well, they're going after the oil in venezuela, and that's the sign i was looking for to suggest this is serious, not a bunch of smoke and mirrors.

did trump re-open the government to start a war?

you could maybe ask the question of why they didn't go after venezuela in the first place; it's clearly an easier target than iraq. but, when america inherited britain's policy on iraq, it also inherited britain's strategic perspective - and a war to steal oil from iraq is certainly the more rational option, from london.

the timing of this is all very suspect. and, frankly, they may regret getting what they wished for - they find that whatever comes next is far worse for their own interests. maduro is completely reliant on america for everything; you'd think they'd want to keep it that way. but, american policy in venezuela is 99% about the oil, so when the sanctions come down it means they're following through with it. i've been saying for years that if they wanted regime change, they'd target the oil - and here we go.

the intent is probably to produce a military revolt, which is more likely to lead to a junta than an election. this kid they've got working the streets is a useful idiot. and, then you get the guerilla warfare for the next 20 years, like in columbia.

it's not very smart, tactically. but, the president's poll numbers aren't very good...

this kind of thing litters roman history, and we see what happened in the end. solidarity with the campesinos. your grandchildren will reap the rewards of their arrogance.