Thugs
This wasn't the plan. Oh, sorry...Happy New Year everyone. I almost forgot. Actually, THAT was the plan: best wishes, new year/new us, a few wintery pictures from the holidays; probably a post about "systems" for the coming months, yada yada. Light, fun, uncomplicated stuff, you know? Ugh.
Writing about Venezuela, or new threats to Cuba, Colombia, and...Greenland?! Not on the agenda. I also hadn't planned on grasping with an "American Hemisphere", or reflecting on what I now consider to be the most dangerous threat to the stability of the planet since the Third Reich. Yes, I know what I'm saying, and yes, the statement carries a heckuvalotta historical weight. I'm aware of how loaded those words are. Of how these are apples and oranges. Or flak and napalm. Pick what works. We can never really compare. But I'm speaking in terms of safety, and trust in our collective future. The line crossed by the US a few days ago, the press conference that followed and all of the interviews and comments since, show a government unconcerned by norms, laws (domestic or international), and boundaries. An administration intent on invading, abducting, and annexing lands and ressources, without limits, through any means necessary. Friend or foe, enemy or ally...none of that matters anymore.
Three fucking days into 2026 and we're forced to reckon with America as an active threat to world peace. All I wanted was a week, man. I mean, a decade would be nice, but a single week would've helped.
Maduro was a corrupt tyrant. Of course he was (1). But the way I see it, that's just sheer luck. Happenstance. A situation providing a convenient smokescreen for leaders everywhere to hem and haw about the importance of international law, while never fully condemning what just happened: the hostile takeover of a sovereign nation. Bad man, despot, stolen election...good riddance. Absolutely. But what's next? What about Columbia's president? No stolen election there. Gustavo Petro is considered a fierce adversary of the cartels and yet Trump just accused him of smuggling cocaine into the US. The Lie is strong with this one. The Lie provides excuses for any attack, on anyone. If NATO doesn't even factor in, nothing does.
Nothing.
Trump's not just slapping his ridiculous name on buildings anymore. We're back to spheres of influence, robber barons, hegemony. To Manifest Destiny writ large. And all of it unfolding as nations twiddle their thumbs and despots take notes.
So yeah...this was not the plan. At all. But I couldn't just write about a new notebook and camera setup. I can't pretend nothing happened.
That said, I do hope you found respite by looking away from the news for a few days. I did. And I tell you what: how about we take a leap of faith together and wish ourselves good times, good health, and a whole lotta luck for 2026✨?
Let's try that. Eyes open. One day at a time.
...
ADDENDUM
I recently read Slouching Towards Bethlehem, Joan Didion's magnificent collection of essays from the 1960s. Hearing such a clear, potent, and resonant voice from a fairly recent past, does wonders for perspective—very little is ever "new" in the grand scheme of things. The cliché stands. The fracture between the myth and reality of America, that constant push and pull, is a never-ending battle, full of fragile truces and inflexion points. What now changes the game dramatically, however, is the loss of an ethical and moral compass.
If this takeover is allowed to stand, if we shrug—for fear of retaliation, or by trusting in the rules of a now obsolete post-war world—he. will. not. stop. They never do.
There is no bottom.
There is no end.
1: I understand the reaction from so many Venezuelans around the world, and I sincerely hope they find relief, if only as a side effect. But early signs aren't promising: 1) the word “democracy” isn't part of the conversation; 2) they've elevated the current, eligitimate VP as leader (under threat, no less); and 3) Trump lied about Machado's support within the country, removing her entirely from the equation. It sure looks like they're stealing oil, period.
