The US announced joint military flight drills in Guyana in response Venezuelan referendum
The Venezuelans recently held a referendum. This referendum involved asserting Venezuela’s claims to the Essequibo region of Guyana. Venezuelan President, Nicolás Maduro, claimed overwhelming support in this referendum, despite low voter turnout. This action prompted Guyana, and countries like the United States and Brazil, as well as the United Nations, to issue statements related to this development.
From CBS News:
The United States announced joint military flight drills in Guyana on Thursday as tensions over a contested oil-rich region with neighbor Venezuela prompted the U.N. Security Council to call an urgent meeting.
A border feud has been spiraling over the Essequibo region, which has been administered and controlled by Guyana for more than a century, although Venezuela also claims the disputed area. Venezuela recently conducted a referendum, which it claims citizens supported, that aims to give Venezuela authority over the Essequibo region. Guyanese officials said in response that the country is preparing to defend itself and its borders in case of an invasion.
The United States announced joint military flight drills in Guyana on Thursday as tensions over a contested oil-rich region with neighbor Venezuela prompted the U.N. Security Council to call an urgent meeting.
A border feud has been spiraling over the Essequibo region, which has been administered and controlled by Guyana for more than a century, although Venezuela also claims the disputed area. Venezuela recently conducted a referendum, which it claims citizens supported, that aims to give Venezuela authority over the Essequibo region. Guyanese officials said in response that the country is preparing to defend itself and its borders in case of an invasion.
The spat is drawing in the international community, with the U.S. announcement of military exercises the latest sign that Washington is alarmed at the threat from the authoritarian leftist Venezuelan government of President Nicolás Maduro.
“In collaboration with the Guyana Defense Force, the U.S. Southern Command will conduct flight operations within Guyana on December 7,” the U.S. Embassy in Guyana said in a statement.
CBS News has additional information.
Category: "Teh Stoopid", International Affairs
You and what Air Force? The entire military of Guyana wouldn’t be enough to staff an aircraft carrier. The UK is supposed to be responsible for the defense of Guyana anyway.
They want to do something productive? I suggest air dropping all of the people that entered the US illegally from Venezuela on to Caracas. We’re talking at least half a million. Largest airborne operation since D-Day. But a problem solver.
Put ‘em all in palletized tri-walls and out the back. How many can we fit in a C5? Air load planner’s course was 20 years ago.
Why should the UK spend blood, treasure or money when the can just as easily ask biden to do it.
Treaty obligation. Leftover from the colonial days when they used to rape the country for resources.
Problem there is that the entire Brit military is like 10,000 people.
Yup, we’re heading into election season. I’m no political analyst, butt I think that Biden needs a war. Three wars are even better. We can take on those tricky “Ugly Stupid Stinking Russians”, bringing back my childhood vernacular of the USSR acronym. We can continue our wars in the Middle East by helping Israel take on every Arab nation as well as Iran. Now, we have hopes of getting into fisticuffs with Venezuela.
If we send our young men and women across the globe to engage in active combat, Biden looks like a no-nonsense STRONG (p)Resident in Chief. “We’re not gonna take it, Ukraine, Israel, and Guyana are key allies and have had our back since my school days when the Huns were killin’ Israelites left and right. If I go over there, we’ll step behind the bleachers and see who does the most pushups before my butt’s been wiped. You mess with David; you get the Goliath. You know, the thing…”
Depending on his handlers and the rest of the decision makers, I can see us just sitting on the sidelines, waiting for the results of November 2024. We’re either going to war for Biden votes or staying on the cusp of war so Trump or another Republican can be blamed when things flare up in a year. After all, Trump didn’t start or escalate any conflicts. It would be a real shame if “he” suddenly got us involved in three conflicts in late January 2025. It depends on what the aforementioned analysts determine next year’s results will be, coupled with the Deep State types who determine national policy and who they want to look good or bad in office. Hint: Biden good, Trump bad.
On a final note, WWKD? What Would Kissinger Do? If only we knew…
What would Kissinger do? Get us involved in a war, I’d imagine.
