I feel he is preparing to use the same methods, message and logic when he trains his bombs on the American people. What the heck...let's get rid of the Somalis in Minnesota, the Mexicans in California, or the Muslims in NY. Don't think for a minute that it's not part of his plan. Thus the bunkers in MAL and EW. You've taught me how to spot this shit, Jack
Coco, I'll keep it tight and grounded...because your pattern recognition is REAL, even if the endpoint needs some mods.
You’re RIGHT that the logic used to justify force abroad can be rhetorically turned inward. History shows that clearly. Spotting that risk...isn’t paranoia...it’s awareness.
But...there’s an important line...there’s no evidence of plans for literal military attacks (at least right now) on U.S. civilians. That would shatter legal...military...and institutional lines he depends on.
What IS realistic...and dangerous as hell...is:
*Dehumanizing rhetoric
*Collective blame
*Selective enforcement framed as “law and order”
*Extraordinary measures justified through process...not bombs
That’s how repression actually happens.
So...yes...you’re seeing the warning signs correctly!
Just keep the focus on mechanisms...not worst-case imagery.
That’s how you stay sharp instead of scared...and the nation needs you deeply concerned...but NOT scared.
Hopkins’ point is devastating: the panic over Epstein files proves power fears visibility more than accountability. Transparency isn’t dangerous—it’s destabilizing to elites. That’s the tell
HKJANE...Exactly. That’s the tell...and you nailed it.
If accountability were the real fear...they’d argue facts...context...or legality. Instead...they panic over VISIBILITY. Because visibility....shifts LEVERAGE. It removes the ability to manage reputations...pace disclosures...and negotiate consequences behind closed doors.
Transparency isn’t dangerous to the public.
It’s destabilizing to ELITES....who depend on opacity to function.
And...when you see power react that way...not with denial...but with alarm...you’re watching the mask slip.
Jack . . . when Putin invaded Ukraine I, and many others, thought he wouldn't stop with Ukraine. That's the thing that has been scaring me since the beginning. I have read articles about that, but not enough. This might sound a little off, but I don't think so. I still don't know why Venezuela, and why now, but he has been striking other countries and giving a variety of reasons, and now I wonder: does he have some off-the-wall idea that he can overcome other countries, just as Putin seems to be doing? Yes, I know, it's a really round the bend idea, but, since our president is round the bend, is it not too insane a thought? Maybe our president, along with his close followers, thinks he can achieve world dominance before he shuffles off to his insane asylum in the sky.
Jan...I hear what you’re circling...and it’s not “round the bend,” but it does need to be framed precisely so it stays "real."
No...this isn’t about conquering the world in the Putin sense. The U.S. isn’t positioned for territorial expansion...and Trump doesn’t think in those terms anyway. He’s not a strategist...he’s an impulse-and-image operator.
What IS similar to Putin...is something subtler and more dangerous...testing boundaries to see what breaks...and...what doesn’t.
Putin misread Ukraine because he believed:
*Institutions were hollow
*Resistance would collapse
*Norms no longer constrained him
*Trump’s mindset overlaps there...not in geography...but in PSYCHOLOGY.
He believes:
*Rules are negotiable
*Force creates legitimacy
*Pushback is mostly performative
Venezuela...isn’t about domination. It’s about demonstrating that he can act without consequence...abroad...publicly...and unilaterally. Each strike is less about the target...and more about resetting expectations of what’s “normal.”
THAT...is the real risk: not conquest...but NORMALIZATION of escalation. Once leaders convince themselves that nothing meaningful pushes back...they keep going...not toward empire...but toward chaos.
So...your fear isn’t that he wants to rule the world.
It’s that he’s willing to keep pushing....until something stops him.
And that, Jan...is a historically valid concern....and...it’s why restraint...institutions...and accountability matter NOW...not later.
Of course..."Winter break", Christmas, New Year's holiday.
348 Million Americans looking away.
What better time to start a WAR.
CONGRESS will deal with this "...in a week," when it comes back. It is much TOO LATE, and they will fuss and argue about this instead of DOING something about it. No one seems to be agitating to REMOVE anyone, except Pam Bondi. Rather a "soft" target they can waste time with. In ELEVEN MONTHS, when they could have tried to SAVE AMERICA, they just let it go....
EVERY DAY they have an option to DO something.
COWARDS? TRAITORS? Does it matter what we call them anymore?
There are a lot of " worst" parts, but one of them is that we are PAYING them💰💰💰💰💰💰💰.
