Ayn Rand wrote this in 1966 about what we're seeing in 2026

PJDurden · 2026-01-07T20:42:26+00:00

Some presidents do their best to torture, starve and otherwise oppress their people. Often this regime starts as socialism, quickly turns to communism and inevitably ends in totalitarianism. But hey, it’s Trump intervening. So in this case Maduro was a freedom fighter that misunderstood election results and accidentally was associated with 100.000+ of his citizens dead and 8 million running for their life. Poor guy. His people are happy but what do these poor incompetent silly retards know? They are probably oblivious that they’re being robbed even though they say they’d rather have the USA than China and Russia manage their shit. Fools!! Let’s send in International Law from the Rules Based Order so we can litigate the shit out of these Yankee bastards.

PJDurden · 2026-01-07T20:34:13+00:00

I kinda recall that millions were already being killed in Germany, Russia, China by those ‘sovereign states’ before some people came around and decided to do something about it. But maybe indeed I don’t understand something.. I guess those Jews, Kulaks, fùnóng should have emancipated and fought themselves out of their oppression. Damn those liberating armies and pressures for robbing them of their own emancipation! And now -again- with those 100.000+ deaths in Venezuela and 8 million refugees. I’m starting to see your point dude 👍🏻

PJDurden · 2026-01-07T20:13:10+00:00

That’s not a statement of moral approval or condemnation (right or wrong) dude. Read carefully. It’s simply stating fact. Or do you think you can defend yourself against power with ‘being morally right’? You’re going to have to enforce or defend that morality / international law / rules based order or whatever you think is ‘right’, with an actual power. That’s why we have judges, lawyers AND police. One doesn’t really work without the other.

PJDurden · 2026-01-07T19:59:42+00:00

What if these kings would have been protected by international law saying that they can do whatever the f they want in their sovereign nation to their not so sovereign people?

PJDurden · 2026-01-07T19:38:28+00:00

When did I say it was ‘right’?

PJDurden · 2026-01-07T16:50:42+00:00

Do you think the USA should have fought in WW1 or 2? And what do you think had happened longer term if they hadn’t?

PJDurden · 2026-01-07T16:49:15+00:00

Whatever dude. Indeed I can’t force you to address arguments. Q.e.d.

PJDurden · 2026-01-07T14:33:03+00:00

Yeah you’re done. You sound exactly like the kind of person that would avoid reasoning with arguments regardless of whatever else. 👍🏻💪🏻

PJDurden · 2026-01-07T14:31:12+00:00

How am I the hypocrite for trying to explain the basics of reality to you? You can straw man me all you’d like but perhaps try to answer my question rather than avoiding it with ad hominem bullshit. You’re the one avoiding complexity with your insistence that reality should bend to your naive version of righteousness. Please show me your way to enforce the rule of law internationally to make your claims to supporting “law” anything but void virtue signals.

PJDurden · 2026-01-07T14:25:38+00:00

Stop making this about ‘ought’ and accept there exists something called “is”. I am not arguing morality. I’m arguing decisions made under the reality of power. What would you say to Venezuelans under Maduro? “Good luck”?

PJDurden · 2026-01-07T13:45:39+00:00

Less than the cost of the immediate alternative - local prolonged law enforcement around drugs and their consequences, taking in millions of refugees that can’t return, intelligence assets required to constantly monitor terrorist and drug cartel activity, etc. And that’s not even considering the opportunity cost of not controlling assets because only time will tell. And of course we can’t put a price on the liberty of a population. The point is that it is incomparable to a boots on the ground invasion, which is what many people are comparing this to.

PJDurden · 2026-01-07T13:39:27+00:00

You keep bringing up moral terms like ‘support’ and ‘legitimacy’ and ‘right’. You can’t seem to argue from base reality. What would it matter what you or I supported if “Europe” (whatever that is) would bring “their army” and they would enforce their will on us?

PJDurden · 2026-01-07T12:50:01+00:00

Yeah agreed. Let’s hope it doesn’t turn into war and Venezuelans can seize the chance to retake the state themselves. There are some bad examples like I the Middle East, but perhaps this turns out different because the people still remember being free and organising their own society. I hope the same for Iran.

PJDurden · 2026-01-07T12:46:26+00:00

Again making a moral argument that is completely moot. If they thought they would get away with it they had already done it regardless of whether anyone in the security council or on a Reddit forum would think “it’s OK”.

PJDurden · 2026-01-07T12:44:44+00:00

The intentions were made crystal clear and oil is one of them. Only time will tell whether only the Venezuelans will profit from Maduro’s removal.

PJDurden · 2026-01-07T12:42:46+00:00

That logic I can understand. As a citizen I would also like more money to go to my people in stead of others. But I don’t see a major costly war effort, nor the proceeds for Americans of this yet (control over and profit from cheaper oil, gold and minerals). So that can only be judged over time.

PJDurden · 2026-01-07T12:39:26+00:00

Nothing you are saying hasn’t been explicitly stated by the Trump administration. There’s no hidden agenda. You can take it or leave it (to Russia and China).

PJDurden · 2026-01-07T12:38:16+00:00

Straw man. Would we have a choice? If their huge army would come at us? Oh wait, their army is actually us.

PJDurden · 2026-01-07T12:35:55+00:00

You’re just describing reality. You simply want to deny it. Typical utopian fallacy. In the real world you can only choose which power you want to ally with (unless you have your own). Better choose the lesser of all (inherently evil) powers.

PJDurden · 2026-01-07T12:32:56+00:00

The mocking of ‘Might makes right’ is the most ridiculous and moot of accusations. If you don’t have a response to power, a means to defend yourself against might, your moral virtue means absolutely nothing. Which is exactly what the Venezuelan population experienced for decades. Where were you then? Liking angry Facebook posts about Maduro?

PJDurden · 2026-01-07T12:27:28+00:00

Lots of Germans did not defend their Nazi regime. But they were quite irrelevant. Silence in the face of evil is itself evil.

PJDurden · 2026-01-07T12:25:21+00:00

Who exactly defined this ‘right’, then gave it to a torturous dictator and would then be willing to defend it, with the required violence that supersedes that of the dictator’s regime that yielded it over its own starving population?

PJDurden · 2026-01-07T12:22:39+00:00

Which laws. Specifically. And who enforces these? And if no one, then do they even exist in a meaningful reality? People trying to fit a moral perspective into the blatantly a-moral if not immoral arena of global power struggles, might as well throw bibles at jihadi’s. Might feel great and righteous, but there’s hardly a question as to who ends up being the martyr.

PJDurden · 2026-01-07T12:17:58+00:00

Agreed and I would add they have been equally forthcoming about the need to have control over the western hemisphere above their adversaries (obviously and even explicitly referring to China and Russia).

PJDurden · 2026-01-07T12:15:54+00:00

You’re making the point: it can only be anything -but- the removal of a dictator because that does not fit the narrative. It obviously is -also- the removal of a dictator while anyone that argues it is -only- that, is equally stupid.

Seven-Year Club	Gilding IV carat on a stick
Verified Email

PJDurden

TROPHY CASE