Dr Bob Hall
@drbob317.bsky.social
A retired Scottish-Kiwi sociologist living in exile in Birmingham UK. Left-leaning and a dedicated fan of Liverpool FC, the All Blacks and Bob Dylan.
Reposted by Dr Bob Hall
Democrats should release another batch of Epstein Files tomorrow.
January 4, 2026 at 7:21 PM
Democrats should release another batch of Epstein Files tomorrow.
Reposted by Dr Bob Hall
For those of us not in the cult, this is what we hear when anyone from the Trump administration speaks.
For the people in the back, this is satire and so well done…
For the people in the back, this is satire and so well done…
January 4, 2026 at 7:56 PM
For those of us not in the cult, this is what we hear when anyone from the Trump administration speaks.
For the people in the back, this is satire and so well done…
For the people in the back, this is satire and so well done…
Reposted by Dr Bob Hall
Cartoon by Nick Anderson
January 4, 2026 at 8:00 PM
Cartoon by Nick Anderson
Reposted by Dr Bob Hall
Trump said yesterday that interim Venezuela leader Delcy Rodríguez would help him "run" the country. Her later statements put the lie to that. Now, in a new Atlantic interview, Trump says “if she doesn’t do what’s right, she is going to pay a very big price, probably bigger than Maduro.” (Gift link)
Trump Threatens Venezuela’s New Leader With a Fate Worse Than Maduro’s
The president told The Atlantic that Delcy Rodríguez needs to comply with U.S. wishes—or else.
www.theatlantic.com
January 4, 2026 at 6:06 PM
Trump said yesterday that interim Venezuela leader Delcy Rodríguez would help him "run" the country. Her later statements put the lie to that. Now, in a new Atlantic interview, Trump says “if she doesn’t do what’s right, she is going to pay a very big price, probably bigger than Maduro.” (Gift link)
Reposted by Dr Bob Hall
I remember when they were saying they were powerless to return a man they illegally sent to an El Salvador gulag because it would violate that country's national sovereignty.
January 3, 2026 at 5:46 PM
I remember when they were saying they were powerless to return a man they illegally sent to an El Salvador gulag because it would violate that country's national sovereignty.
Reposted by Dr Bob Hall
I can't prove that this is a Trump insider, but it's clear that someone with knowledge of the USs planned regime change in Venezuela has been using that information to make a killing on the betting markets.
US corruption is widespread.
US corruption is widespread.
January 4, 2026 at 8:30 AM
I can't prove that this is a Trump insider, but it's clear that someone with knowledge of the USs planned regime change in Venezuela has been using that information to make a killing on the betting markets.
US corruption is widespread.
US corruption is widespread.
Reposted by Dr Bob Hall
If Trump’s concern was drugs, he’d not have pardoned Honduras’s corrupt leader; if terrorism, he’d have gone after Iran; if world order, Russia; if preserving US power, China. If democracy, human rights or humanitarian motive, dozens of other worthy cases. What’s left is oil. And Epstein.
January 4, 2026 at 5:37 AM
If Trump’s concern was drugs, he’d not have pardoned Honduras’s corrupt leader; if terrorism, he’d have gone after Iran; if world order, Russia; if preserving US power, China. If democracy, human rights or humanitarian motive, dozens of other worthy cases. What’s left is oil. And Epstein.
Reposted by Dr Bob Hall
Trump IS a mob boss. This is the worst of all worlds. Whether Venezuelans themselves will go along with his scheme remains to be seen. I somehow doubt it, meaning this is going to turn ugly very fast, while Russia and China laugh at American hubris.
Trump's plan appears to be for Venezuela to remain under the day-to-day rule of a senior chavista, with its democratically elected leaders excluded and its wealth controlled by American corporations. It's a scheme worthy of a mob boss. www.economist.com/the-americas...
