year old beef between Exxon and Venezuela. If it was on their priority list they would have done it. I’m sure she would have bombed someone but not specifically Venezuela.
They’ve been wanting to do this for longer than you’ve been alive. Trump was the only president unhinged enough, and unconfined enough to do it.
So how is that candidate for peace working out?
I wonder if maga is pro-war now.
Here’s what Katie Miller is posting on Twitter.
They love war. They know the economy sucks and the president is unpopular - they are the type of people who believe the myth of the Nazi economy being good because of its war machine. They also want wars as an excuse to delay elections, at no point have they been subtle about this.
Did they ever claim not to be?
I remember a few tweets floating around of the base cheering Trump as antiwar. Specifically around the
4632 wars he “stopped”. But if you go further back to his past presidency you get the pro war sentiment again. So really just pick a date and it could go either way.MAGA and Republicans will repeat whatever propaganda the Orange Leader commands like good little boot-licking sheep. Logic and principles play no role in their words and actions. And don't tell them they're in a cult!
Wouldn't it be a miracle if enough Republicans grew a pair of gonads to stand up to the Grifter in Chief over this or any of his other evil actions (like releasing the full and unredacted Epstein files)?
That would literally be miraculous, authoritarian followers have very strong tendencies to compartmentalise their beliefs, ignore leader hypocrisy, and justify violence against outgroups.
Yes, extensively.
He's getting it next year.
Or else....
If the kidnapping story is true, I'm guessing she's the next legitimate president of Venezuela^tm
"Support the troops" and "Thank you for your service" is cringe af. Like you do know what the troops are doing, right? I can't remember a time they defended their country. It's all invasions and coups for their capitalist masters who deny you if you are the wrong color or poor. Which is most of the people. The whole system must change. I say remove US and israel from world market until the new generations show some respect.
It's an american led coup.
Not even the first in south America but absolutely the most blatant.
Edit: "Negotiated exit" could mean a few things but it probably means they had him and his family and said 'come with us or we go to our alternative orders'
To be clear Maduro is an ass but what the USA has done is internationally intolerable and is the kidnapping of a foreign head of state.
But then so is Trump. Each one is an asscheek, they go together.
So china, russia, North Korea and Iran should attack USA to remove your current government? And then they should insert someone in their favor instead? Is this how the world should be controlled? Kill everyone we don't like for the sake of it, and then see if the lottery turns in our favor each time we make a regime change. So far the changes has been a success in Iraq, Afghanistan, etc. Right?
They only kidnapped a couple of people, the rest of the government is still there.
I don't know, I don't see Maduro kidnapping foreign leaders he doesn't like. If Maduro is an ass cheek Trump is the post sodomy blood cum fart exploding on the world's face.
I like your poetry.
Drug lord vs pedophile hard to say if I want either to live or be happy.
Can we take neither and have it not fuck over the people tho?
Can you show me the evidence of Maduro being a druglord? You know this is all bullshit made up by Trump and the murderers who want their oil.
He's still a ruthless dictator that refused the peaceful transfer of power in defiance of rule of law. Funny that this applies to both Maduro and Trump. This in no way makes excuses for the US's actions here, but let's not pretend Maduro was a good guy.
According to who? The CIA who helps conduct the attacks and the opposition led by Machado who also supported Trump's campaign and supports Israeli genocide? Were you alive in the run up to the Iraq war? Look at any war the US had led in the last century. The state creates whatever narrative they want to justify their actions, Trump has stated openly that this is about their oil.
Considering the elections are disputed they can claim he's not an elected leader.
The USA pretends to be a democracy, but in fact it is a criminal, pirate state, they steal what they want, kill whom they want. Fortunately, Trump's coming to power marked the beginning of the collapse of that anti-human state. Americans of all political persuasions will continue to shout "thank you for your service" to every military person responsible for killing civilians and invading land belonging to others just for the opportunity to make money. Fuck USA.
My Dad was a helicopter pilot in the Army during the late 50s/early 60s, stationed in South Korea. He's gone now, so I can't ask for clarification, but he used to tell the story about flying the President of South Korea around just before his re-election. It was the night before the election, and they had been told they wouldn't have to fly until the next day, so they were free to hit the bar.
