We have just issued this YouTube short, recorded in the snow this morning:
The transcript is:
If you want to understand Britain's future, look at how Trump is dealing with Venezuela.
It's ceased to be a country. It's just an asset. It's an oil field. It's there to be exploited. It's democracy, it's statehood, power, all of them are subject to US control as far as he's concerned.
This is a different worldview. It is imperialism. It is all colonialism revived.
And now, where do we stand in the world here in the UK? Let's just be realistic for a moment. We have no real influence. We gave up our influence in Europe, which was enormous, by leaving the European Union. We are now just in the orbit of the USA. We have no control there. We have no power. We are subject entirely to their whim. What does that mean? We are capable of exploitation and control just as Venezuela is. Everything is tilted in the US's favour.
Trade deals, defence deals, everything literally is about what they want, and nothing is about what we want.
Where does that leave us? With a massive decision to make. Who are we going to align with in the future? Is it the USA? Are we just going to become their aircraft carrier near Europe? The Trojan horse that they have to influence European policy in US favour. Or are we going to choose to align with Europe? Are we going to reassert our democratic power? Are we going to take control? Are we going to find our own allies as we did in the past? Are we going to take back control?
That's the choice we have to make, and it's one that has to be taken very soon, and Keir Starmer either has to make it or go and let someone else make it on our behalf.
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Of course, we should spare a thought for America….. Many in the past have said that America is not so much a country – as an idea. Well …. that idea is well and truly dead. Look at the wording of the Declaration of Independence, the wording on the statue of Liberty (‘Give me you …’). Trump’s US is the antithesis of the ideas of its founders. The writings of Paine setting up the basis of a people-lead (ok, man-lead) republic and they took steps to prevent the dangers of autocratic rulers – like the countries those immigrants left. Well … things have changed.
That idea is well and truly dead. Perhaps the best thing a weak and pathetic Labour party can do is to mourn the loss of America’s idealism. Let’s have performative funerals. Treat America like the embarrassingly racist guest at a Christmas party – pity them (they’ll hate it!) . And let’s get rid of all the things that the UK does to facilitate the US projection of power (on our shores and other UK-controlled locations around the world).
Though it was never benign, many used to argue that the US’ ability to broker power was tolerable: There is now no doubt – America is no longer the World’s Policeman or caring big brother — but the World’s Thug (and Very dodgy uncle).
I like your thinking.
The American “idea” had been fatally weakened ever since slave-owners and slave traders unrepentantly and hypocritically penned the words of the Declaration of Independence, about all men being created equal.
The American Declaration of Independence was conceived and authored by hypocrites, more fond of their wealth than their integrity. Others, generations of slaves and their descendants, the Civil War dead, the victims of generations of institutional racism, all paid the price for the hypocrisy and greed of the founding fathers who were no better than the British colonialists they rebelled against.
They still live with that legacy.
We here in the UK, are making the same choices today, and are equally hypocritical, equally morally culpable. We know exactly what we are doing. We know we are wrong. We do it anyway.
We could behave differently.
I just made a remark on the Independent in that Starmer does make little bit by bit moves but in response to pressure. Even if he gets to the position of choosing Europe ( which would be the right decision ) it will not be enough to save him. If he leads the way, it might-possibly!
“Keir Starmer either has to make it or go”… so that would be go then. Next step: US embassy in the UK reduced to 1/10th of its size. Israeli embassy closed. US financial institutions reduced in size or expelled.
Within the EU institutions, there is a paper circulating on finance and how to challenge US & Chinese hegemony (or would that be hedge money?). End last year, the CEO of EON was whining on (@ a meeting) on how he had to raise Euro1bn every ten weeks and the only place to do that was in the USA. What is going on?
The UK and the EU face the same problems wrt the USA. Joint action is needed. This will, in turn expose Fart-rage and Deform for the Trump-shills that they are.
In 1953, Iran nationalised its oil industry. A coup followed.
In 2003, Iraq said no more US dollars for oil. A coup followed.
In 2011, Gaddafi said that a gold-backed African currency should be traded for oil. A coup followed.
In 2025, Venezuela has $1-trillion in gold and $17-Trillion in oil, won’t sell to Israel, and won’t use US dollars to send oil to China.