Did you know that in March 2020 Trump's Treasury quietly BAILED OUT BANKS AND WALL ST WITH A TOTAL OF 3-4 TRILLION DOLLARS? The market was crashing. Said the market needed "LIQUIDITY."
Small paragraph in business journal.
Just took it, but Americans sick, dying, hungry? Not going to be seen bailing anyone out. Not worth the risk.
😡😠😡😡😠😡
Keep pointing out what is REALLY going on Jack.
I'm angry and the future does not look good at this point.
One granddaughter is starting college next September, the other granddaughter is starting Medical school.
We live in Washington State, so things will be okay for awhile, but as you say, it is no guarantee.
This is the part where I say, "Things will look better in the morning." I want to know: WHICH morning. Holding fast.
NK...I hear the anger...and more importantly...I hear the fear beneath it. That fear damn sure isn’t irrational. It’s what people feel...when they sense systems stalling at the exact moment urgency is required.
You’re right about timing. Power has always exploited lulls...holidays...recesses... distraction. Not because people are stupid...but because attention is the real check on authority.
When attention drops...action accelerates.
Congress delaying...punting...“getting to it next week”...that’s not new...but it is dangerous when the moment calls for immediacy.
Here’s the grounding truth...though...and it matters right NOW:
What’s happening...isn’t a war in the conventional sense.
It’s something slower...and more corrosive: normalization through DELAY.
Institutions don’t usually fail because of one catastrophic act. They fail because everyone waits for the “right moment” to act...and that moment keeps getting deferred.
Your anger about bailouts is certainly justified. March 2020 was a perfect example of priorities laid bare: trillions mobilized instantly for markets...while ordinary people were told help was complicated...risky...or politically inconvenient. That wasn’t incompetence. It was values revealed. And...it was soul-less BULLSHIT.
But here’s the part I don’t want you to lose sight of...especially thinking about your granddaughters:
History doesn’t move in straight lines. It moves in pressure waves. There are moments that feel like collapse....right BEFORE resistance consolidates. Not because things magically improve...but because enough people finally REFUSE to normalize what’s happening.
“Which morning?” is the right question. I can’t promise it’s tomorrow.
But I can say this: mornings arrive when truth KEEPS being named...when anger is turned into sustained attention...and when people stop waiting for permission to demand accountability.
He wants the oil in Venezuela and He is power hungry much like Putin. He probably still thinks he can take the entire north and south America and let putin have Europe and Africa, Not sure what that leaves for china but drumpf believes he can always take whatever he wants because no one has ever stopped him...heck even E. Jean Carroll has not received what he owes that the court ordered as he is trying to wrangle his way out of paying, His other big game is distraction as in don't look over there look over here. He is very dangerous, and my question is how much longer will our military go along with his illegal raids and bombing...#HOLDFAST
Teri...you’re right about the danger...and the key is keeping the threat accurately framed.
Yes, oil matters. Yes..distraction is central to how he operates. And yes..he’s spent a lifetime acting as if consequences are optional.
But...he doesn’t think like Putin...in terms of grand maps or hemispheric conquest. He thinks in leverage...transactions, and proving he can get away with things.
That distinction matters.
The real risk isn’t a coherent plan to dominate continents. It’s incremental escalation fueled by the belief that no one will stop him...because...historically...they haven’t.
As for the military...it is not loyal to him personally. It will stretch...hedge...and tolerate gray areas...BUT... it will not follow sustained...overt illegality that exposes officers to prosecution or permanently fractures alliances. THAT...I am certain of.
That’s why you’re seeing limited scope...and careful ambiguity. Those are signs of internal constraint...not confidence.
So...yes...vigilance is very much warranted.
But...he is not unconstrained.
Refusing normalization...refusing distraction...and keeping attention focused is exactly where real pressure still exists.
Thank you Jack, it’s NOT okay what the administration is doing to Venezuela, or any country (tariffs etc) threats, including domestically here. I have to catch up on your previous articles.
Joan, you’re right...it’s NOT okay. Not abroad...not at home...not under any pretext.
Threats...coercion...and punishment masquerading as policy erode legitimacy everywhere they’re used...and tariffs or strikes don’t become moral just because they’re wrapped in “strength” language.
Take your time catching up. The through-line in the recent pieces is exactly this...power revealing itself not through competence...but through pressure...and how refusing to normalize that behavior is the first...NECESSARY act of resistance.
I’m glad you’re here, Joan. Holding fast matters...ESPECIALLY when things feel unsteady.