As they were relaxing, they got the call to get back to the airfield to fly the president back to the Capital. Normally that would have be highly against regulations to go from freshly drinking to flying, but a new poll showed the president about to lose the election, so they wanted him back in the Capital when they announced they were suspending the election because, to quote my Dad quoting his orders, "the country wasn't ready for democracy, yet."
America has been manipulating international geopolitics from the beginning.
And they've been doing it everywhere. No corner is safe from them. Guatemala, Cuba, Iraq, Afghanistan, Vietnam... Unless I'm mistaken every one of those campaigns, and more, had the goal of interfering with other countries ability to self-govern
Just about all governments pretend to be something they are not. And just about all of them are just tools for the wealthy. So fuck poloticians in general.
Stop deviating: there is literally an ongoing assault to the sovereignty of Venezuela right now.
Where's the deviation? The US gov fits well in that comment (as does Maduro's).
I prefer to think of it as expanding the offensive on people who care only for themselves...
Not that the USA is in a great state in any way right now but this isn't exactly true. Citizens often oppose what a country is doing. For reference just look at how veterans of the Vietnam war were treated. Bullied, harassed and treated like garbage. The reality is far more complicated. Still shit though
It's a bit more than shit, shit is bribing FIFA to give you a peace prize. This is kidnapping a foreign leader and stealing a countries livelihood. It's NOT just a bit shit this is full blown state authorized terrorism. America is basically Russia.
Vietnam was worse because the soldiers getting mistreated were often drafted. Not really fair to treat them so badly. And nowadays, for a lot of kids, the military is the only way off the streets and what not. They don't sign up thinking they are going to do all these evil things. And many of them never have to. So I agree, much more complicated. And I would rather they be employed by the gov to help take care of people, instead of kill them.
That's what the gov means by "take care of that person".
Too true.
It is a democracy, you don't get to redefine terms randomly.
85% of Americans disapprove of their government, no democracy
It's a Federal Presidential Republic
Lolz Venezuela is an authoritarian regime, you gonna defend russia and israel next?
Edit: link to united Nation reports calling this a authoriarian regime, on Wikipedia: https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Misi%C3%B3n_Internacional_Independiente_de_determinaci%C3%B3n_de_los_hechos_sobre_Venezuela
You including Israel, Americas middle east genocidal proxy, in that statement shows your bias.
You mean the United nations (edit: and my bias) bias: https://news.un.org/en/story/2024/11/1157286
If U saying fuck the courts too, then you are like maduro.
The United Nations have been trying to sanction Israel for decades and decades, only the US veto power has stopped them and the US military funding has enabled them.
I see only facts.
Russia, Hamas, and Cuba are the only countries to condemn the action. Everyone will just ignore that though.
Maybe so far. Give everyone else a few hours to write a statement.
Strongly worded letters eh?
I think it's a better first response than other countries attacking/invading the US and actually triggering WWIII.
Russia condemning it is Putin being a hypocrite and Cuba isn't far better either.
Not really true, but I get your point. Colombia heavily condemned it, and I suspect Iran and the DPRK too
That’s certainly what the US government and their corporate masters would like you to believe.
Google shit and read for yourself.
Edit: Ill do one bettter, here's the Wikipedia which includes united nations reports: https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Misi%C3%B3n_Internacional_Independiente_de_determinaci%C3%B3n_de_los_hechos_sobre_Venezuela
There are no free elections in Venezuela, because a country economically sanctioned and under military threat by the USA cannot have fair elections. Surely you don't call Zelensky a dictator for postponing elections during the war?
I'm a Spanish communist but sure.
Ukrainians don't wanna fight any more....what do you call a leader that makes his people fight and die in a war they want to end?
Source: https://www.kyivpost.com/post/57722
At least you're consistent, can't deny that.
I love you, let's run away together.
I’m ashamed of my country. JFC.
You can borrow this
Shame will not change a thing
67 upvotes!!!!11121!!`
Maduro and Trump are friends
Maduro gets to escape his country and save face instead of being assassinated or executed.