Since the Second World War, the US has been involved in over 50 regime changes.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_involvement_in_regime_change
Suppose a group of people wanted to get together to change International Law to make the extraction of Maduro legal. How would they do it, who would they lobby, who would cast the votes, who would write the legislation?
It’s complicated and like a lot of bad laws they will only get changed when people of courage are willing to break them after giving fair warning.
The ICJ?
Presumably, bob Carolgees, you support trump’s invasion of Veneuela and kidnapping of 2 of its itizens, but just ant it to be legal? Licence for colonialism, anyone?
This is not new.
The US has done this to Panama & Noriega previously as well…
Just like the Iraq war was not about “WMDs”, this war is not about “drugs”….the difference is, then, everyone was fooled; now, everyone knows this…
American/Western hypocrisy is just *AMAZING* !!!
Nothing’s gonna happen!
No one within (read: Congress, Republican Party) dares cross him; and no one from outside is capable of seeing that justice is served!
The UN is a sham! The ICC & ICJ are all farces — and the US refuses to recognize either of their jurisdictions…!
So, as I said, nothing will happen…except it might embolden (morally speaking, of course) others to follow in The Don’s footsteps…or, at least, offer similar justifications/rationalizations for their own misdeeds…
But, hey, _now_ the ‘Peace President’ will *certainly* get his Nobel Peace Prize…………!
He’ll be the first person to take the Nobel Peace Prize by force…
P.S.: Ever since TACO Trump announced his Monroe Doctrine v2.0 ‘national security strategy’ we all knew something of this sort was coming…Given the ‘Donroe doctrine’, we’re back to the 19th century concept of ‘Spheres of Influence’, with a modern twist…
Where does your cynicism get you?
Precisely nowhere, I suggest.
To use the terminology of the theologian–philosopher William James, it has no cash value.
Why not try being positive?
Right now you will achieve nothing. You have to change to effect it.
No steer needs to think big. Tell the truth, the UK needs to be part of a trading bloc that can face down Trump.
Plucky UK exceptionalism is dead. Being alone in the North Atlantic between the EU and the USA is not a viable option.
The UK needs to rejoin the EU.
After the weekend the EU is likely to be far more accommodating.
If you want to know what (evil) people are capable of, you need only look at what people have already done. Only the law stands in the way of such people, otherwise we have anarchy.
In this case, it is international law, which isn’t really universally adhered to or indeed enforced. Trump seems to be a law unto himself and has almost certainly never considered natural law or jurisprudence, or even heard these terms. He thought ‘habeas corpus’ was an actual person. How, in the name of God, can societies proceed normally or sensibly when they are subjected to the whims of Trump who is an unashamed fascist.
Well, we can cling on to the truth and the centuries of law based upon the truth. If we hear anyone praising Trump, we should call them out and challenge any arguments they put forward. Our fathers and grandfathers fought against such people, spilling blood or losing their lives to preserve the rule of law, and hence democracy itself.
Trying to appease Trump or his apologists is unacceptable.
Agreed
I have read some misunderstandings about the United States in the comments. That’s not surprising, because most people, including most US citizens, are misinformed or uninformed about the history, laws, politics, and actual driving forces of the United States. It is disconcerting, though, because if you start sailing by setting your course part of a degree off, you’re going to wind up somewhere other than the USA, or the UK.
As a U.S. citizen, I have no business telling people of the UK what to do or how to do it. But if you’ll permit some course correction remarks, the U.S. is not going to be run by this lot forever; the polls show that more than 70% of the citizens disapprove of invading Venezuela, and other follies. I can’t forecast how we will present on the international stage, but I am certain that it won’t be like this …mess. (Restraining myself from vulgar, descriptive American slang.) I do not see the UK as well served by its divorce from the EU. I wish for a rapprochement. You can tell me to mind my own house, and I accept that. I also do not see the UK as a client state to the US; I don’t think that’s an accurate characterization. If it were, y’all wouldn’t have any form of National Health any more, and you’d be paying taxes to subsidize US military bases around the globe. The last I looked, the UK is the world’s 4th largest exporter; and like the US, y’all just need to redistribute the damn’ wealth down and around.
Noted, and you are right until you get to the bit on us being a vassal state. It feels like we are right here, right now, your points being noted. The fact is that if the US says jump, we do.
