Trump's Venezuela Vendetta

[The Minsky Moment]

35-40% of voting Americans supporting this parade of lunacy is nothing to boast about.  Horrifying really.

[HVC]

He also has the adoration of 50% of the voting public and the acquiescence if not right out support of another large chunk. The American public is not free of blame. And for however much longer they're a democracy* the population also bares the moral burden of what's happening.

*only kind of joking.

Public opinion surveys suggest that this is a wild exaggeration.

Agre about the moral burden, though. Having second thoughts does not excuse making the irredeemable mistake of voting for him in the first place.

Public polls said he was going to lose... twice. They've lost some credibility

[Josquius]

A former US ambassador has put forth the idea trump is planning to attack Venezuela to line up with the epstein files being released..... Which does make sense

[grumbler]

35-40% of voting Americans supporting this parade of lunacy is nothing to boast about.  Horrifying really.

True, but it would be a more salient observation if there was anyone here actually boasting about it.

[HVC]

A former US ambassador has put forth the idea trump is planning to attack Venezuela to line up with the epstein files being released..... Which does make sense

In the days before internet media that might work, only so much space on the front page after all, but that method is a lot less effective now.

[Josquius]

A former US ambassador has put forth the idea trump is planning to attack Venezuela to line up with the epstein files being released..... Which does make sense

In the days before internet media that might work, only so much space on the front page after all, but that method is a lot less effective now.

I'm not so sure. If your feed is full of one thing then you'd have to be specifically interested in the other and actively seek it out.

[Oexmelin]

You can't reclaim democracy with polls.

[HVC]

A former US ambassador has put forth the idea trump is planning to attack Venezuela to line up with the epstein files being released..... Which does make sense

In the days before internet media that might work, only so much space on the front page after all, but that method is a lot less effective now.

I'm not so sure. If your feed is full of one thing then you'd have to be specifically interested in the other and actively seek it out.

But the people interested can find what they need. And the Epstein files are juicy enough to have a following. Then theres YouTube, and podcasts and even old school forums (like languish ) so even people without interest get exposure. There are infinitely more sources of information now. That has many, many, many downfalls but there are still some benefits.

[grumbler]

You can't reclaim democracy with polls.

Squirt guns aren't much help, either.

[Oexmelin]

For sure.

[Josquius]

A former US ambassador has put forth the idea trump is planning to attack Venezuela to line up with the epstein files being released..... Which does make sense

In the days before internet media that might work, only so much space on the front page after all, but that method is a lot less effective now.

I'm not so sure. If your feed is full of one thing then you'd have to be specifically interested in the other and actively seek it out.

But the people interested can find what they need. And the Epstein files are juicy enough to have a following. Then theres YouTube, and podcasts and even old school forums (like languish ) so even people without interest get exposure. There are infinitely more sources of information now. That has many, many, many downfalls but there are still some benefits.

Yeah, but the people actively interested in anyrhing political are already a minority. One that already thinks Trump is the devil.
It's the average American they care about. The politics they get is what shows up on their feed, they aren't hunting for it.

[Razgovory]

You can't reclaim democracy with polls.

Squirt guns aren't much help, either.

That's why we throw soup at paintings.

[Jacob]

A former US ambassador has put forth the idea trump is planning to attack Venezuela to line up with the epstein files being released..... Which does make sense

If and when Trump actually countenances the use of the American forces to enact regime change it will be the crossing of a significant line. Typically it requires a certain level of moral clarity and taking of responsibility that is anathema to Trump's core being.

How well will his equivocating, wink-wink nudge-nudge blame games and bluster play out when people start dying in numbers as a direct result of his decisions?

Traditionally Americans exhibit a significant level of rallying around the flag when they engage in a new military conflict. How much will that play out here?

I expect the success of the endeavour will also have an impact. If it's an unmitigated disaster for Americans, that will play out differently than if it's a surgical display of pure American dominance (though social media will play a role here, no doubt).

It certainly will be interesting to see what happens in a scenario where Trump overcomes his aversion to deploying the US military, if it becomes habitual (whether he's actually making a decision himself, or whether it's a pro-war clique inside his administration who pushed it through).

Also, I feel like for a traditional American regime change intervention, we should be seeing a massive media ramp up explaining why the Venezuelan regime is evil and how it would be morally wrong to not overthrow them right now. I've basically seen none of that - either they're not doing it, or they're doing it but I'm so far outside the target group that I'm not even seeing it second hand.

[Valmy]

He also has the adoration of 50% of the voting public and the acquiescence if not right out support of another large chunk. The American public is not free of blame. And for however much longer they're a democracy* the population also bares the moral burden of what's happening.

*only kind of joking.

Public opinion surveys suggest that this is a wild exaggeration.

Agre about the moral burden, though. Having second thoughts does not excuse making the irredeemable mistake of voting for him in the first place.

Public polls said he was going to lose... twice. They've lost some credibility

Public polls had him ahead this last time. Don't make shit up.

[Zoupa]

A former US ambassador has put forth the idea trump is planning to attack Venezuela to line up with the epstein files being released..... Which does make sense

If and when Trump actually countenances the use of the American forces to enact regime change it will be the crossing of a significant line. Typically it requires a certain level of moral clarity and taking of responsibility that is anathema to Trump's core being.

How well will his equivocating, wink-wink nudge-nudge blame games and bluster play out when people start dying in numbers as a direct result of his decisions?

Traditionally Americans exhibit a significant level of rallying around the flag when they engage in a new military conflict. How much will that play out here?

I expect the success of the endeavour will also have an impact. If it's an unmitigated disaster for Americans, that will play out differently than if it's a surgical display of pure American dominance (though social media will play a role here, no doubt).

It certainly will be interesting to see what happens in a scenario where Trump overcomes his aversion to deploying the US military, if it becomes habitual (whether he's actually making a decision himself, or whether it's a pro-war clique inside his administration who pushed it through).

Also, I feel like for a traditional American regime change intervention, we should be seeing a massive media ramp up explaining why the Venezuelan regime is evil and how it would be morally wrong to not overthrow them right now. I've basically seen none of that - either they're not doing it, or they're doing it but I'm so far outside the target group that I'm not even seeing it second hand.

You don't need any media ramp up if there's no real pushback from civilians against anything you do.