Trump gets to manufacture a conflict so he can start martial law and become a dictator
Touch some grass.
Yeah, Trump would never be friends with a brutal dictator that clings to power by all means necessary, oh wait
Just as Trump is friends with Corina Machado...
That or Maduro refused to send the US prez some crypto and oil for free.
Apparently the USA have captured Maduro
BBC News - https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/c5yqygxe41pt?app-referrer=push-notification Trump says US has "captured" Venezuelan President Maduro and his wife in "large scale strike" - latest - BBC News
And taken out of the country.
With the 'logic' being:
We indicted him as a narco terrorist, therefore:
Domestically, we do not need to get a declaration of war from Congress before embarking on what very clearly does actually require one, and,
Internationally, it is entirely valid to kidnap the President of another country, because we have indicted him as a narco terrorist in our own court system, and also because they stole our oil, somehow, or something.
... Hope everyone is ready to get reacquainted with the idea that world of nation-states is a world of violent chaos that only pretends otherwise.
Leader of Taiwan?
Indicted by China, extraordinarily rendered to Chinese courts by force for trial, following mass naval blockade and special forces operation.
Leader of Poland, Ukraine?
Indicted by Russia, extraordinarily rendered to Russian courts by force for trial, via special military operation 2 or 3 or 4.
... the precedent that was set by this action could quite literally end the world as we know it.
that's a major hit to their ability to fight back right? Losing a monolithic leader like would be a massive blow their ability to effectively resist. I have to imagine that's why they did it but would be interested to hear different takes
We will quickly find out depending on the reaction. If he really wasn't as popular as he claims he was then I suspect the Venezuelans will do nothing and a new leader will be elected.
If he was popular, then I see asymmetrical terrorist style attacks on american soil in the near future
"Elected" lol
Not exactly, they left everyone else, the structure is not as centralized as some, the people and government oppose the US and won't support whatever puppet they try to install. They took him because it was a show of force with less risk, holding actual territory would have resulted in US deaths, so they do this and will have a show trial with made up charges to try to prove their narrative.
This is it, if the western world and the US congress does not respond appropriately this shows Trump he can do whatever he wants. Greenland will be next, nothing will happen either. This is what the Nazis did as well, fuck around and see what happens. And nothing happened for quite a bit until it was nearly to late.
Trump has apparently been consistently 'asking' Sheinbaum (sp?) to let him take out all the cartels in Mexico.
So uh, Mexican American War, Round 2, very much looks to be on the table.
Somewhat ironically, Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex called that one, part of at least one version of half of Section 9's member's backstories is that they were mercs fighting in that war.
Greenland is just a distraction. The west would fall apart if the u.s attacked them.
I don't think the Trump administration cares too much about the western world. They just told everyone: "Either you do as we say, or we will fucking take it."
Goddamn war criminals and a country full of pathetic cowards who are too weak to put a stop to their criminal mafia regime. Absolutely disgusting!
Some of us are voting progressive and protesting/boycotting at every opportunity while still trying to make a wage to live on so I dont really appreciate the global hate. I get it, but I dont appreciate it. (edit: spelling)
At some point we will have to pick up pitchforks.
Unfortunately, I'm afraid that this point will never come - and that's why I'm pissed off. I don't think anyone can complain about that, because you are represented by a criminal, a rapist even.
In fact, I think you should see that something is being done as soon as possible, because it is obvious that your regime is in the process of establishing a totalitarian state - and then you will have to reckon with repressive measures like in Russia. Why do you think ICE has a budget that corresponds to the military spending of a medium-sized country? Well, it's obviously a secret police force that will soon no longer be harassing only foreigners.
I'm sorry to be so blunt, but no one other than the US citizens themselves can eliminate this plague, because you have an invincible army and nuclear weapons - all in the hands of that orange monster and his ruthless henchmen.
And a pedophile. And a murderer. And he pees and poops himself.
Yes, unfortunately, it is hardly possible to list everything that disqualifies this inhuman being, so I have limited myself to criminal and rapist. Oh, what about the more than $400 million he still owes the state of New York for massive financial fraud, for which he should have gone to prison for decades? Never mind, I'm getting carried away again with details of his criminal career...