Who is the general who recently spouted off that if congress didn’t give Ukraine money he would have no choice but to put American boots on the ground?
Does he speak for Congress, and if so, we do we even have a congress.
I don’t think it was a currently serving officer. I think Austin said something along those lines in a closed-door meeting with some congresspeople and Kirby said something similar in a press briefing. Either way, it’s the height of arrogance.
Agreed. Sucks for him that it got out. Now, if we only had some people in charge with a pair to very publicly give them a good old fashioned smack down 🤔
Here you go:
I wouldn’t call it the height of arrogance (MacArthur set that bar), but it’s still pretty high up.
Yeah, but MacArthur actually prosecuted a war to a successful conclusion. Neither of these guys have or ever will.
Concur that neither is the man MacArthur was. Still MacArthur was relieved for legitimate reason while these idiots continue to drive the bus.
What’s the point of having this superb military that you’re always talking about if we can’t use it?
Madeleine Albright
https://libquotes.com/madeleine-albright/quote/lbs7j6z
And in response to that bitch’s comment:
https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_kCkDY0sf80nxPvFsri_5zXuzUrZ8QhQzQ&si=–AlCsQtviBViM2n
The money shot in re the above comment. Yep Darth Austin said it.
Does this really surprise us? Perfumed princes punched their tickets over decades’ long careers to get to where they are. Can we expect anyone in the Cabinet to not place themselves on a pedestal that their Dear Leader has convinced them they belong on. If Biden or his chosen replacement wins next year, I fully expect the Vainglorious General Mark “Ruckus” Milley to gain some position or another. If Austin is qualified to be SECDEF, as “Mad Dog” Mattis was, then Milley is a shoe-in. He was especially Special Forces and wants to make our forces super special again… Oh, and the Not the Bee reported on this, so it must be true: Tucker Carlson says US defense secretary told House members their “uncles, cousins and sons” would be sent to fight Russia if they don’t send more money to Ukraine 🚨 | Not the Bee
Are any of us really surprised by our current shortcomings in recruiting numbers across the Armed Forces? “Join the [insert service here]! Free college, be part of the they/themhood, benefits fer lyfe, Be All That Few, Proud, Global Force For Good, etc. etc. etc.”
Reality: join us, sucka, and we’ll get you a deployment real fast. Don’t worry, everyone gets multiple medals and badges, a Combat device in the Army, and bragging rights for life.
Glad I’m done, and increasingly glad I seem the be the last of my line to serve. The National Archives are nice, and I’ve seen musters going back to the Revolution and War of 1812 with my forebears on them. Given the fact that this year marks the 400th since my family stepped foot onto the Eastern Shore of VA, I can imagine that our service goes back a way before that. My son has little interest in enlisting or commissioning, and I can’t push him towards any military service these days.
I would gladly join up again to fight Russia, if the objective were actually to beat Russia. Or China. Or Iran. Or any potential enemy who seeks to undermine this great American experiment.
I’m now in my mid-40s but can still outrun the better-than-average 18yo joe in the 2-miler, despite considerable and documented knee damage. I hit what I aim at, and can still carry what I need (including extra essentials for my buddy) on my back….
Yet, I’m straight and white and (was) a senior NCO…. My kind need no longer apply.
I had a company 1st sgt. that served in that brown boot army of the 1950’s. I spent a great deal of time with him when we were on FTX’s in Germany. One of my favorite stories he told was during his service in the 1950’s in the 11th Airborne Division. He told of a simple means of dealing with the soldiers who were discipline problems. They had what was called the Goon Platoon. It was billeted on the fourth or fifth floor of a tower in the kaserne. Each morning the platoon had reveille at 0330. After a full equipment inspection layout, the platoon was road marched with full field packs 10 to 15 miles out in the countryside for breakfast. Then they trained all day until dark. They had to run up and down that four flights of stairs multiple times every day. In order to escape the Goon platoon, one had to progress to be promoted to at least squad leader. According to MSG Alegria, when a man returned from the Goon Platoon, he was invariably a model soldier. I should add that Alegria was the finest NCO I ever served with. He retired as the CSM for the Sixth Army. He also served as the CSM for TOG, even though he is about 5′ 6”.