It’s related, Julie...but importantly different...and that difference matters.
The strikes in Iran (or against Iranian-linked forces) were usually framed as retaliatory or deterrent actions tied to specific attacks on U.S. personnel or assets.
They sat... sometimes uncomfortably...inside an existing pattern of proxy conflict...prior authorizations...and long-running military posture in the region.
Still controversial...often escalatory...but legible within a known framework.
Venezuela is different.
There’s no active armed conflict with Venezuela. No ongoing war footing. No recent attack on U.S. forces requiring immediate response.
That makes these actions feel less like retaliation and more like boundary-testing...seeing how far unilateral force can be pushed outside traditional war zones...legal justifications... or established theaters.
So the similarity...is the MINDSET: executive willingness to use force quickly and expansively.
The difference is the precedent being set.
Iran strikes lived inside an already dangerous box.
Venezuela cracks open a NEW one.
That’s why this moment deserves SPECIAL attention.
Hang on. This can't be unstoppable. Congress? Courts? We're already in the streets for a myriad of issues. Obviously, the military isn't questioning orders. Elections are a dream away. What about right now?
Trump just punched the smaller kid for his lunch money and everybody was watching. I see two possibilities that Trump has not considered. Most likely, Venezuela will send one of its seal team equivalents into the US and attack a non-military target but something that will make a statement. Maybe, blowup the Washington Monument. I can see China attacking Taiwan and North Korea attacking South Korea possibly in a coordinated attack. North Korea might even elect to employ tactical nuclear weapons. After all, Trump has already shown a disdain for our allies so he will threaten action, but action will never be taken because this kid is a bigger bully and he may take Trump's lunch money and Trump can't afford the embarrassment.
Thanks, Jack, for putting the writing clearly on the wall for all of us to see. Our electeds have failed us. How the hell do we stop this fucking maniac and his enablers?
I feel he is preparing to use the same methods, message and logic when he trains his bombs on the American people. What the heck...let's get rid of the Somalis in Minnesota, the Mexicans in California, or the Muslims in NY. Don't think for a minute that it's not part of his plan. Thus the bunkers in MAL and EW. You've taught me how to spot this shit, Jack
Coco, I'll keep it tight and grounded...because your pattern recognition is REAL, even if the endpoint needs some mods.
You’re RIGHT that the logic used to justify force abroad can be rhetorically turned inward. History shows that clearly. Spotting that risk...isn’t paranoia...it’s awareness.
But...there’s an important line...there’s no evidence of plans for literal military attacks (at least right now) on U.S. civilians. That would shatter legal...military...and institutional lines he depends on.
What IS realistic...and dangerous as hell...is:
*Dehumanizing rhetoric
*Collective blame
*Selective enforcement framed as “law and order”
*Extraordinary measures justified through process...not bombs
That’s how repression actually happens.
So...yes...you’re seeing the warning signs correctly!
Just keep the focus on mechanisms...not worst-case imagery.
That’s how you stay sharp instead of scared...and the nation needs you deeply concerned...but NOT scared.
-Jack
Hopkins’ point is devastating: the panic over Epstein files proves power fears visibility more than accountability. Transparency isn’t dangerous—it’s destabilizing to elites. That’s the tell
HKJANE...Exactly. That’s the tell...and you nailed it.
If accountability were the real fear...they’d argue facts...context...or legality. Instead...they panic over VISIBILITY. Because visibility....shifts LEVERAGE. It removes the ability to manage reputations...pace disclosures...and negotiate consequences behind closed doors.
Transparency isn’t dangerous to the public.
It’s destabilizing to ELITES....who depend on opacity to function.
And...when you see power react that way...not with denial...but with alarm...you’re watching the mask slip.
-Jack
Jack . . . when Putin invaded Ukraine I, and many others, thought he wouldn't stop with Ukraine. That's the thing that has been scaring me since the beginning. I have read articles about that, but not enough. This might sound a little off, but I don't think so. I still don't know why Venezuela, and why now, but he has been striking other countries and giving a variety of reasons, and now I wonder: does he have some off-the-wall idea that he can overcome other countries, just as Putin seems to be doing? Yes, I know, it's a really round the bend idea, but, since our president is round the bend, is it not too insane a thought? Maybe our president, along with his close followers, thinks he can achieve world dominance before he shuffles off to his insane asylum in the sky.
Jan...I hear what you’re circling...and it’s not “round the bend,” but it does need to be framed precisely so it stays "real."
