Posted on 01/02/2026 1:12:48 PM PST by MacNaughton
I am a visual thinker, and I love maps and charts, so I just put this one together. In my opinion, we are moving from peacetime economic trade war conditions to a quazi-kinetic war for the control of the critical natural resources that are needed by the major powers in our emerging multipolar world.

So, just what in the Sam Hill is a quazi-war?
Well, it turns out that we already fought one. Read about it at the link.
Today, the unipolar period which followed the end of the cold war is coming to an end. It’s being replaced by a tri-polar world if you count the three greatest military powers: the USA, Russia and China. Or, it's a bipolar world if you consider it to be a contest between the USA and its allies, and the emerging BRICS bloc.
In my humble opinion, (news flash), the US naval fleet currently assembled in the Caribbean and the eastern Pacific is not actually about stopping drug boats. It's about securing the largest oil reserve in the world for U.S. refineries. It’s also a message to Russia and China that the USA is exerting a new economic Monroe Doctrine, with the Americas in our zone of control. ...
(Excerpt) Read more at steelcutter.substack.com ...
Very interesting.
Saving for future reference.
Thanks for the post. Matt’s books have foreshadowed what we are experiencing today and further books are probably our future.
Does he me quasi...?
Interesting. But I think the Maduro issue is slightly different. I am going with Cmdr Jesus Romero, retired USN Naval Intelligence Officer and journalist Emerald Robinson. Here is goes:
1. Former Honduran president Jesus O Hernandez proffered to the US, to give up everything on the drug trafficking that included cartel and state actors, in order to secure his pardon from DJT.
2. Former Director of Military Intelligence for Venezuela (in custody for drug trafficking) General Hugo Carvajal gave up the broader scheme of the “cabal” to bring down the United States. The cabal consists of cartels, Venezuela, Russia, China, Iran and supporting actors (Colombia and Mexico), to destroy the representative form of government in the US, which would allow larger drug trafficking profits.
VZ has to go down, and that is also why DJT is threatening use of military force in Iran again. It’s all tied together. Taking down two of the bad actors before Mexico and Colombia are dealt with. it’s also the reason for the sudden change in the National Security strategy document.
Things are heating up in Iran, another Chinese and Russian quasi surrogate. If that turns, the Indo-Pakistani situation might become an isolate.
Mr. Bracken is correct that from both a resource and trade perspective South Africa is a serious concern. The good news there is that it is a typical socialist economic basket case. If the rest of Africa gets it together, they may be able to cap that problem off.
As to minerals, hence Greenland and Antarctica. Argentina or Chile might be a bridge to the latter. Maritime extraction to Antarctica will be highly weather dependent, making port capacity in far South America potentially valuable for staging purposes. Chile currently has the only port facilities there. I have no clue reading Trump on Greenland but I'd bet the people there are watching what will happen in Venezuela. I'm still in mystery as to why neither Trump nor Rubio elevated Machado. I'm guessing they don't see her as competent.
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