This is the clip I was looking for. Lloyd Austin can suck a bag of dicks.
Glad to help. BTW…don’t threaten Darth Austin with something he would enjoy.
How much of that Ukraine money goes to Raytheon or companies Austin has an interest in?
A bunch, less 10% for The Big Guy, of course…and the other pigs at the trough. Another article has Blinken (?) talking about how many jobs have been created at the MIC for “hard working Americans” since ‘Kraine War started and how great that is. Still digging for that one, but here’s one that has some interesting facts and vids to see.
https://simplicius76.substack.com/p/establishment-alarmism-in-overdrive
A snippet of the Blinken comment
Austin forgot to mention their daughters, trannies, and other flavors of alphabet people. Oh, wait many of those will not be deployable, anyway. Thus, he need not mention them as combat troops.
In my opinion, the US military as a whole is being socially constructed into a largely ineffective force.
Of course, we will always have top tier combat units, from conventional units that train hard and are ready to take on any enemy worldwide to SOF that are better trained and equipped than anyone else. The Paratroopers from the 82nd, who I walked through the woods with during my PM-IVAS days were really young, but super motivated and, unknown to them at the time, about to be tossed into Afghanistan for that withdrawal. Given what they had, I think they did a fine job with minimal notice. Not too unlike the Rakkasans sent to Afghanistan in late ’01 (before my time) and then to Kuwait in February 2003, only six months after getting home.
The social construction is transforming the bulk of our military into entitled and self-important people who are free to do nearly anything they want.
My Dad’s Army (late ’50s-early ’60s) was a much different one than my brother’s (mid to late ’80s, before getting firmly booted), which in turn was different than mine (post-9/11 2001 to just over a year ago). One thing we all had in common, though, was that we were Infantrymen in an all-male environment where discipline reigned supreme.
In 2002, just as the Main Body got back from Afghanistan, I was a PV2. Walking to my car, digging in my pocket for the keys, someone shouted at me, “Hey, PVT, get your hand out of your pocket!” It was then SSG Coonass (name changed to protect the innocent), who’d served as a Marine in Desert Storm and would in a matter of months be doing naked side-straddle hops on his cot as a couple other SSGs played poker with some female officers in Kuwait.
To be continued…
So, SSG Coonass (now a retired SGM), was enforcing a key thing about the Army back then. You don’t put your hands in your pockets, similarly your headgear is on as soon as you’re outside, but off as soon as you’re under cover. The uniform is to be respected, and your behavior must reflect the discipline and readiness of the unit at all times.
We lost a lot of that discipline over the years, due to a multifaceted series of attacks on Army culture. Call me a conspiracist if you want, but the BDU days were ones of “Spits and Starches” or at least “Fluff and Buffs” (I was usually the latter; my Squad Leader was too but implored us to be the former until we made SSG). In 2005, when ACUs came out, shining boots became a thing of yesteryear, as did ironing or pressing uniforms.
About the same time, cell phones were becoming almost a necessity. I got my first cell phone in the late ’90s but didn’t regularly have one until 2005 or so.
So, my time in started much like my brother’s. BDUs, shined boots, payphone lines in OSUT with calling cards and long-distance charges, Parade, Rest or Attention in the hallway when anyone outranking you walked by, and few (if any) authorized stops in uniform off-post.
Okay, for the sake of (relative) brevity, I’ll try to get to my point…
Non-deployability is what’s going to make the bulk of our Armed Forces ineffective. While Combat Arms units will mostly remain capable of doing some damage across the globe, even they are going to suffer from pregnant female Senior NCOs and officers. There will be a force of “alphabet people”, to quote rgr769, that are willing and able to support the troops from stateside. Drone operators and Rear-D support come to mind.