As a matter of fact, it turns out that it is NOT impossible, it just takes a long time to say:
https://www.mcsweeneys.net/columns/lest-we-forget-the-horrors-an-unending-catalog-of-trumps-cruelties-collusions-corruptions-and-crimes
Granted, that one and its twin list only cover trump's two terms in office, but it's a start.
I just wonder what else it will take for your obviously criminal president to be removed from office.
I mean, you are ruled by organized crime: the state not only protects a pedophile ring, but makes it possible in the first place; you invade sovereign states; your elite enriches itself to an unprecedented extent at the expense of the citizens; and masked thugs roam the country, randomly attacking people with the wrong skin color. And these are just some of the completely obvious crimes committed by your government.
I realize that there are many opponents of this regime, but the fact remains: your pedophile president and his henchmen are getting away with whatever they do because there is no serious resistance, such as a general strike. Individual days when people take to the streets will not be enough to put an end to this, because your media is controlled by those who have been shamelessly exploiting your people for a long time. And yet: US citizens are putting up with it – I don't even want to imagine what it will take for Americans to finally throw off their yoke.
I'm sorry to have to say it in such broad terms, and I am aware that there is resistance, but your regime not only exploits US citizens, it is a danger to the entire world.
So you'd be one of the first people to pick up a gun and die at the hands of your government?
It's easy to shit on people just trying to survive when you're not in their situation.
Ask the people in Russia. They would die if they rebelled - you wouldn't, but I'm pretty sure that it will soon be the same for you if you don't manage to organize serious resistance while you still can.
When I read comments like this, I have little hope that US citizens will manage to shake off their apathy. It is what it is. If you don't help yourselves, things will only continue to go downhill, as they have for decades - whether you like it or not is irrelevant. It is simply a fact, and it will not help you in any way to blame anyone but yourselves. Other countries cannot intervene because the US is too powerful. We in Europe have our own battles to fight, and I must say that it disgusts me that our politicians still support your mafia state. And if you ask me, yes, I would rather die than accept that my homeland is falling back into fascism. I'm from Germany, and here we know what that means. That's why we have to find a way to break away from US social media platforms, for example, which are a major factor when it comes to poisoning people's minds with Nazi propaganda here.
The US does not stand for freedom or any of the other narratives that still seem to impress you. Today, the US is one of humanity's most significant problems - and that is because US citizens are unable to fight for their own interests. If you think you deserve sympathy, I cannot agree with you. Yes, it is certainly not an easy fight, but it is one that you must fight yourselves. Since you are not doing so to the extent necessary to achieve anything, the other countries of the world have little choice but to turn away - if it were up to me, I would swallow the bitter pill and accept all the economic disadvantages that await us if we turn away from your corrupt state. However, that will not happen because your elite also has our politicians in its pocket - but that is our problem; I would suggest you take care of yours so we might be able to once again work together.
That's kind of a bold conclusion you're not really backing up. Anything except the most peaceful assembly in the US very legitimately risks permanent injury or death at the hands of the government, and there's countless examples of even nonviolent protests being met with lethal force.
Is it the same as attempts to protest in Russia or China? No. But it's ridiculous to imply that apathy is the sole factor of consideration preventing a revolution in the US.
Yes, that's true. But in a dictatorship, things look very different, as evidenced by the fact that there are no protests in Russia. If you think that's because all Russians agree with Putin, you're wrong.
What I'm saying is that things will only get worse in the US as time passes and the fascists tighten their grip. And that's what I mean by apathy: not the people who are already doing something, but the millions who, despite the regime's inhumane actions, pretend that they can just bury their heads in the sand.
Don't you agree that the regime could be overthrown if the decent people in the US, who in my opinion are still very likely to be the majority despite MAGA, were to join forces?
There are absolutely protests in Russia.
We are nation of laws, and we still have a few legal steps to go through, including the 2026 Midterm election, and the 2028 election. Both of those elections give the Democrats the legal authority to take back America. If they do, hopefully they act decisively, and don't totally squander the opportunity, like Biden did, destroying his legacy.
