Tag Archives: Venezuela

Looking At The Big Picture

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Despite what his enemies tell us, President Trump is a very smart man. The backing of the Israeli attack on Iran is a major step toward American national security because of its impact on China’s fuel supply. President Trump may have just prevented an Chinese attack on Taiwan.

On March 3, Red State reported:

President Donald Trump’s latest attack on Iran takes a big economic bite out of one of America’s chief rivals: China.

Over the span of two months, the Trump administration has removed the leaders of two countries that both shared China as their most important crude oil customer. Although China buys oil from nations all across the Middle East, Iran was second only to Saudi Arabia as its supplier last year, according to a POLITICO analysis of data provided by market research firm Kpler.

Almost all of Iran’s exported oil, and more than half of Venezuela’s, went last year to China, which remained one of the only purchasers of goods from the two heavily sanctioned nations. The two countries combined represented some 17 percent of China’s overall oil purchases — a meaningful share for the world’s largest importer of crude oil.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry on Saturday said it was “highly concerned” by the attacks on Iran and called for an end to the war. The squeeze on China’s energy supply also comes just weeks before Trump is slated to hold a summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

…Iran has a single use beyond supplying cut-rate oil to China’s economy, that is to provide a distraction to the U.S. Iranian operations effectively handed us defeats in two wars. Iranian explosive-formed penetrators killed hundreds of American soldiers and Marines. Iran’s sponsorship of Lebanese Hezbollah and the Houthis has created conflict and disrupted international trade. In case of a real war, a nuclear-armed Iran could create a massive distraction to any U.S. effort in the Indo-Pacific and put the Suez Canal as well as Gulf oil fields at risk.

We are in the early stage of a rollback of Chinese influence. From an oil perspective, Venezuela and Iran account for 17 percent of China’s oil imports. Not much you say. Making up that oil volume at below-market rates is difficult. Add to that the fact that the supply of Russian oil smuggled by “dark fleet” tankers is also coming to an end. President Trump and India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi have agreed that India will stop buying bootleg Russian oil. In fact, only three weeks ago, India seized a tanker carrying Russian oil; Indian Coast Guard Seizes Three Sanctioned ‘Dark Fleet’ Tankers Carrying Illegal Iranian Oil…to India – RedState. This has caused a significant disruption in the supply of Russian oil to China.

Please follow the link above to read the entire article. The implications of the fall of the current government of Iran are wide-ranging.

Moving Toward Freedom In Venezuela

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On January 9th, Just the News posted an article that illustrates the success of the Trump administration’s policy toward Venezuela.

The article reports:

President Trump on Friday said Venezuela is releasing political prisoners and that because of their cooperation he canceled the planned second wave of attacks against the country.

“Venezuela is releasing large numbers of political prisoners as a sign of ‘Seeking Peace.’ This is a very important and smart gesture,” Trump posted on Truth Social. “The U.S.A. and Venezuela are working well together, especially as it pertains to rebuilding, in a much bigger, better, and more modern form, their oil and gas infrastructure.

“Because of this cooperation, I have cancelled the previously expected second Wave of Attacks, which looks like it will not be needed, however, all ships will stay in place for safety and security purposes. At least 100 Billion Dollars will be invested by BIG OIL, all of whom I will be meeting with today at The White House. Thank you for your attention to this matter! President DJT.”

We don’t need to invade Venezuela–we just need the threat. As long as the government is cooperating with the U.S., we may be able to move the country toward freedom.

Did You Notice The Professionally Made Signs?

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This is a picture taken yesterday of a New York City protest against the arrest of Nicolás Maduro this weekend. Notice the professionally made signs. (source here)

On Monday (updated Tuesday), Just the News reported:

Chinese state-run propaganda outlets are promoting U.S. protests against the Trump Administration’s arrest of Venezuelan strongman Nicolas Maduro. The protests appear to be organized by a Chinese Communist Party-linked financial network in the United States.

After this weekend’s U.S. military-led operation capturing Venezuela’s leader and sending him to the U.S. to be prosecuted by the Justice Department, street protests opposing Maduro’s arrest were quickly organized in New York City and elsewhere by the Marxist revolutionary group known as The People’s Forum, the far-left anti-war group Code Pink, the leftist Act Now to Stop War and End Racism (ANSWER) Coalition, and the Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL). 

Just the News previously reported on how these and other radical activist groups have leadership links or financial ties to a funding network backed by wealthy Marxist businessman Neville Roy Singham, who himself has connections to the CCP.

This is another domino that may fall now that Maduro is gone. (source here)

1. The End of the “Free Oil” Lifeline

For over two decades, the single most important pillar of the Cuban economy has been the “Barrio Adentro” agreement, which saw Venezuela ship roughly 50,000 barrels of oil per day to Havana essentially for free. With the US military now securing Venezuelan ports and oil fields following yesterday’s operation, these shipments have hit zero overnight. Cuba, which is already cash-strapped, simply does not have the foreign currency reserves to buy this amount of oil on the open market at global prices, meaning the island’s energy supply has effectively been cut in half instantly.

2. The Loss of the “Resale” Revenue Stream

Few people realise that the Castro regime didn’t just use Venezuelan oil to keep the lights on; they used it as a major source of income by selling the surplus. Venezuela often sent more refined fuel than the island needed, allowing Havana to sell the excess on the international market to generate hard currency. The fall of Maduro wipes out this “middleman” profit entirely, removing one of the few remaining sources of US dollars the government used to import food and medicine, which will accelerate the humanitarian crisis to breaking point.

President Trump significantly wounded a communist stronghold in South America. There will be repercussions. However, if the people of Venezuela can successfully win their freedom, the western hemisphere and the world will be safer.

A Short History Lesson

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The history of Venezuela shows that it can become a successful, free country. In 1958, dictator Marcos Pérez Jiménez was overthrown. A stable two-party system was established that lasted forty years. The Fourth Republic, as this period was known, brought unprecedented prosperity thanks to oil revenues, massive public works, and social programs, making Venezuela one of the wealthiest nations in Latin America during the 1970s. In February 1992, Hugo Chávez led a failed coup against President Carlos Andrés Pérez. In 1998, Hugo Chávez was elected President with 56 percent of the vote. He nationalized industries and introduced social programs that reduced poverty and illiteracy. When he died in 2013, Nicolás Maduro became President. At that time, a severe economic crisis hit Venezuela. This was caused by falling oil prices, mismanagement, and U.S. sanctions. Hyperinflation, shortages of food and medicine, and the largest refugee exodus in Latin American history followed, fundamentally altering Venezuela’s trajectory. In 2019, Juan Guaidó declared himself acting president, saying the election of Chavez was fraudulent. More than 60 countries recognized Guaidó as legitimate interim president, but Chavez stayed in power. (source here)

As you can see, the journey from one of the most prosperous countries in South America to one of the poorest was the result of many events and decisions. The people of Venezuela were seeking to find their way out of poverty and listened to the lies of someone who wanted to be a dictator.

