> 1/3/2026
Trump bombs Venezuela and takes Maduro for himself.
Venezuela accuses USA of attacking residential areas…
> https://www.barrons.com/news/venezuela-accuses-us-of-bombing-residential-areas-feb2b615
Demands ‘Proof of Life’.
> https://www.barrons.com/news/venezuela-demands-us-provide-proof-of-life-of-maduro-7e49e130
Dictator and wife to stand trial in New York…
> https://nypost.com/2026/01/03/world-news/venezuelan-leader-nicolas-maduro-to-face-criminal-charges-in-us-after-capture-trumps-50m-bounty-sen-mike-lee/
Condemnation and concern for foreign nationals.
> https://www.cbsnews.com/news/us-strikes-venezeula-trump-maduro-international-reaction/
Abduction shows new level of unrestrained global power.
> https://www.cnn.com/2026/01/03/americas/trump-flexes-global-maduro-intl
Maduro captured!
> https://apnews.com/article/venezuela-us-explosions-caracas-ca712a67aaefc30b1831f5bf0b50665e
Trump bombs Caracas…
> https://www.nytimes.com/live/2026/01/03/world/trump-united-states-strikes-venezuela?unlocked_article_code=1.BlA.zVsJ.iXhwBaAHYVoK&smid=url-share
‘Large Scale Strike’.
> https://www.nytimes.com/live/2026/01/03/world/trump-united-states-strikes-venezuela?unlocked_article_code=1.BlA.zVsJ.iXhwBaAHYVoK&smid=url-share
Legal authority unclear.
> https://www.nbcnews.com/world/latin-america/live-blog/venezuela-explosions-trump-maduro-live-updates-rcna251053
Sky: Live.
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YDvsBbKfLPA
“Teranemen Square”…
> https://nypost.com/2026/01/02/world-news/viral-image-of-iranian-protester-in-front-security-forces-draws-parallels-to-tiananmen-square-tank-man/
New York has record number of Flu hospitalizations in 1 week…
> https://abcnews.go.com/Health/new-york-reports-record-breaking-number-flu-hospitalizations/story?id=128849108
“Special K”: New subclade called Subclad K.
> https://apnews.com/article/flu-subclade-k-cdc-vaccine-ca9bd270ca70602775168b0b651e3b2a

https://www.reuters.com/world/us/venezuelas-maduro-custody-trump-says-us-will-run-country-2026-01-04/
CARACAS/NEW YORK, Jan 4 (Reuters) - Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro was in a New York detention center on Sunday after President Donald Trump ordered an audacious U.S. raid to capture the South American leader and take control of the country and its vast oil reserves.
As part of the dramatic operation early on Saturday that knocked out electricity in parts of Caracas and included strikes on military installations, U.S. Special Forces seized Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, and transported them via helicopter to a U.S. Navy ship offshore before flying them to the U.S.
"We will run the country until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition," Trump told a press conference at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.
For months, his administration criticized Maduro, 63, over what it called his involvement in shipping drugs to the U.S. It ramped up pressure with a massive military build-up in the Caribbean and a series of deadly missile attacks on alleged drug-running boats. Maduro has denied any involvement in drug trafficking and says Trump wants Venezuela's oil.

>POTENTIAL POWER VACUUM IN VENEZUELA
While many Western allies oppose Maduro and say he stole Venezuela's 2024 election, there were numerous calls for the U.S. to respect international law and resolve the crisis diplomatically. Trump's boasts about controlling the nation and exploiting its oil also revived painful memories of past U.S. interventions in Latin America, Iraq and Afghanistan.
Some legal experts questioned the legality of an operation to seize the head of state of a foreign power, while Democrats who said they were misled during recent Congress briefings demanded a plan for what is to follow.

https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/trump-threatens-iran-over-protest-deaths-unrest-flares-2026-01-02/
DUBAI, Jan 2 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump threatened on Friday to come to the aid of protesters in Iran if security forces fired on them, days into unrest that has left several dead and posed the biggest internal threat to Iranian authorities in years.
"We are locked and loaded and ready to go," he said in a social media post. The United States bombed Iranian nuclear facilities in June, joining an Israeli air campaign that targeted Tehran's atomic programme and military leadership.

Responding to Trump's comments, top Iranian official Ali Larijani warned that U.S. interference in domestic Iranian issues would amount to a destabilisation of the entire Middle East. Iran backs proxy forces in Lebanon, Iraq and Yemen.
The comments came as a local official in western Iran, where several deaths were reported, was cited by state media as warning that any unrest or illegal gatherings would be met "decisively and without leniency".

This week's protests over soaring inflation are so far smaller than some previous bouts of unrest in Iran, but have spread across the country, with deadly confrontations between demonstrators and security forces focused in western provinces.
State-affiliated media and rights groups have reported at least 10 deaths since Wednesday, including one man who authorities said was a member of the Basij paramilitary force affiliated with the elite Revolutionary Guards.
The Islamic Republic's clerical leadership has seen off repeated eruptions of unrest in recent decades, often quelling protests with heavy security measures and mass arrests. But economic problems may leave authorities more vulnerable now.
This week's protests are the biggest since nationwide demonstrations triggered by the death of a young woman in custody in 2022 paralysed Iran for weeks, with rights groups reporting hundreds killed.

Republicans now intend to hold mail in ballots hostage until after election day to void legal votes and steal the upcoming elections.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2025/12/30/us-postal-service-changes-postmark-rules-what-to-know/87960162007/

The U.S. Postal Service is making new changes in 2026, including adjustments to the postmark process, which could result in late fees and penalties for anyone mailing time-sensitive documents such as tax returns or bill payments.