If MAGA prevents those elections, or refuses to recognize the results, then they have gone off-Constitution, and it's on. When it becomes clear to citizens that MAGA has fully rejected any pretense of honoring or respecting the law, Democracy, and the Constitution, there WILL be serious repercussions, almost certainly violent.
There is a 50-50 chance that we get out of this through elections, IF Dems actually use their elected power to fully crush MAGA mercilessly. If they don't, then it will take violence, and that will come eventually and inevitably.
They are already off-constitution with all of their deportations, etc. What makes you think people will do something in 2026 when they aren’t doing anything now?
The mask is off, people are just too afraid to look it in the face and call it what it is. Democracy is over, and the fascists won, for now. If we want it to be short term, we need to start organizing and preparing for armed resistance.
If the Dems can control one of the Congressional chambers, they will control investigatory powers, including subpoena power and arrest powers. That would blunt his legislation, and would force his henchmen to account for their crimes.
That is, IF the Democratic leadership do their jobs, which only has about a 10% chance of happening, unless the new people coming in after the 2026 bloodbath start immediately throwing their weight around, and force the old guard to honor their Constitutional responsibilities. If they won't, we will treat the Establishment Democrats exactly the same as MAGA.
You're still operating under the assumption that there will be fair and free elections in November. That is not their plan.
It's MUCH harder to rig a Congressional election than a presidential election. In a presidential election, you only have to rig one race, in a handful of swing states.
To rig a Congressional election, you have to rig a lot more elections, over 400 districts. Even if you remove the solid Red and solid Blue districts, and only count on those that might swing either way, it would still probably be better than 100 elections, which will be overseen by locals.
That's why they are trying to game the TOTAL number of districts, rather than the individual races. Unfortunately for them, they've been getting pushback from the courts, while inspiring California to fight fire with fire, and redraw their own , and do it legally. Their greedy duplicitous mess may well backfire against them. MAGA only has a very narrow lead right now. If any more MAGAs resign before election day, the House may flip even before the election. California adding five more Blue seats, could easily make the difference, and flip the House to the Democrats.
Then they have to govern responsibly and courageously, which they've almost never done in the past.
Well, that remains to be seen. To be honest, I can't imagine anyone being prosecuted for their crimes, even with the best will in the world. I'm not a U.S. citizen, but from a distance, it looks to me as if your systems are infiltrated to a degree that they no longer function properly - starting with the fact that the Democrats are merely the lesser of two evils, to the fact that your law enforcement system, even under their control, actively protects child molesters, if not actually empowering them to commit their crimes, to the fact that your highest legal authority, the Supreme Court, is so obviously corrupt that it places the president above the law in a supposedly democratic country, which is completely incompatible with any democratic constitution.
Of course, I'm rooting for you, but I think it's naive to put your faith in a system that has proven time and again that it represents the interests of the powerful rather than those of the people. The proof of this is the fact that large sections of the population in the richest country in the world have to live as if they were in a third world country - for a European like me, it is incomprehensible how one can not only allow this, but also approve of it.
Edit: Just to illustrate what I mean: if your legal system worked even halfway properly, your president would have gone to prison long before he became president - he has committed so many serious crimes that it is more than telling that he was not already sentenced to life imprisonment in the 1990s.
The Dems blew it badly during the Biden administration, and they either learned their lesson, or they didn't. They better have learned their lesson, because they only have the next two elections to turn this around, and if they don't, then America is finished.
I'm always hoping for the best, but if we keep going in the same direction, with the same proven losing strategies, then the future belongs to MAGA. This will be the final opportunity to save America, and Dems have to step up. There are those who are willing, let's see if the Dem leadership can grow a spine and support them.
As I said, I'm keeping my fingers crossed, but when you consider how the progressive wing of the Democrats is demonized by their own people, even though it's so obvious that the people want these policies, I have very little hope.
Just to illustrate how difficult it is for a European to understand the US mentality: Sanders, AOC, and Mamdani would be moderate center-left politicians in Europe, not at all "extremists" as they are apparently portrayed in the US.
We have two serious foundational issues in our nation that must be addressed, or we will never move beyond where we are right now.