The question now is, “Can Venezuela regain its freedom and prosperity?”

Venezuela’s history shows that they can be a successful republic or democracy. They will need honest elections and an informed electorate. The class warfare that allows socialism or communism to take over needs to end.

When Venezuela took over the oil industry, profits dropped because the people in charge did not know how to run or maintain the oil industry. If the oil industry reverts to the people who know how to run it, prosperity will slowly return. I wish Venezuela well and hope that the exiles who escaped Chavez and Nicolás Maduro will return and help rebuild the country.

This map shows where the exiles have gone:

Is Freedom Spreading In Latin America?

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On Friday, Breitbart posted an article a new regional political bloc President of Argentina Javier Milei is setting up in Latin America.

The article reports:

President of Argentina Javier Milei revealed in a soon-to-be released interview he is actively working towards establishing a regional ten-country bloc in Latin America to stand up to the “cancer of socialism.”

Milei was interviewed by journalist Andrés Oppenheimer this week for Oppenheimer’s television show at CNN en Español. A brief snippet was published by the outlet ahead of the full interview’s upcoming broadcast on January 11. The Argentine President is a staunch opponent of socialism and all of its “collectivism” forms. 

“We haven’t named it yet, but there is already a group of ten countries working on it, and we will continue to move forward,” Milei said. “We are trying to form a bloc, in which our proposal is to embrace the ideas of freedom and stand up to the cancer of socialism in its various forms, whether it be socialism of the 21st century, woke socialism, not to mention the more extreme versions.”

The article concludes:

“The government emphasizes that a large part of the group has already signed joint statements not only criticizing Chavismo in Venezuela, but also supporting U.S. actions in the Caribbean Sea and the elections in Honduras, which were decided in favor of Asfura, Washington’s candidate,” La Nación reported.

The newspaper noted that the Argentine government is “enthusiastic” about the evident shift in ideological trends across the region and is seeking to emphasize similarities with other potential members of the group — particularly in light of the upcoming elections in Brazil and Colombia, two nations presently led by socialist governments whom Milei has had past impasses with.

This is fantastic news.

Why? Why Now?

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On January 3rd, The Epoch Times posted an article about the indictment of Nicolás Maduro and his wife. This story is just breaking, so there will be updates in the future.

The article reports:

Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, were indicted in the Southern District of New York, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi announced early on Jan. 3.

“Nicolás Maduro has been charged with Narco-Terrorism Conspiracy, Cocaine Importation Conspiracy, Possession of Machineguns and Destructive Devices, and Conspiracy to Possess Machineguns and Destructive Devices against the United States,” Bondi said on X. “They will soon face the full wrath of American justice on American soil in American courts.”
Bondi issued the statement hours after Maduro and Flores were captured and extracted by U.S. armed forces in Caracas in the early hours of Jan. 3.

The article notes:

In 2020, Maduro and 14 other Venezuelan officials were charged with narco-terrorism, corruption, drug trafficking and other charges in New York City, Miami, and Washington, D.C.

“The scope and magnitude of the drug trafficking alleged was made possible only because Maduro and others corrupted the institutions of Venezuela and provided political and military protection for the rampant narco-terrorism crimes described in our charges,” U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman said in the 2020 press release. “As alleged, Maduro and the other defendants expressly intended to flood the United States with cocaine in order to undermine the health and wellbeing of our nation. Maduro very deliberately deployed cocaine as a weapon.”

So what is this actually about, and why now?

Venezuela has been a center for Hezbollah operations in South America for years. Iran has poured money into the country. Iran had money during the Obama administration the Biden administration–sanctions on Iranian oil were either withdrawn or not enforced. During the Obama administration roughly $150 billion of frozen Iranian assets was released. In essence, America was funding the terrorism used against our troops in the area. Under President Trump, Iran is going broke. The people are staging a revolution. They are not in a position to help Venezuela. This is the time to strike. The taking of Maduro and his wife is part of a battle against drug cartels and worldwide terrorism. Hopefully, Venezuela can now return to the thriving democracy it once was.

Understanding Some Of The Logic

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The Trump administration seems to be targeting Venezuela for a number of reasons. One reason is to remove a dictator who is a threat to the western hemisphere. Venezuela is hosting a number of terrorists groups and other groups that have a goal of destroying America. They are also a source of drugs that have killed millions of Americans. But there is more to the story.

According to an Oil Price website article of December 22:

  • Trump’s rhetoric aligns closely with unresolved arbitration rulings over Venezuela’s 2007 seizure of U.S. oil assets.
  • The dispute, long confined to courts and asset seizures, is now being reframed as a matter of U.S. foreign policy.

According to a Bloomberg Law article from January 23, 2025:

Venezuela must pay an $8.7 billion claim to ConocoPhillips stemming from asset seizures during the reign of the late Hugo Chavez after an international court rebuffed the South American nation’s final appeal.

The World Bank’s International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes upheld a 2019 ruling in favor of the US oil explorer’s demand for compensation for seizures more than a decade ago, ConocoPhillips announced Thursday.

The Oil Price article states:

The Legal Case Behind the Rhetoric

ConocoPhillips pursued international arbitration for years and ultimately won multiple awards. Most recently, in January 2025, arbitration rulings were upheld totaling approximately $8.7 billion plus interest. Venezuela has consistently refused to pay.

The U.S. Treasury has authorized ConocoPhillips to pursue enforcement actions worldwide, including the seizure of Venezuelan assets held abroad. Some assets have been targeted over the years, but full recovery has remained elusive.

Trump’s framing of Venezuela as having “stolen” American oil aligns directly with this legal history. While Venezuela claims sovereign authority over its resources, international tribunals ruled the expropriation illegal under international law. Trump appears to be elevating that unresolved legal judgment into a matter of U.S. foreign policy enforcement.

I don’t recommend toppling foreign governments. Historically we have done more harm than good when we have done that. However, the people of Venezuela have been protesting the Chavez and Maduro regimes for a number of years. If the people who could create a democracy or a republic are still alive and able to do that, it would be good news for everyone.