Donald Trump wants to run Venezuela, and dominate the western hemisphere
Snatching Nicolás Maduro and attempting to take control of Venezuela and its oil is an extraordinary display of the new “Donroe doctrine”
www.economist.com
January 4, 2026 at 5:31 AM
Trump IS a mob boss. This is the worst of all worlds. Whether Venezuelans themselves will go along with his scheme remains to be seen. I somehow doubt it, meaning this is going to turn ugly very fast, while Russia and China laugh at American hubris.
Reposted by Dr Bob Hall
REP. GOLDMAN: “Trump promised oil executives if they gave him $1 billion for his campaign, he’d do right by them. They gave about $500 million. This is a massive gift in violation of international law, essentially just co-opting an entire country's natural resources for the benefit of 🇺🇸 Companies.”
January 4, 2026 at 4:16 AM
REP. GOLDMAN: “Trump promised oil executives if they gave him $1 billion for his campaign, he’d do right by them. They gave about $500 million. This is a massive gift in violation of international law, essentially just co-opting an entire country's natural resources for the benefit of 🇺🇸 Companies.”
Reposted by Dr Bob Hall
I listened to a LOT of Christians in 2024 argue that American Christians should vote for Trump, partly because he was the only one committed to ending the war in Gaza and he was the “president of peace”.
Uh huh. 🙄😫
Uh huh. 🙄😫
January 3, 2026 at 5:08 PM
I listened to a LOT of Christians in 2024 argue that American Christians should vote for Trump, partly because he was the only one committed to ending the war in Gaza and he was the “president of peace”.
Uh huh. 🙄😫
Uh huh. 🙄😫
Reposted by Dr Bob Hall
When people argue that renewable energy sources are too expensive, remember that we don’t invade countries to seize wind farms and there are no solar cartels. Fossil fuels have enormous geopolitical, public health, and climate externalities.
January 3, 2026 at 8:40 PM
When people argue that renewable energy sources are too expensive, remember that we don’t invade countries to seize wind farms and there are no solar cartels. Fossil fuels have enormous geopolitical, public health, and climate externalities.
Reposted by Dr Bob Hall
If the NYTimes and Washington Post knew the day *BEFORE* the attack on Venezuela and kidnapping of Maduro - so did Putin. Whether directly or from that make-believe SCIF in MAL.
That Maduro and Venezuelan military were not tipped off is consistent w/this bargain discussed by Fiona Hill in 2019.
That Maduro and Venezuelan military were not tipped off is consistent w/this bargain discussed by Fiona Hill in 2019.
During Fiona Hill's testimony to Congress on Oct 14, 2019, she described how Trump and Putin discussed exchanging Ukraine for Venezuela. The quid pro quo was if Trump refuses to help Ukraine fight off a Russian invasion, Putin would not help Venezuela (a Russian ally) resist a US takeover.
January 4, 2026 at 4:48 AM
If the NYTimes and Washington Post knew the day *BEFORE* the attack on Venezuela and kidnapping of Maduro - so did Putin. Whether directly or from that make-believe SCIF in MAL.
That Maduro and Venezuelan military were not tipped off is consistent w/this bargain discussed by Fiona Hill in 2019.
That Maduro and Venezuelan military were not tipped off is consistent w/this bargain discussed by Fiona Hill in 2019.
Reposted by Dr Bob Hall
The beer hat on Kavanaugh in this political cartoon never gets old. 🍺🧢
January 4, 2026 at 5:20 AM
The beer hat on Kavanaugh in this political cartoon never gets old. 🍺🧢
Reposted by Dr Bob Hall
Reposted by Dr Bob Hall
Trump's got a taste for blood.
Trump on Sheinbaum: "The cartels are running Mexico. She's not running Mexico. We could be politically correct & nice and say, 'Oh, yes, she is.' No no. And I've asked her number times, 'Would you like us to take out the cartels?' ... something is gonna have to be done with Mexico."
January 3, 2026 at 2:50 PM
Trump's got a taste for blood.
Reposted by Dr Bob Hall
Oil first. Pardons second.
Everyone else last.
