200. Five Questions About the Maduro Arrest Operation Friday night's U.S. military operation in Venezuela was a textbook violation of international law. It's also entirely unauthorized by U.S. law, which ought to (but probably won't) matter.

In case you missed it, I took a stab on Saturday via "One First" at writing up five of the questions raised by Friday's U.S. military/arrest operation in Venezuela, and the forthcoming criminal prosecution of Nicolás Maduro:

www.stevevladeck.com/p/200-five-q...

January 4, 2026 Secretary of State Marco Rubio took the administration’s message about its strikes on Venezuela to the Sunday talk shows this morning.

January 4, 2025

In Illinois, ICE agents have been documented swapping license plates to hide their identity. Under Illinois law, this constitutes a Class A misdemeanor.

The state has made clear that this law will be enforced. Federal agents are not exempt from Illinois vehicle and registration statutes.

I began following this company when this experiment started. He showed organizations how to lift the employees and make them equals. Think of it in terms of biology. If the heart is the only organ receiving nourishment, it will not survive. gravitypayments.com/lp/10-years/

Pres Trump said Republicans lost because he wasn’t on the ballot. He should institute an off-cycle 2-year election in Nov’26 so he can correct that. Why not? He believes he will win, making it affirmation of his work so far.

He ain’t got the guts.

Illustration by Shonagh Rae

“Trust in science has emerged as a central dividing line in our society, fueling a strange new politics of science.” M. Anthony Mills and Price St. Clair argue that a defining but overlooked factor is the public’s growing wariness toward powerful institutions overall. issues.org/new-politics...

The Strange New Politics of Science The polarization of trust in science is a complex phenomenon shaped by—and increasingly also shaping—American political identities.

Great article on why we are where we are, regarding science and politics. This is from this spring, so omits some recent changes in political and social perspectives.

“The Strange New Politics of Science.” Issues in Science and Technology
issues.org/new-politics...

Hey! Los Angeles! “Stand back and stand by.”

Let the media show there is no need for National Guard, and that this is a waste of money.

DOGE staffers attempted to assign a team and take control of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), but CPB leaders resisted citing federal law that protects the nonprofit’s independence from government interference.

May 12, 2025 The biggest news over the weekend was silence: the silence of Republicans.

May 12, 2025

Snarky Gherkin again if only because he expresses my opinion on Cookers. #Cookers

Remember when the Madman and MAGA were outraged about Kaepernick kneeling and Lil Wayne dropping a flag on the ground? None of that matters anymore, unless the “liberal lefties” do it again.

Highest-Ranking Black Medal of Honor Recipient Erased in Pentagon DEI Purge The latest casualty in the Department of Defense's sweep of all things related to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) is Charles Calvin Rogers, a Black Army officer who received the Medal of Honor f...

This is unbelievable ridiculous. This onslaught is morally reprehensible, but this malice is nothing new for those two vagabonds.
Major General, Medal of Honor, Legion of Merit, the Distinguished Flying Cross, four Bronze Stars and a Purple Heart.

#neverforget

www.military.com/history/high...

We speak today on behalf of the legal profession and its members who seek to live by the oath each took upon admission to the bar. We reject efforts to undermine the courts and the profession. We will not stay silent in the face of efforts to remake the legal profession into something that rewards those who agree with the government and punishes those who do not. Words and actions matter. And the intimidating words and actions we have heard must end. They are designed to cow our country’s judges, our country’s courts and our legal profession. These efforts cannot be sanctioned or normalized. There are clear choices facing our profession. We can choose to remain silent and allow these acts to continue or we can stand for the rule of law and the values we hold dear. We call upon the entire profession, including lawyers who serve in elected positions, to speak out against intimidation. We acknowledge that there are risks to standing up and addressing these important issues. But if the ABA and lawyers do not speak, who will speak for the organized bar? Who will speak for the judiciary? Who will protect our system of justice? If we don’t speak now, when will we speak? The American Bar Association has chosen to stand and speak. Now is the time for all of us to speak with one voice. We invite you to stand with us.

The ABA rejects efforts to undermine the courts and the legal profession. Read full message: www.americanbar.org/news/abanews...

iPhone dictation transcribes 'racist' with 'Trump', Apple promises a fix - 9to5Mac Apple says that “phonetic overlap” is to blame for a peculiar glitch in the iPhone’s dictation feature. Over the last...

Well, they are awfully similar.
(Tested, proved true but took multiple attempts.)

9to5mac.com/2025/02/25/i...

February 24, 2025 Three years ago today, a massive influx of Russian troops crossed into Ukraine to join the troops that had been there since the 2014 invasion.

February 24, 2025

The Spirited Reasoner Like Taking Candy from a Baby Once upon a time there was a young warrior whose reputation for strength, courage, and justice spanned the world. Those who were weak and oppressed knew that they could....

From Philip Carlton Williams (The Spirited Reasoner).

www.facebook.com/100064529419...?

Jimmy Carter sparked a craft beer explosion by getting government out of the way When President Jimmy Carter signed a bill legalizing homebrewing in 1978, fewer than 100 breweries were operating in the United States. Two years ago, a

President Carter gave business freedom while protecting consumers that I’m unsure any subsequent president could claim. Alcohol production is only one area of business that he impacted in such a way.
RIP Mr President.