Getting Into The Weeds About The Tanker Seizure

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This is a warning that the following information is definitely in the weeds. On Saturday, Zero Hedge posted an article about the taking of the Venezuelan tanker and the possible strategy behind it. It’s a long article. I suggest you follow the link and read the entire article. I will post some of the highlights. The taking of the tanker is another example of the ability of the Trump administration to wage economic war rather than kinetic war.

The article reports:

During President Trump’s first term, there was a brief moment in which the Maduro regime appeared close to being overthrown, but it was countered by support from Cuba. According to The New York Times reporters Michael Crowley and Edward Wong, that failure frustrated Trump, his advisers, and then Senator Rubio, who had backed regime change.

“Their theory of change involves cutting off all support to Cuba,” said Juan S. Gonzalez, who was President Joe Biden’s top White House aide for Western Hemisphere affairs. “Under this approach, once Venezuela goes, Cuba will follow.”

In a separate NYT report, journalists Anatoly Kurmanaev, Nicholas Nehamas, and Farnaz Fassihi explained that the seized tanker Skipper, which was carrying crude contracted by Cubametales, Cuba’s state-run oil trading firm, is a critical part of how Cuba benefits from its oil trade with Venezuela.

The article quotes The New York Times:

Two days after its departure, Skipper offloaded a small fraction of its oil, an estimated 50,000 barrels, to another ship, called Neptune 6, which then headed north toward Cuba, according to the shipping data firm Kpler. After the transfer, Skipper headed east, toward Asia, with the vast majority of its oil on board, according to a U.S. official briefed on the matter.

President Nicolás Maduro of Venezuela and his predecessor, Hugo Chávez, have for decades sent oil to Cuba at highly subsidized prices, providing a crucial resource at low cost to the impoverished island.

In return, the Cuban government over the years has sent tens of thousands of medics, sports instructors, and, increasingly, security professionals on assignments to Venezuela. That exchange has assumed special importance as Mr. Maduro has leaned on Cuban bodyguards and counterintelligence officers to protect himself against the U.S. military buildup in the Caribbean.

In recent years, however, only a fraction of Venezuelan oil set aside for Cuba has actually reached the island, according to PDVSA (Petróleos de Venezuela) documents and tanker tracking data. Most of the oil allocated for Cuba has instead been resold to China, with the money providing badly needed hard currency for the Cuban government, according to multiple people close to the Venezuelan government.

The article concludes:

What’s likely happening is that the Trump administration is in the early innings of disrupting large volumes of crude that flow from Venezuela to Cuba to China. That strategy could trigger falling dominoes across the region, pushing Cuba’s economy deeper into collapse while also meaningfully weakening Venezuela and tipping the balance of power away from Maduro.

So far, Beijing has yet to lash out over the Skipper seizure and the resulting disruptions to crude flows to Asia. One has to wonder whether Bessent worked out a secret deal with Beijing; otherwise, this type of maneuvering by the Trump administration risks triggering turmoil that could derail any upcoming Trump-Xi talks.

Stay tuned.

Suspicions Are Being Confirmed

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On Monday, PJ Media posted an article about another whistleblower who has come forth from the Maduro regime with stories of purposeful gang placements in America, election fraud and bought Congressmen. This confirms what we have heard from a previous whistleblower, but it is NOT good news. Please follow the link to read the entire article.

It is a long article, but here are a few of the highlights:

As of Monday evening, another former Maduro insider has come forward with a similar letter, which was also provided to the Dallas Express.

Former Major General Cliver Antonio Alcalá Cordones was a high-ranking commander in Venezuela’s armed forces who served under Hugo Chávez, and at one point in time he was more powerful than even Maduro within the Chávez government. He was on the U.S. radar for drug trafficking and related crimes for quite a while, but after Chávez died he and the Maduro regime eventually parted ways. He moved to Colombia, began staging a halfhearted anti-Maduro coup with some various U.S. contractors, and by 2020 gave up and turned himself in to U.S. authorities, agreeing to cooperate with them.

…After Chávez’s death in 2013 and Nicolás Maduro’s assumption of power, I requested my retirement from the army despite offers to continue, because I was unwilling to serve under his command. It was very clear to me that a criminal gang leader was taking power. From that moment on, it became public knowledge that I became a staunch opponent of the dictator Maduro.

With his political consolidation, the prison-based criminal structures were strengthened under his control: there were direct communications from the prisons to him, with Potro Álvarez acting as the facilitator of links with prison leaders; instructions were even given to those leaders to control inmates’ votes in elections, while criminals came and went to commit crimes and the prisons functioned as weapons and other illegal elements’ depots.

Some of those criminals—including corrupt union leaders linked to a Chinese-funded Aragua– Carabobo railway project—form part of the group now known as Tren de Aragua, which has been used by Maduro for his criminal purposes ever since.

Nicolás Maduro, trained and formed in Cuba, used these criminal schemes from the prisons for personal gain, replicating practices he learned in that country. Nicolás Maduro’s government exported this criminal organization to other countries, including the United States of America.

The article quotes the letter from Major General Cliver Antonio Alcalá Cordones:

Electoral Frauds

In the electoral sphere, Army General Carlos Quintero—a member of Venezuelan military intelligence—and current vice president of the National Electoral Council (CNE) has been responsible for committing electoral fraud. General Quintero was the engineer in charge of Venezuela’s Smartmatic electoral technology used to carry out the frauds. Most elections in Venezuela have been manipulated by Maduro’s government. I am aware of the use of parallel Smartmatic voting systems to alter results, especially in locaGons without opposition party representatives, making irregularities difficult to detect. This is the same technology used in other countries including USA by the company Smartmatic. The controllers of this entire system are the siblings Jorge and Delcy Rodríguez.

Please read the entire article.

Bringing Americans Home

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On Friday, Fox News reported that ten Americans have been released from custody in Venezuela and are headed home to America.

The article reports:

Ten Americans are returning to the U.S. after being released from custody in Venezuela, the Secretary of State said on Friday. 

“Thanks to President [Donald] Trump’s leadership and commitment to the American people, the United States welcomes home ten Americans who were detained in Venezuela,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement. “Until today, more Americans were wrongfully held in Venezuela than any other country in the world. It is unacceptable that Venezuelan regime representatives arrested and jailed U.S. nationals under highly questionable circumstances and without proper due process. Every wrongfully detained American in Venezuela is now free and back in our homeland.”

Rubio also thanked the State Department, inter-agency partners, and El Salvador President Nayib Bukele.

The article continues:

He (Secretary of State Marco Rubio) said the U.S. also welcomes the “release of Venezuelan political prisoners and detainees that were also released from Venezuelan prisons. The Trump Administration continues to support the restoration of democracy in Venezuela. The regime’s use of unjust detention as a tool of political repression must end. We reiterate our call for the unconditional release of remaining unjustly and arbitrarily detained political prisoners and foreign nationals.”