For decades, the postmark – an official mark that shows where and when mail was accepted by the Postal Service – has been used in law as proof that an individual met a deadline, such as submitting a ballot by Election Day.

A USPS postmark used to indicate the date when mail was dropped in a mailbox or submitted at the post office counter. Now, USPS is clarifying in a new rule that the postmark will reflect the date an envelope is first processed by an automated USPS sorting machine, potentially days after it was dropped off – not the actual drop-off date.

Changes to USPS are part of its Delivering For America initiative that includes consolidation of mail processing and modernizing infrastructure to fit a time when the volume of paper letters is dropping and the number of packages is increasing.
How does the new postmark rule affect your mail?

For a long time, Americans have assumed that mail will be postmarked the day it is mailed and may not be prepared to account for the extra days.

Tax payments, charitable contributions, legal filings, rent payments and other bills or items that rely on postmark dates for deadlines can be impacted by later postmarks and risk late fees, penalties, or delinquency.

Many states also accept ballots that are postmarked by Election Day.

Time-sensitive mail should be mailed several days before the deadline. People can also go inside their local post office and ask for a hand-stamped "manual postmark" on the date, or use certified mail.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/dec/27/its-frightening-how-far-right-is-infiltrating-everyday-culture

The two men chop peppers, slice aubergines and giggle into the camera as they delve into the art of vegan cooking. Both are wearing ski masks and T-shirts bearing Nazi symbols.

The German videos – titled Balaclava Kitchen – started in 2014 and ran for months before YouTube took down the channel for violating its guidelines.

But it offered a glimpse of how far-right groups have seized on cultural production – from clothing brands to top 40 music – to normalise their ideas, in a process that researchers say has hit new heights in the age of social media.

“It’s frightening, honestly,” said Katherine Kondor, a researcher with the Norwegian Center for Holocaust and Minority Studies. “You can be radicalised sitting on your couch.”

In affiliation with the Center for Research on Extremism (C-REX), Kondor is leading a six-country project looking at how the extreme right uses aesthetics, from fitness influencers to memes and stickers, to spread their views across Europe.

From Sweden to Spain, researchers found that extremist messaging was woven through cultural aspects of everyday life, both online and offline.

“In Hungary we have some examples of extreme right bands becoming mainstream because they’re on the top 40 chart. I mean, what’s more normal than being on the top 40?” Kondor said.

https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news/zohran-mamdani-new-york-city-mayor-takes-oath-of-office-old-city-hall-subway-station/

Zohran Mamdani officially took the oath of office as the clock struck midnight on New Year's Eve, becoming the 112th mayor of New York City.

In a private ceremony at the abandoned Old City Hall subway station, Mamdani was sworn in by New York Attorney General Letitia James.

The 34-year-old democratic socialist, who served in the 36th Assembly District representing the Queens neighborhood of Astoria, is now the city's first Muslim mayor and its first of South Asian descent.

"This is truly the honor and the privilege of a lifetime," Mamdani said in a brief speech.

https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/police-finland-arrest-2-connection-damage-undersea-telecom-128841367

HELSINKI -- Finnish authorities have arrested two people in connection with damage to an undersea telecommunications cable in the Gulf of Finland that occurred earlier this week between the capitals of Finland and Estonia, police said Thursday.

The damage was discovered early Wednesday in Estonia’s exclusive economic zone. The cable belongs to Finnish telecommunications service provider Elisa and is considered to be critical underwater infrastructure.

Helsinki police have opened an investigation into aggravated criminal damage, attempted aggravated criminal damage and aggravated interference with telecommunications.

Officials placed two other people under travel bans as a result of the ongoing investigation, Helsinki police said in a statement Thursday.

The individuals’ connections to the ship was not immediately clear and police would not release their nationalities or other details.

The ship, named the Fitburg, was flagged in St. Vincent and the Grenadines. It had been traveling from Russia to Israel. The 14 crew members hail from Russia, Georgia, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan and were detained by Finnish authorities.

Finnish National Police Commissioner Ilkka Koskimäki said earlier this week that the ship was dragging its anchor for hours when it was discovered in Finland’s exclusive economic zone. He noted investigators are not speculating on whether a state-level actor was behind the damage.

Twice as many Americans believe their financial security is getting worse than better, according to an exclusive new poll conducted for the Guardian, and they are increasingly blaming the White House.

57% of Americans said the US economy is undergoing a recession, up 11% from a similar poll that was conducted in February.

The stark divisions between Democrats and Republicans continue to persist. Democrats are almost twice as likely as Republicans to say their financial security is getting worse – 52% versus 27%. But more concerningly for Republicans, who will have to fight next year to keep their majority in Congress, Trump hasn’t been able to sway independents. A majority (54%) of independents said their financials are worsening, +9% compared with February’s polling. Most independents (58%) also believe the country is experiencing a recession.

And more of the blame is being placed on the White House than ever before. When asked to choose between the government or corporations for the question “who is most responsible for any increasing prices”:

- 76% of Democrats said it was government management of the economy, +17% from February’s poll.
- 72% of independents also pointed to the government, +14% from February.
- Republicans were less likely to point to the government, with 55% saying it was government (-6% compared to February) and 45% blaming corporate practices.

In another worrying sign for Republicans, over the course of his first year, these voters have soured on the economy.

While Americans overall have grown more pessimistic this year, women are far less confident about the economy than men. Nearly two-thirds of women (62%) believe the US is experiencing a recession, +12% from February, compared with 52% of men who believe the same. And half of women (50%) believe their financial security is getting worse while 39% of men believe the same.

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2025/dec/29/americans-financial-security-economy-poll