The Legacy of Colonialism. Life on the Reservation. 1 7 2026

The pictures of Nicholas Maduro, prime minister of Venezuela being led around in handcuffs, blindfolded, was like a reminder of Saddam Hussein when he was captured in Iraq. Another Republican president, another war, just like George I and George II. George I took Iraq, securing the oil. Sounds familiar, right? Well he missed Hussein, it was Georege II, another republican, who finished the job.

Maduro may still be alive, but he is in no condition to try to lead Venezuela anymore, even if he wants to lead from captivity. Anything he says or does now is under duress; he is probably drugged and chained in New York where he is imprisoned. He is no longer in a position to influence things. The only real question is if they will ever let him out.

Another political prisoner, another open ended commitment to a country in the developing world with oil reserves nationalized. Iraq had nationalized the oil wells in 1972, from the Iraq Petroleum Company. This was done by the Baath socialist party, to put Iraq’s oil wealth in a more equitable arrangement, where the proceeds of the oil wealth were no longer making surplus value.

George II, who got Hussein, expropriated the property of the Iraqis, returning private investment in the oil wells to American and European capitalists. George II also cited terrorism as a reason to invade Iraq; in the light of when this occurred he tried to suggest Iraq was connected to the 9/11 incident.

This could not be proved, and it never has been to this day. Then there were the friends of George II, Labour leader Tony Blair, for instance, who got on the air telling Britons Hussein had an atomic weapon, and could hit Britain in 15 minutes if he launched it. They also suggested Hussein was developing chemical weapons. These were called the “weapons of mass destruction” arguments.

There were never any atomic weapons, or chemical weapons found in Iraq. Considering the country was conquered, there is no reason to believe the weapons could have been hidden. Instead, after removing Hussein, George II found a new enemy, Islamic State. He was still trying to link Iraq with Afghanistan, which evidence has yet to be found for.

Afghanistan ended in American retreat and exit from Afghanistan. The images of the big airplanes and the hundreds of people running trying to get them is an icon of George II and his Republican war efforts. Whether he won in Iraq is sort of a matter of opinion; they got the oil back. But the country remains in shambles after decades of all out war.

Here we have another republican bourgeoisie, and the beginnings of another war, with a similar goal of gaining control of oil fields, and markets. Trump has already said he will be running Venezuela’s oil wealth, and has committed the Army to war there, abducting the head of state of a neighboring country, and demanding its resources.

In a historical context, Trump looks a lot like a Conquistador, valiantly discovering native land, and conquering its residents. Perhaps Venezuela will become a 51st state, with reservations for the natives. How much different it would look from the ICE facilities, packed with Mexicans on the border? A vision of reservations on stolen land from Mexico gained in the Mexican American war that ended in 1848, with Mexico ‘s capitulation to the Americans of the Southwest.

Not really much new here. The bourgeoisie has been conquering lands in the new world for more than 500 years. The stain of bloody conquest of native american soil, and black slavery, is part of the history of the country. Their descendants are still with us, the Indians are still on the reservations, their fishing and hunting rights on land they ceded in treaties are still controversial.

At some point it is going to have to be left behind, like 20th century industry. Trump’s only justification for abducting Maduro was drug dealing. In a country with legal marijuana in half of it, legal alcohol and tobacco throughout it, if you are addicted to drugs, it is nobody’s fault but your own. You can’t sue the alcohol company because you are a drunk. We view this as a health problem, not a criminal one. Cocaine is illegal, it is an expensive luxury item only the bourgeois and middle classes can afford. Penalizing all Venezuelans for drug dealing does not lower demand for cocaine in America. If anything it will strengthen the cartels, who thrive on the lawless luxury trade.

Trump has made a decision to conquer Christianised Incas in their homelands. There is no separation from this and the presence of reservations in America. For those who live on the Res, this must come as no surprise. In 1492, Columbus discovered America. It’s been 533 years of repression of the native people he found in the Americas. This is part of Trump’s legacy, his hatred of Indians, much like the rural white settlers who still keep the Indians separate from their colonies, on reservations, where poverty is a scourge. Trump is no different, it’s been 533 long years, the song remains the same.

Nicholas Jay Boyes
Milwaukee Wisconsin

American Democratic Republic

1 7 2026