The release is part of a prisoner swap in which Bukele agreed to release hundreds of Venezuelans being held in a maximum-security prison in Tecoluca, El Salvador, in return for Salvadoran prisoners being held in Venezuela. 

El Salvador President Nayib Bukele was elected as President of El Salvador in 2019. He has transformed the country–drastically reducing the crime rate and the homicide rate. His cooperation with President Trump has helped make America safer and his own country safer.

The Supreme Court Steps In

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Some of the lower courts in America have decided that they are the President. It’s getting very old to see anything President Trump does result in a lawsuit filed in a lower court to stop whatever it is. I think that if President Trump declared that grocery shopping on Saturday was a good thing, the courts would try to close the stores on Saturday. However, the Supreme Court is slowly stepping up to the plate.

On Friday, The Epoch Times reported:

The Supreme Court has temporarily stayed a lower court decision that halted the Trump administration’s attempt to remove a protection known as parole for immigrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela.

The court’s decision, which came on May 30, blocks the lower court order as the issue plays out in the court system. Justices Ketanji Brown Jackson and Sonia Sotomayor dissented from the court’s decision.

The Trump administration had argued that the decision to remove parole was discretionary for the secretary of homeland security and not reviewable by courts.

We need controlled, legal immigration. We need to bring people into America who will assimilate and who will work to help build this country. We definitely need to revise our immigration policies to make it easier for people to come to America, but we also need to limit the number of immigrants we allow in at any one time. We need to control immigration in a way that allows for assimilation. Britain, and some of the European Union Countries are currently in danger of losing their identity because of mass migration by people who are not interested in assimilating into their various cultures. This is a threat to western civilization. There are differences in civilizations–and people need to live where they are most comfortable with the culture–they do not need to take over the culture of another country. The takeover of the British culture is currently happening in Britain. I don’t want it to happen here.

How The Deep State Works Against President Trump

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On Monday, Declassified with Julie Kelly posted an article that illustrates how the deep state works and also how at least to hold those who work against the Trump administration accountable.

The article reports:

If John Brennan is furious, good things are happening.

The former CIA director and Russiagate architect is “livid” about the firing last week of two longtime intelligence officers by President Trump’s top spy chief. “It’s appalling and outrageous and demonstrates why Tulsi Gabbard never should have been confirmed as director of national intelligence,” Brennan, his voice trembling with rage, said on MSNBC. “This is going to have real reverberations in the workforce.”

The firings involved people who were part of the politicization of the intelligence community. They were part of the ‘deep state.’

The article continues:

During their tenure, Brennan and Clapper, along with former FBI Director James Comey—last seen using beach rocks to threaten the president—weaponized the intel community to target Obama’s political enemies then worked with friendly news organizations to leak sensitive information to damage Trump.

History is repeating itself. Similar to Brennan’s bogus intelligence assessment claiming the Russians interfered in the 2016 presidential election to help Donald Trump win—a document that successfully sowed doubt over the legitimacy of Trump’s victory, derailed the first half of presidency, and prompted a criminal investigation into alleged Trump-Russia election collusion—the latest intel report is aimed at undermining the president’s Alien Enemies Act (AEA) proclamation.

Collins and Langan-Riekhof authored a memo stating:

“While Venezuela’s permissive environment enables TdA (Tren de Aragua) to operate, the Maduro regime probably does not have a policy of cooperating with the TdA and is not directing TdA movement to and operations in the United States,” the partially redacted document, released by Gabbard in response to a FOIA request, stated.

The goal of the memo was to undermine the deportation process of those gang members.

The article notes:

The memo on one hand condemned the Maduro regime for “lack of transparency” but simultaneously argued that the nonexistence of “top down directives” from Maduro officials to TdA leaders exonerates any connection between the two.

Further, the memo acknowledged that the unprecedented spike of illegal Venezuelans at the southern border during the Biden years “could include some TdA members.” The mass exodus from Venezuela—nearly 8 million residents have left since 2014 with at least 600,000 illegally entering the U.S. from 2021 to 2023—benefits Maduro as a result of “the logistical, financial, and political headaches that unregulated migrations has caused for the US government, its perceived principal adversary.”

But the memo nonetheless insisted “the Maduro regime probably is not systematically directing Venezuelan outflows.”

…Also in Brennan-like style, well placed leaks to Trump-hostile news organizations spawned the imaginary controversy; an early version of the NIC memo was disclosed to the media a few days after the president signed the AEA proclamation. “American intelligence agencies circulated findings last month that stand starkly at odds with Mr. Trump’s claims, according to officials familiar with the matter,” the New York Times reported on March 20. “The document…summarized the shared judgment of the nation’s spy agencies that the gang was not controlled by the Venezuelan government.”

The article notes that the leaks have a purpose:

That leak presumably is one of at least 11 unauthorized disclosures under investigation by Gabbard’s office. During an interview last week, Gabbard revealed that she has sent three criminal referrals related to leaks to the Department of Justice. They are, Gabbard said, are an attempt to “directly undermine the agenda and actions of President Trump.”

The leakers need to face serious consequences–not just a slap on the wrist.

When Your Business Is Ruined By Illegal Immigrants

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On Monday, Townhall posted an article updating the situation regarding the apartments taken over by the Venezuelan gang in Aurora, Colorado. It’s not a pretty picture.

The article reports:

A Colorado landlord has agreed to sell an apartment complex because it was taken over by the violent Venezuelan prison gang Tren de Aragua. 

According to the New York Post, landlord Zev Baumgarten had been fighting with Aurora, Colorado leadership after the city accused him of allowing Aspen Grove apartments to become a “trash-ridden, gang-infested hellhole.”

…Now, Baumgarten’s company has now agreed to sell, lease, or find some “similar disposition” for the complex. The complex was closed in August, reportedly displacing 300 residents. His company must pay to clean up the site (via NYP):

The article concludes:

Townhall previously reported how the gang had taken over apartment complexes in Aurora, terrorizing the residents.

Despite this, Democrat Gov. Jared Polis called the anger and fear that’s arisen from this situation “imagination.”

Polis’ press office offered the “snarky” statement in response to the New York Post’s reporting on the issue. 

“The Governor has already let the Mayor know that the State is ready to support the local police department with assistance from state troopers and the Colorado Bureau of Investigation if needed,” Shelby Wieman, a spokesperson for the Democratic governor, told The Post.

“But, according to police intelligence this purported invasion is largely a feature of Danielle Jurinsky’s imagination,” Wieman added. Jurinsky is a member of the Aurora City Council and has sounded the alarm on the illegal immigration crisis impacting the community. 