The first is what you referred to: the Conservative Propaganda Machine, which is an amazingly effective operation. They brutally abuse the First Amendment, knowing it is difficult to regulate it, but that is exactly what we have to do. The Conservative Propaganda Machine operates entirely in bad faith, and is the mouthpiece for MAGA, a domestic terrorist organization, and this nation's biggest national security threat. Under those circumstances, MAGA's dissemination of disingenuous speech can be controlled.
The second is Campaign Finance Reform, which is the issue from which ALL other issues flow. It allows Sociopathic Oligarchs to control our government through legal bribery and corruption by BOTH sides. We must reconfigure our entire election system so that it filters OUT the worst and most corrupt candidates, instead of washing out our most responsible candidates by bad-faith, disingenuous campaign rhetoric.
As long as those two situations remain in force, we will always have problems with the worst of our nation gaining power. We have to put ALL candidates on equal, fair footing, so the best candidates can be elevated to positions of RESPONSIBILITY, and keep criminals and traitors from gaming our system to gain power to exploit our nation.
I Hope you are right. And I Hope we survive Till midterms.. Crossing fingers.
Unfortunately, voting has never been an effective way to channel political power. Without serious organization behind them, voters are as easy to disregard as farts in the wind.
If you feel powerless, find or make a group within your community who can band together to amplify your voices. Groups get attention, while individuals - even seas of individuals like the No Kings protests - get ignored.
You're literally not doing enough.
Thanks, very helpful
Your meme would hit harder if they were so desperately trying to stop people from voting.
Boycott anything from the US. Hit the billionaires in their pockets. That’s what’s driving this.
Hopefully Venezuela can finally recall all of their nuclear engineers and astronauts that came to our countries to increase the crime with their Caribbean vibes
Is he still the non-interventionist candidate? /s
He's looking for that Nobel peace prize of 2026.
I mean, they already gave one to the person who is going to give Trump all Venezuela's oil.
It does seem to be a prize given by the oil industry at this point, and has been for decades.
I'm sure he's front runner for the 2026 FIFA peace prize.
Jesus Christ. America, your new war started January 3rd 2026. The world will remember this day.
Clearly trump should have waited 1 more day.
Surprised he didn't wait until the 6th. Seems to be his favorite day to attempt to change a country's leadership.
That's the false flag in Russia
Shit I forgot about that. What a hell of a few days.
I certainly hope the rest of the world is paying attention this time.
Is there a running list somewhere of all the illegal things he's done so far?
Here, for your perusal. https://www.mcsweeneys.net/columns/lest-we-forget-the-horrors-an-unending-catalog-of-trumps-cruelties-collusions-corruptions-and-crimes
that list would be too long and zero.
His supreme court declared he is above the law, nothing "official" he does is illegal.
He is, by any definition, a dictator
Since you won't get the notification: there's a list (actually two, since there's one from his first term, too). It's maintained by McSweeney's. You know, the satire website, because in this worst timeline, satire is dead and the media is complicit, and so the satirists must content themselves with being the media:
https://www.mcsweeneys.net/columns/lest-we-forget-the-horrors-an-unending-catalog-of-trumps-cruelties-collusions-corruptions-and-crimes
True
Which US company is benefiting from the illegal attack? Conoco-Phillips? I recall they were US company drilling and exploring in Venezuela.
All of the oil companies will. Probably the fruit companies too.
DJT/Mar-a-Lago realestate holdings inc.
Chevron
Sooo, what natural resource do they want to steal from Venezuela?
Oil, it has the largest unexploited oil deposits of any nation on earth.
Doesn't seem to matter that the IEA has said about 1.6million barrels a day have been cut from demand becase .of electric vehicles, with that nunber to keep going lower as ecars increase.
But it gets better (worse, actually) - they have low quality oil with the lowest demand and expensive refining
It's very similar to Alberta tar sand, as I understand it, which Americanrefineries are set up for. Replace Canada's supply, then Canada can be safely invaded without danger to the oil supply, maybe.
https://bsky.app/profile/sky.skymarchini.net/post/3mbiywglthk2f
Seems not worth it because it still needs more infrastructure
Ah. Same old same old. How boring.