No...this isn’t about conquering the world in the Putin sense. The U.S. isn’t positioned for territorial expansion...and Trump doesn’t think in those terms anyway. He’s not a strategist...he’s an impulse-and-image operator.
What IS similar to Putin...is something subtler and more dangerous...testing boundaries to see what breaks...and...what doesn’t.
Putin misread Ukraine because he believed:
*Institutions were hollow
*Resistance would collapse
*Norms no longer constrained him
*Trump’s mindset overlaps there...not in geography...but in PSYCHOLOGY.
He believes:
*Rules are negotiable
*Force creates legitimacy
*Pushback is mostly performative
Venezuela...isn’t about domination. It’s about demonstrating that he can act without consequence...abroad...publicly...and unilaterally. Each strike is less about the target...and more about resetting expectations of what’s “normal.”
THAT...is the real risk: not conquest...but NORMALIZATION of escalation. Once leaders convince themselves that nothing meaningful pushes back...they keep going...not toward empire...but toward chaos.
So...your fear isn’t that he wants to rule the world.
It’s that he’s willing to keep pushing....until something stops him.
And that, Jan...is a historically valid concern....and...it’s why restraint...institutions...and accountability matter NOW...not later.
-Jack
Of course..."Winter break", Christmas, New Year's holiday.
348 Million Americans looking away.
What better time to start a WAR.
CONGRESS will deal with this "...in a week," when it comes back. It is much TOO LATE, and they will fuss and argue about this instead of DOING something about it. No one seems to be agitating to REMOVE anyone, except Pam Bondi. Rather a "soft" target they can waste time with. In ELEVEN MONTHS, when they could have tried to SAVE AMERICA, they just let it go....
EVERY DAY they have an option to DO something.
COWARDS? TRAITORS? Does it matter what we call them anymore?
There are a lot of " worst" parts, but one of them is that we are PAYING them💰💰💰💰💰💰💰.
Did you know that in March 2020 Trump's Treasury quietly BAILED OUT BANKS AND WALL ST WITH A TOTAL OF 3-4 TRILLION DOLLARS? The market was crashing. Said the market needed "LIQUIDITY."
Small paragraph in business journal.
Just took it, but Americans sick, dying, hungry? Not going to be seen bailing anyone out. Not worth the risk.
😡😠😡😡😠😡
Keep pointing out what is REALLY going on Jack.
I'm angry and the future does not look good at this point.
One granddaughter is starting college next September, the other granddaughter is starting Medical school.
We live in Washington State, so things will be okay for awhile, but as you say, it is no guarantee.
This is the part where I say, "Things will look better in the morning." I want to know: WHICH morning. Holding fast.
🗽🇺🇲🇺🇦
NK...I hear the anger...and more importantly...I hear the fear beneath it. That fear damn sure isn’t irrational. It’s what people feel...when they sense systems stalling at the exact moment urgency is required.
You’re right about timing. Power has always exploited lulls...holidays...recesses... distraction. Not because people are stupid...but because attention is the real check on authority.
When attention drops...action accelerates.
Congress delaying...punting...“getting to it next week”...that’s not new...but it is dangerous when the moment calls for immediacy.
Here’s the grounding truth...though...and it matters right NOW:
What’s happening...isn’t a war in the conventional sense.
It’s something slower...and more corrosive: normalization through DELAY.
Institutions don’t usually fail because of one catastrophic act. They fail because everyone waits for the “right moment” to act...and that moment keeps getting deferred.
Your anger about bailouts is certainly justified. March 2020 was a perfect example of priorities laid bare: trillions mobilized instantly for markets...while ordinary people were told help was complicated...risky...or politically inconvenient. That wasn’t incompetence. It was values revealed. And...it was soul-less BULLSHIT.
But here’s the part I don’t want you to lose sight of...especially thinking about your granddaughters:
History doesn’t move in straight lines. It moves in pressure waves. There are moments that feel like collapse....right BEFORE resistance consolidates. Not because things magically improve...but because enough people finally REFUSE to normalize what’s happening.
“Which morning?” is the right question. I can’t promise it’s tomorrow.
But I can say this: mornings arrive when truth KEEPS being named...when anger is turned into sustained attention...and when people stop waiting for permission to demand accountability.
Holding fast isn’t passive.
It’s an act of REFUSAL.
And....you’re not doing it alone. You're not!