Why are we expecting people who broke the law to come into America to respect the laws of our country once they get here?

The Problem Of Illegal Immigrant Gangs Is Spreading

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On Friday, Zero Hedge posted an article about a problem a Texas oil company is having with Venezuelan gangs who are in America illegally.

The article reports:

It’s only going to get worse from here, as the Biden-Harris administration’s disastrous open border policies have now come to a ‘neighborhood near you’ (for some of you). In the past week, we saw armed Venezuelan prison gang Tren de Aragua members terrorize the northern Denver suburb of Aurora and other sanctuary cities run by far-left Democrats. New concerns out Thursday afternoon indicate critical infrastructure is now under threat from migrant cartel members. 

According to Libs of TikTok, a Texas-based oil/gas company issued a memo to employees informing them that police and the FBI have warned armed Cuba and Venezuela migrant gangs are committing thefts in the Permian Basin (America’s highest producing oil field). 

Here’s the memo:

Industry peers and law enforcement in West Texas (WTX) are aware of a recent increase in organized criminal activity inclusive of violent crimes, gang activity and oil field thefts in and around WTX operational areas. Specifically, regional law enforcement and the FBI advised that gang members emanating from Cuba and Venezuela are organizing and working in concert to commit thefts within the Permian Basin. These individuals and groups are armed, violent in nature and will not hesitate to use force.

Crimes associated with these groups include the theft of oil, diesel fuel, copper wire, and catalyst elements. Recent incidents have also included two assaults by water haulers who were attempting to steal oil from WTX oilfield sites. After the thieves were observed by witnesses who drove up to investigate, the thieves attempted to use their vehicles to run the witnesses off the road. In another incident, a thief, acting as a spotter and following a water hauler who had stolen oil, also attempted to run a witness off the road. There have been numerous reports of second vehicles acting as spotters for water haulers committing oil thefts.

This is what happens when you have no southern border.

This Is Going To Be A Nationwide Problem

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For the past three and a half years, America’s southern border has been wide open. We have no idea who is coming over the border or why. The only control of the immigration coming into America is the Cartels, and they do not have America’s best interests at heart. The open-border chickens are now coming home to roost.

On Tuesday, BizPacReview reported:

Jesse Kelly recently posted a letter regarding the ongoing madness in Aurora, Colorado, in which the author claims leaders are attempting to “minimize the issue.”

A person claiming to be a police officer in the town claimed that the situation is much worse than those talking to the media would have you believe, and the press needs to continue to keep the heat on until the problem is resolved.

This is the letter:

“I am a police officer in Aurora, Colorado and we are in the news for the recent story about the armed Venezuelan gang members taking over apartment complexes,” the letter begins. “I am happy to see the story make national news to where the Aurora Police Department command staff and City of Aurora leadership are being asked the hard question about what is occurring.”

“Unfortunately these ‘leaders’ are not being truthful nor are they acknowledging the problem as they know it to be,” the writer continues. “They are also trying to minimize the issue by implying the issue is confined to just the apartment complexes in the city. This could not be further from the truth. The Venezuelans are wreaking havoc throughout the city.”

“Please help keep this story in the spotlight so the City of Aurora can no longer downplay the matter. The reality is the citizens and out officers are not safe as long as the issue continues to be ignored and real solutions are not being implemented. Due to my employment status and the international information I possess on this matter, I cannot have you air my name. Thank you,” the message concludes.

Meanwhile, on Monday The Gateway Pundit reported:

Last night, a shocking 911 call was shared by Libs of Tik Tok on X, that revealed 32 armed Venezuelan migrants were attempting to overtake an apartment complex in Chicago last night.

…Winter is right around the corner. Did anyone honestly think these Venezuelan gangs who ruled the countries they came from, were going to be sleeping in tents in local parks while unarmed Chicago residents slept inside?

This Chicago resident warns the ARMED Venezuelan gangs thinking about taking over their places of residency in gun-free Chicago, “We got switches!”

Thank God for the Second Amendment. I suspect many residents in places where it has been curtailed are wishing they had guns to defend themselves and their property.

Every State Is A Border State

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On Friday, The New York Post posted an article about a June jewelry store robbery in Denver.

The article reports:

Four Venezuelan migrants believed to have links to the notorious prison gang Tren de Aragua were indicted Wednesday in the violent armed robbery of a Denver jewelry store — including two migrants who have previously been arrested in other states, The Post can reveal.

Three of the alleged gangbangers — Oswaldo Lozada-Solis, 23, Jesus Daniel Lara Del Toro, 20, and Jean Franco Torres-Roman, 21 — were charged with armed robbery and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence, the US Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado announced Wednesday.

The fourth migrant, Edwuimar Nazareth Colina-Romero, 18, was charged with transporting stolen goods and possession of stolen goods.

The charges stem from a June 25 robbery in which two female staffers at Joyeria El Ruby Jewelry Store were pistol-whipped and threatened with death.

No, the countries who are invading our southern border are not sending us their best.

The article notes:

Lozada Solis crossed the border into Laredo in October of 2022, according to Homeland Security records obtained by The Post. He had told border authorities that he was heading to Atlanta and was let into the country with an ankle monitor.

However, the illegal migrant cut the monitor off after about 200 days, according to the records. It is unclear when he arrived in the Big Apple.

The article concludes:

Three days after the Denver heist, Lozada-Solis, Torres-Roman and Colina-Romero were all captured at a Motel 6 in El Paso, Texas, according to sources.

The motel is “notoriously used by transnational criminal organizations in the smuggling/harboring of illegal aliens and illegal drugs attempting to make it further into the United States,” sources said.

Officers also arrested seven others at the motel believed to be tied to the same Tren de Aragua operation, including another migrant, Newman Castillo Delgado, who has a rap sheet. Castillo Delgado, however, has not been indicted in the jewelry store robbery.

Castillo Delgado was previously nabbed in Chicago for allegedly shoplifting $3,114 worth of Ralph Lauren clothing from a local department store in June 2023, according to CWB Chicago.

A judge later released him pending prosecution, the outlet reported.

Castillo Delgado then failed to appear in court after his release and a warrant was subsequently issued for his arrest, according to the Cook County Clerk’s Office.

Castillo Delgado crossed the border illegally into Texas in August 2022, when he was released by Border Patrol and enrolled in a tracking program, which he absconded around January 2023, according to Homeland Security sources.

While making the arrests at Motel 6, police found a firearm and the stolen jewelry, which the group was trying to flush down the toilet, according to sources.

