The Swap One Word Game
From The Wall Street Journal Jan 3, 2026
“President Trump’s capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro early Saturday is an act of hemispheric hygiene against a dictator who spread mayhem far and wide.”
My old blogging friend Kurt shared this quote and seemingly gave the WSJ credit for praising Trump for his illegal invasion of a sovereign nation.
When I read the quote, I was immediately struck by how you could easily swap out the word “against” for the word “by” and the paragraph would be equally as accurate.
It’s going to take decades for the United States to restore the damage this president has done to our reputation with our allies, and the rest of the world. I can’t fathom how intelligent people can still support anything done by this man and his administration.
The Conversation
6 responses to “The Swap One Word Game”
Well, Kurt, myself (2 reasonably intelligent guys) and around half the country disagree with your observation and conclusion, but as my wife often reminds me, “anytime two people always agree, one of them is not necessary.” I saw a different post this morning which had then Senator Biden calling for US military intervention in Venezuela. I also think President Obama may have taken out (assassinated) few world leaders. Why is it different now?Time will tell who is correct and who is not.
Why would you assume I would agree with this action if it was something Biden or Obama did? Did I mention either of them? I am capable of disapproving of the actions of a President even if I voted for them.
A Senator calling for military action is an opinion, not an action. Did then Senator Biden send troops without Congressional authorization in to a sovereign nation to take over their government, and control their oil reserves?
Also, you “thinking someone may have done something” is a nonsensical comparison to the actual verifiable event that I am discussing. Tell me what do you think he may have done to whom and when, and I will share my opinion about that.
Point taken. Was making a generalization and should not have included you. Democrat presidents and lawmakers said we “should have” but never had the resolve or balls to actually do it. I’m content knowing I’m not going to change your mind and you aren’t going to change my mind.
But you “think” Obama “may” have done something like this. Would that have been good or bad? Would that be balls or resolve? Does having balls and resolve make him immune to following constitutionally mandated procedures? Can he use these same balls and resolve to justify an invasion of Greenland? Isn’t Putin a greater threat, does he not have the balls or resolve to remove him? Who might have the balls or resolve to see our actions as dictatorial and justify invading our sovereign nation to remove their threat? Why even bother to comment?
I agree on your final point and I’ll stick to listening to your music.
I always encourage comments and am willing to engage in discussions about any opinion I share here, so feel free to contribute. I just don’t understand why you come in to the discussions convinced that we are both immovable in our opinions and then bail out without ever responding to counterpoints to anything you offer, or very selectively choosing to respond to only one thing, and then bailing.
If you ever want to have a dialogue I will, but you have shown no interest in ever really doing that so I was just wondering what you hope to accomplish by commenting here, and if you find it worth your effort?
If you go back and reread my post, you’ll notice I was specifically addressing the legality of his actions and the damage of these illegal actions on our world standing. Anything else you garnered about my opinion of “what” we should or shouldn’t have done was strictly an assumption, something else you tend to do frequently.
Cheers to you either way.
Music is the Best!