While non-deployable Service Members (SM) hurt the service, though, undisciplined and entitled SMs do far more damage. TikTok Trans SMs make their branches look like Clown World, with soft-looking men in uniform transitioning to Stunning and Brave drag queens or outright trans personas. SMs who disagree with certain things speak out without fear of repercussions. In my Army, I supported my CinC, even if I didn’t care for him (Obama, and Biden, who sadly never signed my retirement certificate; wait, I never got a flag either, good thing I have my own). Now it’s okay to speak ill against the CinC, even if you’re the CJCS, and I’ll toss in that anyone currently serving who rants about Biden is no better. Off duty, out of uniform, and in private is one thing. Driving home in OCPs and live streaming your disdain for a policy is another.
Social construction… “Give us your trans, your needy, your mentally ill, and we’ll give them steady pay and a uniform to look glamorous in. Post your TikToks, your tweets, your biased opinions in uniform for all to see and hear. Report your NCOs and officers who dare to question your actions (unless you’re an Insurrectionist Trump supporter). Never fear a deployment because we’ll provide free transition ‘therapy’ and late-term abortions free of charge! Let those bloodthirsty Infantry types fight in Guyana, while you get the promotions and awards you deserve.”
Kissinger got us involved in wars that benefited American interests – and he worked to end them once those goals had either been met or become sunk costs.
If Biden gets us into a war, it will be because no incumbent has ever lost an election during an active war (Afghanistan was never a declared war, and it was at an established cessation under Trump until Biden fucked it up).
Agree to disagree. Vietnam ended up as a black eye for us and, while he didn’t get us into it, he got left holding the bag. Right, wrong, or indifferent. And what goals were met in Vietnam? Sunk costs? No, you fight to win. And if you can’t, understand that your reputation takes a hit. Again, right or wrong, that’s the reality. Fight to win or don’t fight at all.
Kissinger’s legacy extends far beyond Vietnam (likewise, and often, with questionable results). Ultimately, he was always looking out for US interests.
I’ll argue his legacy in Vietnam is colored by the failure of his accord (and, to his credit, he tried to return his Nobel and donated the prize money). That failure, itself, falls more upon Congress and the Senate than upon him.
As far as his bombing campaign in Cambodia (Operation Freedom Deal) while National Security Advisor under Nixon, that was an effective delaying action against Khmer Rouge efforts to take the capital.
It also protected a lot of the South Vietnamese border from NVA incursion. Granted, it had a devastating second-order effect on Cambodia’s rural economy and an ultimate third-order recruitment boost for the Khmer Rouge….
Those, however, could have been mitigated had the larger strategy not been abandoned.
The War Powers Act is more to blame for Cambodia’s devastation than is either Operation Freedom Deal or Operation Menu (though Pol Pot deserves the lion’s share of the blame).
Lon Nol’s inability to control the country played a role, too.
Don’t get me started on South America.
My point is: Kissinger gets unfairly blamed for the failures of those who sought to disrupt his efforts.
Having spent fifteen months in combat infantry units in Vietnam, I agree. When I left in October, 1971, I knew that war was lost because of the way we were NOT fighting it to win.
. Before I spent my year in RVN I had read a couple of Bernard Fall’s books, a novel named “The Centurions” by Jean Larteguy, and a few other odds & ends. After a relatively short time “in-country” I got a feeling of deja vu. When I came back in early ’69 I gave it 5 years. The accuracy of the number 5 number was admittedly a lucky guess. The end result was predictable. As was Afghanistan.
PS
One of the lies McNamara used as an excuse for his stupidity was that nobody had any experience or knowledge of Vietnam, its history, or the history and tactics of the Communists. Total BS. The French, among others, did some rather good post mortems on their experiences there and in Algeria. It was available to anyone who was interested.
Deja vu:
“C’mon man…you can’t compare Kabul 2021 with Saigon 1975. I mean, in 1975 my pullout game was flawless. I was 42, er, 32, I forget the number, and in my prime, just ask Jill, you know…I met her when just a month before we got the hell out of Dodge, true story, I voted for it as Senator, and they knew better than to mess with me. Speaking of Dodge, I met Matt Dillon once and offered to take him behind the stables. Don’t tell Jill, but I wanted Miss Kitty for myself. That would have been the best pullout in the 1870s, I mean, you know, the thing.”