Why are you stood outside with a big microphone looking like you are a news reporter? Just looks silly.
45,000 views contradict you
And why hold the mirophone? It improves sound quality when recording in this way.
And why outside? The best light available today without doing it in the studio.
Your next time wasting question is?
It is time for us to hold Farage, Banks, Johnson, Gove, Cummings and company, and the right wing media to account. By persuading 52% of those who voted in the non-binding referendum to vote to leave the EU on the ridiculous notion that we were somehow “taking back control” and then following through with the hardest of Brexits they have left this country in a perilous position. The truly ludicrous Rees-Mogg used to bang on about us being a vassal state of Europe but now he has reduced us to being a vassal state of Trump’s America.
Together they have undermined the security of our nation. We need a full and swift inquiry into the extent of their involvement in what, it could be argued, is a conspiracy of criminal neglect. We also must also demand the publication of the full, un-redacted version of the House of Commons Russian influence report. I would love to see a full forensic investigation into who funded the leave campaigns and where the money really came from.
We must stop pandering to Farage and Reform and be prepared to challenge those that still support them.
Agreed
I agree, but our media will no help us hold these miscreants accountable for their crimes, for example ‘your BBC’ invited Gove into one of its programmes over Christmas as a guest.
This talk by Dominic Cummings in 2017 reveals how Leave won by targeting emotions and identity on social media, repeating simple messages, and focusing on persuadable audiences rather than detailed facts. Around the same time, Steve Bannon described “flooding the zone” to overwhelm truth with volume.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=6ut25sgOtcI
Today, AI tools are at least an order of magnitude more sophisticated than those at Cummings’ disposal in 2017 enabling manipulators to flood feeds with personalised, convincing content at massive scale, making belief easier to shape than fact.
It seems to me that we are witnessing the decline of Enlightenment values at least in the West, as reason and evidence struggle against the speed and scale of social media, targeted misinformation, and AI-driven manipulation.
Social media rewards group conformity and shortcuts thinking, making intellectual laziness the norm and manipulation the default.
If the messages of this blog are to convince enough of the wider public, strategies will need to be developed to counter politically powerful and well-funded opponents who will use for example fake videos, false narratives and other manipulated content to damage your position and advance their position.
It increasingly seems to me that Just using facts and evidence to get one’s message across isn’t enough anymore. I for one struggle with that.
Noted
Fake videos already exist. We have had several taken down.
I’ve just listened to Yvette Cooper explaining our lack of response to the US illegal use of military force to abduct the leader of a sovereign United Nations member state.
https://parliamentlive.tv/event/index/d8cab60f-30bb-4259-b785-9daedb7e3104?in=18:16:15
I learned the following from reports of today’s Downing St. press briefing and listening to the Foreign Secretary this evening:
1. The Foreign Secretary warned us relentlessly against “drawing an equivalence” between Russia’s action in Ukraine and the US action in Venezuela.
The difference? According to Ms Cooper today, the key difference is that the Russians killed a lot of Ukrainian children. The regularity with which she raised this issue of equivalence, suggests that we should be giving that issue much more attention, as we examine the various potential targets around the world where rogue states may decide to take international law into their own hands.
I hope some MPs remember that one for the next time there is a parliamentary discussion on Israel/Palestine. Although to be fair, Israel can’t be accused of killing Ukrainian children – they have only been killing Palestinian children – which is quite different, obviously.
2. Actual discussion between Starmer and Trump over Venezuela? Zero. That’s a strong relationship for you.
3. The UK will show it’s support for the UN charter by abstaining at the UN Security Council vote on Venezuela – just like we did last time (Ronald Regan/Grenada).
4. Chris Bryant looked very unhappy during the statement.
5. Apparently we have to “live in the world as it is”. (Just like we did in 1939). C’est la vie.
I watched some of it
As far as I could see she did not answer a single question, except for those on militarisation obviously planted by whips with willing stooges
And the defence of the international legal order was seen through by everyone as ridiculous.
It shocks me to see how the rules and conventions of democracy are so easily swept aside.
I had a letter published in the Guardian today on the subject of the UN Charter, the illegality of Trump’s actions and the danger to Ukraine which those actions pose.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/jan/05/trump-lawless-actions-in-venezuela-demand-a-resolute-response?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other
Great letter.
