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Screw Venezuela. Let it go up in flames. Why do we care? It’s not a threat to the US.

I’m tired of butting in when it’s none of our business. If it becomes a risk to the US, then we go in and level the place, full on. No holds barred. Until then, this is yet another civil war.

Just as in science, a gas will expand to fill the void in the container it is in.

If Venezuela falls, there will be void to fill. Why do we care? Because we don't want that void to be filled with bad players who will take over and cause more havoc in the region.

Venezuela used to be an oil-rich nation with a high standard of living. It has been brought to its knees by the forces of Chavez and Maduro. They have taken gold and made it into dirt.

We will want some say in who fills the void so we don't have to deal with an enemy who will cause more disruption and chaos to not only Venezuela's future, but to the countries around it in the Western Hemisphere.

Not to speak of the Venezuelan people who have seen their once thriving nation destroyed before their very eyes by socialists and communists.

If your neighborhood was disrupted by bad people who moved into a house and dealt drugs and committed crimes and brought a blight to your once placid home, you'd want to do the same.

That is why we should care.

“Screw Venezuela. Let it go up in flames. Why do we care? It’s not a threat to the US.

I’m tired of butting in when it’s none of our business. If it becomes a risk to the US, then we go in and level the place, full on. No holds barred. Until then, this is yet another civil war.”

We care because it has enormous oil reserves, and because the Russians and Chinese are VERY interested in the place (because of the oil, not for any other reason). At the very least, we should want a regime that is not hostile to us, one that won’t use oil as a weapon, but will work with us to stabilize the oil market (which is good for OUR economy, and that of our major trading partners).

As for it not being a threat to us - yeah, I don’t see Venezuelan mechanized divisions ready to invade Texas. But it isn’t them I’m worried about, nor what happens next week. I’m worried about the Russian, Chinese and Cuban interest in the place (really, in its oil) - because THEY are a threat. Plus, Venezuela could be turned into another Cuba in the sense of sending soldiers all over the place to fight for their and the Russians’ interests (it should be noted that Cuba has about 11 million people, and Venezuela nearly 32 million - so they can muster far more troops and cause far more trouble).

It is one thing to avoid getting involved in every conflict in every corner of the world (we SHOULD avoid that). But this one is different - it is near our backyard, and it involves hostile foreign powers and a very big player in a key economic commodity (perhaps THE key such commodity), so it IS different than some random shithole 5,000 miles away.