-Jack
He wants the oil in Venezuela and He is power hungry much like Putin. He probably still thinks he can take the entire north and south America and let putin have Europe and Africa, Not sure what that leaves for china but drumpf believes he can always take whatever he wants because no one has ever stopped him...heck even E. Jean Carroll has not received what he owes that the court ordered as he is trying to wrangle his way out of paying, His other big game is distraction as in don't look over there look over here. He is very dangerous, and my question is how much longer will our military go along with his illegal raids and bombing...#HOLDFAST
Teri...you’re right about the danger...and the key is keeping the threat accurately framed.
Yes, oil matters. Yes..distraction is central to how he operates. And yes..he’s spent a lifetime acting as if consequences are optional.
But...he doesn’t think like Putin...in terms of grand maps or hemispheric conquest. He thinks in leverage...transactions, and proving he can get away with things.
That distinction matters.
The real risk isn’t a coherent plan to dominate continents. It’s incremental escalation fueled by the belief that no one will stop him...because...historically...they haven’t.
As for the military...it is not loyal to him personally. It will stretch...hedge...and tolerate gray areas...BUT... it will not follow sustained...overt illegality that exposes officers to prosecution or permanently fractures alliances. THAT...I am certain of.
That’s why you’re seeing limited scope...and careful ambiguity. Those are signs of internal constraint...not confidence.
So...yes...vigilance is very much warranted.
But...he is not unconstrained.
Refusing normalization...refusing distraction...and keeping attention focused is exactly where real pressure still exists.
-Jack
Asia for China.
That is what I was trying to remember
Thank you Jack, it’s NOT okay what the administration is doing to Venezuela, or any country (tariffs etc) threats, including domestically here. I have to catch up on your previous articles.
Sharing only
https://newrepublic.com/article/204191/stephen-miller-maga-terror-state-dark-plot and this I believe is dangerous, your thoughts would be appreciated
https://www.bbc.com/reel/video/p0lwdg8y/is-this-how-ai-might-eliminate-humanity-
Joan, you’re right...it’s NOT okay. Not abroad...not at home...not under any pretext.
Threats...coercion...and punishment masquerading as policy erode legitimacy everywhere they’re used...and tariffs or strikes don’t become moral just because they’re wrapped in “strength” language.
Take your time catching up. The through-line in the recent pieces is exactly this...power revealing itself not through competence...but through pressure...and how refusing to normalize that behavior is the first...NECESSARY act of resistance.
I’m glad you’re here, Joan. Holding fast matters...ESPECIALLY when things feel unsteady.
-Jack
Jack, is this the same as or different from the strikes in Iran?
It’s related, Julie...but importantly different...and that difference matters.
The strikes in Iran (or against Iranian-linked forces) were usually framed as retaliatory or deterrent actions tied to specific attacks on U.S. personnel or assets.
They sat... sometimes uncomfortably...inside an existing pattern of proxy conflict...prior authorizations...and long-running military posture in the region.
Still controversial...often escalatory...but legible within a known framework.
Venezuela is different.
There’s no active armed conflict with Venezuela. No ongoing war footing. No recent attack on U.S. forces requiring immediate response.
That makes these actions feel less like retaliation and more like boundary-testing...seeing how far unilateral force can be pushed outside traditional war zones...legal justifications... or established theaters.
So the similarity...is the MINDSET: executive willingness to use force quickly and expansively.
The difference is the precedent being set.
Iran strikes lived inside an already dangerous box.
Venezuela cracks open a NEW one.
That’s why this moment deserves SPECIAL attention.
-Jack
Jack, thank you for bringing us along with you on this journey.
Need to catch up in the morning.
Hang on. This can't be unstoppable. Congress? Courts? We're already in the streets for a myriad of issues. Obviously, the military isn't questioning orders. Elections are a dream away. What about right now?
Trump just punched the smaller kid for his lunch money and everybody was watching. I see two possibilities that Trump has not considered. Most likely, Venezuela will send one of its seal team equivalents into the US and attack a non-military target but something that will make a statement. Maybe, blowup the Washington Monument. I can see China attacking Taiwan and North Korea attacking South Korea possibly in a coordinated attack. North Korea might even elect to employ tactical nuclear weapons. After all, Trump has already shown a disdain for our allies so he will threaten action, but action will never be taken because this kid is a bigger bully and he may take Trump's lunch money and Trump can't afford the embarrassment.
Thanks, Jack, for putting the writing clearly on the wall for all of us to see. Our electeds have failed us. How the hell do we stop this fucking maniac and his enablers?
#HoldFast