Under the Biden-Harris administration, every state has become a border state.

Using Our Own Laws Against Us

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On Thursday, The New York Post posted an article about Venezuelan national Leonel Moreno, who appears to live in a suburb of Columbus, Ohio.

The article reports:

A migrant TikToker with a 500,000-strong online following is offering his comrades tips on how to “invade” unoccupied homes and invoke squatter’s rights in the United States.

Venezuelan national Leonel Moreno, who appears to live in a suburb of Columbus, Ohio, said in a recent video that under US law, “if a house is not inhabited, we can seize it.”

He appeared to be referring to adverse possession laws, commonly known as squatter’s rights, which allow unlawful property occupants rights over the property they occupy without the owner’s consent, in certain circumstances.

Moreno claimed in the viral TikTok clip, which has drawn more than 3.9 million views, that he has “African friends” who have “already taken about seven homes.”

The firebrand influencer, who lives with his partner and their baby daughter, argued that the only way for his fellow migrants to escape living on the streets and not become a “public burden” is to “invade” unoccupied homes.

Many TikTok commenters were outraged by Moreno’s message encouraging squatting, which has emerged as a major problem in recent years across the US, and especially in Democrat-led cities including New York City, Atlanta and Los Angeles. 

“This guy needs to be charged with whatever crime,” one angry critic wrote.

Recently I posted an article about what is happening in New York where squatters have taken over a number of homes.

It’s time for our lawmakers to either fix the laws that are allowing this or be voted out of office so that we can find new lawmakers.

Lawlessness Affects Us All

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On Saturday, Breitbart posted the following headline:

‘We’re Just Waiting for Another 9/11’: Migrants Buy Fake Green Cards, Social Security ID from NYC Gangs

The article reports:

Black market fake green cards and social security identification are being openly hawked to illegal migrants on the streets of New York City, a report revealed.

Criminals linked to MS-13 and other gangs have been spotted selling the fabricated documents this week in Queens, the New York Post reported.

At least ten men were selling the bogus cards for $80 to $250 while “camped out in broad daylight at four corners along Roosevelt Avenue in Queens,” according to the outlet.

Roy Fenoff, an associate professor at the Department of Criminal Justice at the Citadel, South Carolina, said the documents grant migrants access to almost everything a citizen has.

“Once people have these fake cards, they can work, they can travel, they can access a lot of aspects and services in the United States,” he said. “There are people getting these cards that are not here just to get a job, that they have other intentions, and this helps them carry out criminal activity.”

I wonder how many of the fake id card purchasers will vote in November. How many of them will be paid to vote? How many of them will link up with groups with nefarious purposes?

The article concludes:

Illegal aliens can even skirt past criminal charges by giving fake identities to law enforcement.

“If they’ve never been fingerprinted before, under their fake name they can get arrested five, six, seven, eight times… and they themselves would never have a record,” said John Cutter, retired NYPD deputy chief of the Intelligence Division.

“With fake IDs, they become [a] ghost, so they become more emboldened and more willing to break the law and potentially do something that’s really serious,” he added.

The brother of Jose Antonio Ibarra, the illegal migrant who allegedly killed 22-year-old nursing student Laken Riley, has been charged with allegedly possessing a fake green card, which he used to get a job at the University of Georgia.

Diego Ibarra, 29, was taken into custody by the Clarke County Sheriff’s Office after being fired from his dishwasher job at one of the school’s dining halls upon refusing to provide additional identifying documents, Breitbart News reported.

Diego has “been linked to a brutal Venezuelan gang,” according to the New York Post.

How many Venezuelan gang members does it take to plan a terrorist attack or terrorize a small town? I am hoping we don’t find out.

Putting American Interests Last

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Venezuela is an obvious example of a prosperous country rapidly declining. As I noted in a recent article, the country went from freedom to tyranny in a very short time. The chances of Venezuela returning to its former status as a free, prosperous nation are very slim. However, evidently the Biden administration has hope.

On Monday, Townhall posted an article about President Biden’s decision to allow Chevron to resume pumping oil in Venezuela. This decision is in obvious contrast to the President’s limiting oil production in America.

The article reports:

The Treasury Department announced Saturday that it was giving Chevron the green light to pump in the socialist country for the first time in years in a joint venture with the country’s national oil company, Petróleos de Venezuela.

The article includes the following quote from former White House Economic Adviser Stephen Moore:

Commenting on the news, Moore said he nearly fell out of his chair reading the headlines.

“This is the same administration that won’t allow us to do drilling here in the United States, not in Texas, not in Oklahoma, not in Alaska, not in West Virginia. But we can pump oil from Venezuela,” he told Fox News of the “America last” policy. “It makes absolutely no sense…When Trump left office and I helped Trump on energy policy, our whole policy was to make America totally energy independent so we wouldn’t have to rely on countries like Venezuela and Iran and Russia. And so somebody explain this one to me because it makes no sense.”

The article concludes:

A White House official claimed the move has nothing to do with current oil prices, but instead is “about the regime taking the steps needed to support the restoration of democracy in Venezuela,” an administration official told The Wall Street Journal. 

Wow. If you believe that, I would like to sell you a bridge in Brooklyn. You can have all the tolls you collect.

It Could Happen Here

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Yes, it could happen here. The December issue of America’s 1st Freedom includes an article by Gabby Franco, a former resident and Olympian from Venezuela. Ms. Franco chose to leave her family and country and come to America in 2004. In the article she explains what happened to change Venezuela from the richest country in South America to one of the poorest.

The article notes:

Venezuela is surrounded by paradisiacal turquoise waters in the north and an enigmatic rainforest in the south. There are no seasonal natural disasters—no hurricanes, tornados, blizzards or wildfires—such as there are in various areas of the United States. But an idea that the government should be given so much power that it could take away every right of the individual citizen—even their right to self-defense—did lead to the country’s ruination.

As a former citizen of Venezuela who became a U.S. citizen, I am now hearing many of the same things I heard in Venezuela from certain anti-Second Amendment politicians. I was an Olympic shooting competitor representing Venezuela and am now a lawful gun owner here in America. I don’t want to see this right being threatened again.

…Venezuela was once a place where people could find jobs, prosper, dream about their future and, with hard work, succeed, despite social and political issues. My parents were born in a rural town where there were not even flushing toilets until the late 1950s. My mom became a high-school teacher, and my dad was a machinist who dreamed of owning a machine shop. They married in the late 1970s and lived on my mom’s salary for several years as my dad built his business. They showed my siblings and me that dreams are possible with hard work and dedication.