"Trump says that the US is going to be "strongly involved" in Venezuela's oil industry moving forward. "
https://www.bbc.com/news/live/c5yqygxe41pt
Someone fucking quarantine the U.S. already, I'm so sick of them. We can fish out the sensible people but the rest can just rot.
Someone should extract the Trump administration.
Oil, as always.
Hell yes! Back to doing coups in South America! USA USA USA!
This is not a coup, but an invasion. A coup would be local elites overthrowing the government. This however is clearly the US.
"A sudden and decisive change of government illegally or by force."
By that definition it qualifies, but a lot of other definitions specify a small group of instigators
bro, coups can be external. pretending they can't doesn't make it so.
Something else that just occurred to me… It's only a matter of time before we kidnap Zelensky to end Putin's invasion of Ukraine.
The dude is much better guarded and his people and the international community actually like him.
lol
Kicking off a Civil War should make him a lock for Nobel Peace Prize now. That's how it works, right?
This is going to end up badly. Venezuela has a lot of armed groups and crime anyway. Some of them will fight the US. With all the drugs in South America, they probably will end up financing themself using drug money, creating exactly what the US claims Venezuela is today.
The good part is that Maduro is incompetent, so there is a chance of somebody better leading the country at some point.
Why is Maduro incompetent?
Just look at Venezuelas economy. Hyperinflation, people starving, local production collapsing due to subsidies foreign competition and so forth. To be clear this was not due to sanctions. This got really bad when Maduro became president in 2013 and sanctions only started in 2017.
I still do not agree military action against him can help in any way.
Also if you see the American supported candidate for position..... I wouldn't bet on improvement any time soon.
At some point, does not mean the US puppet government will be good. However so far we have seen US supported puppets be kicked out of the countries at some point. Whoever manages to do that is probably going to be some sort of leftist and at least is competent enough to kick out the Americans.
It worked so well with Iran.
What is that logic? America must oppress people so they get stronger and expell them?
How about American just leave other countries alone?
Jack reads: "This is going to end up badly."
Jack thinks: "That guy must support the US invasion of Venezuela"
Really?
sanctions started with Chavez, years before Maduro took office
The sanctions against Venezuela under Chavez were about as serious as US sanctions against Israel. The US does not care about what you do, as long as you deliver oil to them.
Doesn’t this description fit in on the U.S. as well?
Yes and no, by far and large superficially it describes the USA. But I'm reality most of the USA is kinda just coasting and it's pretty mundane and fine.
The USA is still a good long way before it's close to what Venezuela is like. But it's for sure on that path, a few years more and I would entirely agree with you.
The USA really only has just started down the path proper so to speak.
It hasn't even been a year of Trump's policies yet. Just wait. The US economy will nose drive even without the AI bubble crashing.
Our economy is cooked and it will get very bad, but we don't even have the same unemployment we say during the Great recession not even close to the Great Depression. Overall we're not starving to death yet. Things are pretty bad though.
I do expect things to get much much worse, but we're not there yet. Truthfully it may be too late to avoid what's coming
Please remove the cheeto from office. He did not win either popular vote. He is wreaking havoc because no one holds him accountable.
He did get elected, whether you like him or not.
Why is he still in office is beyond me, maybe a magic lead encasing could solve that since he seems to be above the law.
Popular vote isn't electoral college vote.He did win the 2024 popular vote by 1.5%.
Eta: there has been evidence offered the last vote was rigged.
How are you gonna do that if a lot of Congress are actually bootlicking on the toupee weirdo?
Hmm, j6 people had an idea, given by the president, himself.
...They use force?
Jesus the US is fucked.
Is Brian Williams on MSNBC being "guided by the beauty of our weapons" yet?
Is bolivarian the adjunctive for Venezuela? Feels... Wrong.
It refers to the official name for the government. Venezuelan would still be correct for everything else.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bolivarianism
So basically, every signatory to the Rome Statute could use these measures to arrest war criminals and genociders...if they wanted?
Is he angry with Putin?