Thank you.
Stanford Professor Michael McFaul was ambassador to Russia under Obama and has written several important books, most recently “Autocrats Vs. Democrats: China, Russia, America, and the New Global Disorder.” Ambassador McFaul writes a substack, entitled McFaul’s World. His current piece points out that Democracy, not oil or anything else, must be the priority in Venezuela. https://michaelmcfaul.substack.com/p/the-us-priority-in-venezuela-must
In an interview today with Harry Litman (harrylitman.substack.com), Ambassador McFaul points out that Trump’s current “spheres of influence” stance gives permission to Putin to take Ukraine and to Xi to take Taiwan.
It appears that your foreign secretary will not see that reality, or speak to it. When the consequences of riding with Trump come to the UK, do you think there will be peace in our time?
In a word, no.
Readers will be gratified to know that the BBC has issued guidelines on how to describe the kidnapping of Maduro.
https://bsky.app/profile/owenjones.bsky.social/post/3mbojosn2a22j
Apparently it is not a kidnapping – sounds like the BBC is already taking orders from Trump.
The BBC is taking orders from our government, which is taking orders from the USA.
“Living in the world as it really is” led me to this in the YouTube suggestions below your latest short:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=R1p64XeW6Jc
Australia, S Korea, New Zealand and Japan just joined Canada in re-aligning future defense procurement and investment, away from the USA towards the EU’s S.A.F.E (Security Action For Europe) Programme.
https://defence-industry-space.ec.europa.eu/eu-defence-industry/safe-security-action-europe_en
The reason? Trump’s unreliability.
It means hundreds of billions of dollars of weapons expenditure moving away from the USA, to Europe. Sounds rather significant.
Well worth a watch.
I knew nothing about defense procurement, but I’ve just learned a little.
Starmer, of course, is still ploughing his lonely pro-American, pro-Israel, Chamberlainesque “appeasement of bullies & dictators” furrow, and thinks he has a piece of paper signed by Herr Trump, promising “a USA trade agreement in our time”.
I wonder if he even knew this S.A.F.E. move was happening?
There IS an existing alternative to being Trump’s Trojan Horse in Europe. Will anyone tell the Prime Minister?
Interesting links. & a useful argument against Deform and Fart-rage – with respect to re-alignment with the EU. Brits have a choice – re-align with the EU and become part of the largest defence partnership on the planet or…….. become even more a poodle of the USA.
Thought on Taiwan. Trump’s Venezuela action is likely to encourage Xi to move on Taiwan. Taiwan designs/produces many of the chips needed for AI. If I was the govt of Taiwan, and invaded by China, I’d ensure that these chip factories were destroyed. If that happens, what will the implications for AI be? Maybe a silver lining to that cloud?
https://giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/actions/redeem/fdd0c091-39e6-4137-b1d0-6815219d11d5
If Ed Luce in the FT can call out a kidnapping then so should others.
But it is not news that the USA has been backing away from International cooperation and international Law. It has defunded the UN and WHO and does not accept the International Courts rulings. Its history is of many regime changes orchestrated by its security agencies.
Its latest US Security Strategy extends the Monroe doctrine to the Western hemisphere, which includes us.
https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/2025-National-Security-Strategy.pdf
The USA already owns 25% of the UK and more of the largest companies operating in the UK.
The last time the country was so subordinate to a foreign power the country was invaded by the Normans.
I’m all for realigning with the Normans rather than our US cousins.
Starmer needs to urgently rejoin a new European alliance.
New Labour , New Europe.
I’m not sure which side he is on however.
Why not ask him?
Because Starmer has never yet answered a straight question.
In the last millennium I committed journalism. When someone refuses to answer your question, you just keep asking. The next journalist called on asks the same question. And the next. And the next. That’s how we did it. It was fun and righteous. We did what their mothers never did. We held them to account.
Your sort of journalism is in short supply!
If MPs learned how to do that, Ministers would be terrified of UQs, PMQs and making Ministerial Statements. Imagine a PMQs where every time a Minister dodged the question, the next MP asked the same Q “because the dishonourable and unlearned Minister didn’t answer it last time”!
Agreed
Great idea, but nowadays it’s possible these journalists would be banned from press events and/or be sacked by their employer (if the question was regarded as too awkward by those in control)…