During that time, law-abiding Venezuelans could own firearms and apply for a concealed-carry license. My father was an avid hunter who filled up the freezer with venison, duck, rabbit and any other animals he deemed tasty. Children could go to the gun range with their parents to practice the shooting sports.

…Hugo Chávez took power in 1999 and ruled the country via executive orders from the beginning. The terrible implications of his actions were palpable, as he aimed to take farmland away from its owners. Chávez did not waste time in pushing his socialist agenda, influenced by Fidel Castro, seeding hatred and envy amongst Venezuelans. I remember one time a person on a motorcycle stopped next to my dad’s SUV and spat on it. It was a symbolic gesture showing his hatred toward us for having a good vehicle. What this man did not know is that my parents were born poor but rose through their will and dedication.

Hugo Chávez’s actions did not go by unnoticed. A Cuban friend, whom I’ll call Jose, warned many of us at the gun range about Venezuela’s future under Hugo Chávez. These warnings were, as Gabriel Garciá Márquez wrote, a “chronicle of a death foretold.” It was indeed a hard pill to swallow for many, who often replied with something like: “That would never happen here. Venezuela is the richest country in the region. Venezuela is not an island like Cuba.”

Ms. Franco notes the danger to America:

I know it is hard to imagine that any of this could happen in America, but it is. The same divisive rhetoric I heard in Venezuela and then from Obama is used even more today. Venezuela’s current situation is the result of giving more power to the government, eliciting corruption, mismanagement and excessive spending; moreover, it was not an immediate change. Socialists took Venezuelans on a one-way journey to misery one step at a time. Unfortunately, I see America heading in that direction if we continue with the current socialist agenda that favors a powerful government, gun control, more regulations and a politicized justice system. Thus, it is imperative that Americans rally to preserve our Constitution and our nation by voting out anyone who wishes to undermine our constitutional rights.

Please follow the link above to read the entire article. It is chilling to hear her story and realize that the same thing could happen here.

 

Where Are They Coming From?

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According to a Western Journal article in August:

The illegal border crossings, which occurred between Oct. 1, 2021, and Aug. 6 2022, already exceed the 1,662,422 Border Patrol encountered in fiscal year 2021, which was already a record high for the force, according to the internal data.

The record number comes after Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas assured the public in July that “the border is secure.”

So where are these people coming from? On Friday, The Epoch Times reported the following:

Venezuela is deliberately releasing prisoners, among them violent criminals, and has them travel to the U.S. southern border, a development that prompted 14 House Republicans to write to Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.

Rep. Troy Nehls (R-Texas), who is leading the Republican effort to have Mayorkas answer questions, said in the Sept. 22 letter that the decision by the Nicolas Maduro regime has put the United States “in grave danger.”

“We write you with serious concern about a recent U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) intelligence report received by Border Patrol that instructs agents to look for violent criminals from Venezuela among the migrant caravans heading towards the U.S.-Mexico border,” the letter says, citing a recent report from Breitbart.

The outlet reported on Sept. 18 that it had reviewed the DHS intelligence report from an unnamed source within the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). The report warned that released prisoners—including those convicted of murder, rape, and extortion—had been seen within migrant caravans traveling from Tapachula, Mexico, to the southern border, as recently as July.

The article concludes:

The 14 Republicans want Mayorkas to answer more than 10 questions, including the precautions DHS is taking to prevent these Venezuelan criminals from entering the United States.

“Have any of the Venezuelan nationals encountered at the southern border this year been suspected to be released prisoners?” says one of the questions. “Does DHS have a projected headcount of how many released Venezuelan prisoners are expected to enter the U.S.?”

Another question asks, “Do you have reason to believe that the release of the convicts could be a purposeful geopolitical move specifically intended to impact U.S. national security?”

“We need transparency and accountability from this administration,” Nehls wrote on Twitter.

The open southern border of America is a national security issue. It is only a matter of time until that porous border results in a terrorist incident that leaves Americans dead.

The Wrong Answer

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On Tuesday, The Daily Caller reported that the Biden administration is preparing to ease sanctions on Venezuelan oil imports into America.

The article reports:

The Biden administration is expected to soon announce it would ease sanctions on Venezuelan oil amid the ongoing energy crisis, several media outlets reported.

The federal government will ease “some” of the energy sanctions on Venezuela, two senior administration officials told CNN. In addition, U.S. oil corporation Chevron will be allowed to enter into negotiations with Venezuelan state-owned firm PDVSA over potential continued operations in the South American oil-rich nation.

The article concludes:

“Our experience buying Russian energy should have taught President Biden that buying energy from tyrants is a dangerous proposition,” Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member John Barrasso said in a statement.

“Yet President Biden continues to reward our enemies by waiving sanctions while his administration does its best to kill American energy production. Funding despots isn’t in the national interest. Supporting American energy is,” he continued.

Venezuela consistently ranks as one of the least “free” countries in the world, according to Freedom House.

Meanwhile, the Biden administration has increasingly moved to restrict further domestic oil and gas production. The Department of the Interior canceled the three remaining federal offshore oil and gas lease sales last week and dramatically scaled back the federal onshore program in April.

The average price of gasoline reached an all-time record $4.52 a gallon on Tuesday, according to AAA data.

The White House didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment from The Daily Caller News Foundation.

The Biden administration is under tremendous pressure from the environmental extremists to end America’s use of fossil fuel. What the environmentalists don’t realize is that America is one of the most environmentally safe countries in the world in its extraction of fossil fuel. Getting fuel from Venezuela is not only foolish because it strengthens a tyrant, but because it is not as environmentally friendly as drilling practices in America. This move by the Biden administration is another step in the wrong direction.

Some Perspective On Gasoline Prices

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Issues & Insights recently posted an article about some of the behind the scenes aspects of the rapidly rising gas prices.

The article notes:

That gasoline prices are becoming unaffordable to many Americans is becoming old news. What got us here, though, is a story unheard by much of the public. It starts and ends with green politics.

As gasoline reaches prices that made it a luxury good during President Joe Biden’s year in office, the White House is considering asking the Saudis to produce more oil. At the same time, the administration apparently wants more oil from Venezuela, which is languishing under a dictatorship that’s squarely aligned with Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Iran, a member in good standing with the axis of evil.

“Joe Biden is frantically searching the globe to see if anyone but Texas might have some spare oil,” says a tweet from Bryan Dean Wright, a former CIA officer and Oregon Democrat, that sums up well the comical blundering as well as the corrupt decision-making of the current White House.

The article concludes:

But green politics won’t allow the U.S. to take advantage of its bounty of crude and natural gas. Oddly, though, the environmentalists who hold energy policy hostage when Democrats are in power have no problem with this country importing oil from nations where the drilling and transportation processes are dirtier than they are in the U.S., and the regimes are not democratically elected.