I hate Trump. But I have a friend in Venezuela. It's been hell for him and his family the last couple years. Maduro and his "elites" controlled the country and caused massive poverty to its citizens. This is the best news of hope he can't stop talking about. Maybe it's reading it on the news that gives us our biased opinions but for someone who is living there in the hell caused by Maduro and his group this is the best news you can imagine.
Let's see what they insert instead of Maduro. Wouldn't have high Hopes with their historic choices of candidates for their own government..
Someone willing to give American companies favorable access to their oil reserves. Their politics don't matter.
This. We are not invading Venezuela because we are trying to fix their problems... we are doing so to control their oil. Why would the politics matter? Oil is king.
The peace prize lady. The people of Vzla won’t like that though. This is the start of a lot of unrest.
Seems Trump has ruled out Machado: https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5671488-trump-machado-venezuela-opposition-leader/
No surprise he backstabbed her already 🤣🤣🤣she served whatever purpose and has been discarded already.
The street level opinion coming out of Venezuela largely seems to be "fuck Maduro but fuck America too"
I think that's a fair perspective - though I am certainly concerned about Trump starting wars without going through congress, as well as the precedent this sets for invading other countries without cause. (Granted, historically, the US has done both, but that doesn't make it right). Additionally, this could just mean Venezuela swaps out this dictator for a US-friendly dictator.
This is the equivalent of letting homelander kill the mafia boss in your town. Unfortunately he's not leaving soon and will cause a lot more damage before this is all done.
Exactly. I can understand being glad the mafia boss is dead, but it's a "change in management" not liberation
"I have a friend in Iraq. It's been hell for him and his family the last couple of years. Hussein and his "elites" controlled the country and caused massive poverty to its citizens"
You guys are fucking laughable, "every US invasion is bad except the current one". I can't believe the Iraq playbook still fucking works on you
What? I'm not ok with any of this I'm remarking on the fact that people in Venezuela are celebrating. There are more people in this world than us you know.
For every supposed "Venezuelan celebrating in Venezuela" there are ten frightened that their country is being invaded. Maduro was democratically elected by the people of Venezuela, the majority literally want him there.
You're wrong on that. I haven't heard any Venezuelan claim Maduro was elected. He cemented his seat in power after the last election where he clearly lost. So stop making things up for your own optics.
https://www.journalofdemocracy.org/articles/how-maduro-stole-venezuelas-vote/
The Bolivarian revolution counted with the wide support of the people since its inception, and this support only dwindled recently because of extreme economic sanctions by the US. The Bolivarian revolution therefore has the popular support of the people until the sanctions are lifted and the Venezuelan people can carry out free elections free from external interference.
"I have a friend in the US. It's been hell for him and his family the last couple of years. Trump and his "elites" controlled the country and caused massive poverty to its citizens"
It works both ways. Would you be making these same arguments if Canada had kidnapped Trump?
It's a little different since American democracy is supposed to be a lot more stable than Venezuela. But if the election was clearly stolen (imagine trump running for a 3rd term), and then he was removed by another country after deliberations with the opposing leadership here, then yeah kinda. It'd be terrifying. But the guy who stole our country's leadership, the one running and ruining our lives has been removed. What comes after, what deals were made with the devil, that's all terrifying. And the people in Venezuela are holding their breath.
Yeah no doubt this will rough for Venezuelans. I just take issue with people suddenly pretending that one of Trump's fellow world dictators is somehow a good guy simply because Trump did another awful thing. This is the same logic these people use to defend neoliberal Democrats that are the reason we're stuck with Trump in the first place and I'm sick of it.
The enemy of my enemy is my friend. Or something like that. Trump is no one's friend. But neither is Maduro.
Maduro and Trump are friends
Maduro gets to escape his country and save face instead of being assassinated or executed.
Trump gets to manufacture a conflict so he can start martial law and become a dictator
Maduro has been literally kidnapped and his country bombed, are you out of your fucking mind? What's the deal with conspiracy theories in fucking Lemmy?
So predictable, it's boring.
Nice bait
Guy takes out serial killer
True hero
Mass murderer takes out serial killer
Terrorism.
Simple as.
I don't recall the USA attacking itself