“While those boys in Vietnam were fighting the Japs, I was fighting for equal rights in Congress against that madman Trump and his buddy George Washingman. You might say it was a war to end all peace, and 2020 proved that we are the most vegetarian, err, egalitarian society in America. I ended the war in Afghanistan, and personally welcomed home the first non-binary full Admiral from the war, Adam Levine. You know, it ain’t all smooth under that uniform skirt. Ask Obama, he knows what that means [wink, wink].”
“Don’t worry, we’ve got another chance to Make America Great Again, I mean Just Say No to Malarkey. We got to send those boys to Nukraine, to Ishmael, and to that one Guy’s place down south. They need to make up for letting down the team and get that last five yards like I would have for Navy if they knew who they were dealing with in ’65. Staubach, Bellino, and Corn Pop were some tough SOBs, but I’d have taken them. Anyway [nods off] …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… I hereby endorse Hillary for 2028. Here’s my new campaign slogan: ‘Anything I can do at 81, she can do at 82!’.”
–Xiden (allegedly)
Asia, check. Middle East, yep. Europe going strong. Where else can we squander blood and treasure?
How thin is Cheif Joey Shits his Pants planning to spread our military out? Why don’t we send our corporal Klingers, officer Klingers, and Klinger supporters to this action. Phuque this guy and his “supporters”.
I nominate ADM Levine for COMTRANSFAT (Commander, Transgender Forces Against Tyrants), with the Honorable Sam Brinton as SADDSACK (Senior Ambassador for Dem Donors Seeking American Combat Killers). MAJ Jones would serve as an excellent AS3 for PSIOPS (Post-Surgical Identity Operations): Living authentically saves Soldier’s life | Article | The United States Army
Meanwhile, promote Emma immediately to PSG in the GAI (Gender All-Inclusive) Brigade and hire her two moms as GS-15s running DA Civilian support ops. There are plenty of diverse individuals who are highly qualified, but let’s make Haver and Griest Battalion Commanders while we’re at it, and just send all of the “New Army” over there. Keep the old, musty, and archaic troops over here, like most of my former peers, while the Stunning and Brave types prove themselves in conflicts across the world.
I learned in The Old Guard, during Twilight Tattoo, that the Buffalo Soldiers won the West, and that the 442nd, Tuskegee Airmen, and WACs fought WWII by themselves. No disrespect meant to anyone who served in those units (though the interwebs will gladly cancel me over that statement), and we are all “One Team, One Fight”, but when certain “teams” get promoted ahead of peers and placed on a pedestal, the disgruntled Infantryman in me
comes out…is triggered… doesn’t like it. Damn it, poor word choice…I’ll end this now.Uh-oh!
The UN Security Council has called an urgent meeting!
Venezuela better start trembling…after it gets done laughing it’s ass off.
Prepare
I’m so glad Biden was elected.
We have so much peace all over the globe now that mean tweets Orange Man is gone.
Operation Golden Pheasant II
I can’t wait to see the colors chosen for the Guyana service ribbon.
Gay Pride ribbon is already taken. Maybe just make the ribbon all tan? Y’know, fuck the Rangers? Or maybe Rifle Green?
Just give them a special hat – maybe a tiger-striped boonie cap? And a tab. Let’s call it the “Monroe’s Best” tab and, no matter how good they are at their job, let’s give it precedence over the triple ladder because that will draw in more recruits!
Even better, give them jackboots and brown shirts and call them “Brandon’s Hundred.”
So, in other words, the left wing decisions of Venezuela are running out of money and now need to find another source of $$.
Makes sense!
When do leftist, communist, liberals figure out that their way of thinking doesn’t work?
Even when “the other guys” didn’t do it right!
Aren’t we buying our oil from Venezuela? And Venezuela wants to get their hands on oil rich Guyana and we supposedly are now backing Guyana? Why don’t we just buy from Guyana to begin with, or better yet, drill our own oil.
“This action prompted Guyana, and countries like the United States and Brazil, as well as the United Nations, to issue statements related to this development.”
Issuing statements, especially if strongly worded, touch my heart every time.
May God bless these wordsmiths!!!
“…and we will send you a letter telling you how angry we are” from Team America: World Police.