This is the California model. Officials and activists’ rush to create an all-renewables electricity grid has forced the state to import energy from producers in Arizona, Baja California, Colorado, Mexico, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, and Utah that rely on natural gas, nuclear energy, and coal, three sources that California wants to eliminate from its portfolio. But this is acceptable, because it’s happening somewhere else, outside the view sheds of the wealthy enclaves on the coast.

It’s the same with the mining of the natural resources that are needed to build batteries for electric cars, cell phones, and other modern conveniences. The political left is happy to use these items as long as the extraction for material used in their manufacture is done away from their myopic gazes in countries where environmental protections hardly exist.

Yes, this not-in-my-back yard attitude is hypocritical, but worse than that, it produces poor public policy. We hope some day a majority of voters consistently figures this out in election after election.

Green energy destroyed the Spanish economy and did not lower carbon emissions (article here). Let’s not do that in America.

Mafia-style Tactics

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Yesterday The America Thinker posted an article about a recent event in Seattle.

The article reports:

Grocery retailer Trader Joe’s, which refused to cave in to political correctness in its product names, is experiencing new problems with Black Lives Matter protesters in Seattle, according to Breitbart News:

Black Lives Matter protesters pushed their way into a Seattle Trader Joe’s demanding the company give “15 percent at least.” The group has repeated the tactic of harassing the store’s staff and customers over the past few months.

A video tweeted Thursday night shows a large group of BLM activists entering a Seattle Trader Joe’s store. They chanted and beat drums as they marched through the grocery chain location.

Seattle has five Trader Joe’s locations, and Breitbart reports that three of them have been hit in this way.  It shows that Trader Joe’s, which resisted the demands, remains a target, based on Seattle’s failure to send police to protect them.

A Tweet included in the article notes:

This is exactly how mafia works. Either you pay us something – il “pizzo” it’s called in Italian – or we burn down the place at least. This can happen when the State is absent, that’s why defunding the police in crucial in every mafia system.

The article concludes:

BLM is led by “trained Marxists” who just happened to have learned their tactics at Hugo Chávez’s knee.  Here’s a piece I did on their pilgrimages to Caracas, where these kinds of shakedowns are what goes on in that hellhole.  And don’t think the Chavista agenda they embrace isn’t to harm the entire U.S.  Here’s one I wrote from 2019.  Venezuelans, too, have noticed the similarities.

Now their successors in the U.S. are turning Seattle into a hellhole, too, complete with Venezuela-style shakedowns. 

Seattle is getting pretty comparable to Caracas without police to enforce rule of law just on crime and disorder alone, but Trader Joe’s is no battered Venezuelan storefront shop.  It’s a huge national private corporation whose structure protects it from activist shareholders stirring up the pot and agitators calling for woke acts, allowing it to do what it always does which is put the interests of its customers first.  Instead of pay the danegeld, Trader Joe’s is in a position to walk out.

It’s shown backbone in standing up to rioters, and who knows how many shakedowns it has fended off.  But if it gets bad — and recall that Breitbart notes that three stores in Seattle have been targeted — it may well decide that the cost of doing business in Seattle outweighs the benefits and pull out of the city and open up someplace less mafia-like.

By then, the city may become a food desert — self-inflicted, based on the majority’s voting choices.

At some point, we are going to hear people who live in the cities that have refused to deal with the BLM protestors complain that there are no convenient grocery stores or other markets. At that point they will have only themselves to blame–if you keep electing people who refuse to enforce the law, eventually you have no law.

A Short History Lesson

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Many Americans have not been taught the history of socialism in America. In November 2011 Liberty Under Fire posted a short article about the Pilgrims’ experiment with socialism.

The article reports:

William Bradford, the colony’s governor its first 30 years, wrote of the agreement between the Pilgrim passengers and the financial “Adventurers” in his book Of Plymouth Plantation. He noted that the seven-year contract signed July 1, 1620, before leaving Plymouth England, stipulated that the Pilgrims were to pool, for common benefit, “all profits and benefits that are got by trade, traffic, trucking, working, fishing, or any other means of any person or persons…” It further noted “that at the end of the seven years, the capital and profits, viz. the houses, lands, goods and chattels, be equally divided betwixt the Adventurers and Planters…” During this time the colonists were to “have their meat, drink, apparel, and all provisions out of the common stock and goods of the said colony.” It doesn’t get more socialistic than this because the government divvied out the goods and loafers received the same as those who worked.

The first two years the result was shortages and starvation. About half the colonists died. No one did more than the minimal because the incentive to excel was destroyed. The industrious were neutralized. Bradford wrote of the scarcity of food “no supply was heard of, neither knew they when they might expect any.” The socialist experiment Bradford added, “was found to breed much confusion and discontent and retard much employment that would have been to the benefit and comfort. For the young men, that were most able and fit for labour and service, did repine that they should spend their time and strength to work for other men’s wives and children without any recompense….” In other words, socialism made strong men lazy. In another book written by the same author, History of Plymouth Plantation, Bradford spoke of another problem because of the government created famine—thievery. Even in this Christian community, “much was stolen both by night and day….”

After two years of such, with the survival of the colony at stake, they contemplated upon “how they might raise as much corn as they could, and obtain a better crop than they had done, that they might not still thus languish in misery.” They opted to abandon the incentive killing socialist contract in favor of the free market. And so they “assigned to every family a parcel of land, according to the proportion of their number, for that end…”

The effects were almost immediate. A delighted Governor Bradford wrote: “This had very good success, for it made all hands very industrious, so as much more corn was planted than otherwise would have been by any means the Governor… could use, and saved him a great deal of trouble, and gave far better content. The women now went willingly into the field, and took their little ones with them to set corn; which before would allege weakness and inability; whom to have compelled would have been thought great tyranny and oppression.” In other words, the free market is a much greater stimulus than governmental force. The Pilgrims now wished to work because they got to keep the benefits of their labor. “Instead of famine now God gave them plenty,” Bradford wrote, “and the face of things was changed, to the rejoicing of the hearts of many, for which they blessed God…. Any general want or famine hath not been amongst them since to this day.”

The article notes that secure property rights are the key to prosperity. This principle was  embraced recently by Hernando de Soto.who has focused on a revolutionary concept that is having repercussions throughout the world’s poor countries: the lack of formal property rights is the source of poverty in poor countries. (see article here)

We have watched the decline of Venezuela as they have moved into socialism (article here). We need to learn the lessons of history–not repeat the mistakes.