The MAGA slogan should’ve been honest from day one:
“No War on Drugs. Just War for Oil.” 🛢️💸
Midnight strikes. Missiles fly.
Because nothing says “freedom” like attacking people while they’re asleep.
So who’s next on the menu?
Canada
Or Greenland —
Everyone else last.
The MAGA slogan should’ve been honest from day one:
“No War on Drugs. Just War for Oil.” 🛢️💸
Midnight strikes. Missiles fly.
Because nothing says “freedom” like attacking people while they’re asleep.
So who’s next on the menu?
Canada
Or Greenland —
January 3, 2026 at 4:35 PM
Oil first. Pardons second.
Everyone else last.
The MAGA slogan should’ve been honest from day one:
“No War on Drugs. Just War for Oil.” 🛢️💸
Midnight strikes. Missiles fly.
Because nothing says “freedom” like attacking people while they’re asleep.
So who’s next on the menu?
Canada
Or Greenland —
Everyone else last.
The MAGA slogan should’ve been honest from day one:
“No War on Drugs. Just War for Oil.” 🛢️💸
Midnight strikes. Missiles fly.
Because nothing says “freedom” like attacking people while they’re asleep.
So who’s next on the menu?
Canada
Or Greenland —
Reposted by Dr Bob Hall
(🚨) BREAKING NEWS: Trump Posts Photograph of Captured, Blindfolded, Disheveled Nicolás Maduro Aboard U.S. Helicopter Post-Kidnapping; Per Prior Trump Order, Maduro Is a Prisoner of War, Making the Photo a Violation of Geneva Convention (Article 13 of the Third Geneva Convention)
January 3, 2026 at 4:32 PM
Reposted by Dr Bob Hall
It will be press and media malfeasance if they don’t ask Trump and friends why the President of Honduras got a pardon for drug trafficking while we literally invade a sovereign nation to arrest a President for supposedly drug trafficking.
January 3, 2026 at 3:24 PM
It will be press and media malfeasance if they don’t ask Trump and friends why the President of Honduras got a pardon for drug trafficking while we literally invade a sovereign nation to arrest a President for supposedly drug trafficking.
Reposted by Dr Bob Hall
French Foreign Ministry: “The removal of Maduro from power and the violation of sovereignty constitute a serious act of aggression against the dignity of the Venezuelan people and their right to determine their own future.
January 3, 2026 at 3:02 PM
French Foreign Ministry: “The removal of Maduro from power and the violation of sovereignty constitute a serious act of aggression against the dignity of the Venezuelan people and their right to determine their own future.
Reposted by Dr Bob Hall
It’s not about drugs. If it was, Trump wouldn’t have pardoned one of the largest narco traffickers in the world last month.
It’s about oil and regime change.
And they need a trial now to pretend that it isn’t. Especially to distract from his sinking under Epstein and skyrocketing healthcare costs.
It’s about oil and regime change.
And they need a trial now to pretend that it isn’t. Especially to distract from his sinking under Epstein and skyrocketing healthcare costs.
January 3, 2026 at 3:34 PM
It’s not about drugs. If it was, Trump wouldn’t have pardoned one of the largest narco traffickers in the world last month.
It’s about oil and regime change.
And they need a trial now to pretend that it isn’t. Especially to distract from his sinking under Epstein and skyrocketing healthcare costs.
It’s about oil and regime change.
And they need a trial now to pretend that it isn’t. Especially to distract from his sinking under Epstein and skyrocketing healthcare costs.
Reposted by Dr Bob Hall
So blowing up the dead body of the man Trump deliriously claims stole the 2020 presidential election from him was part of a *law enforcement operation* targeting an entirely different leader?
Pull the other leg now.
Pull the other leg now.
U.S. strike hits Hugo Chávez mausoleum in Venezuelan capital-VIDEO
Venezuelan media report that the Cuartel de la Montaña complex, housing the remains of former President Hugo Chávez in Caracas, was struck by U
en.apa.az
January 3, 2026 at 2:48 PM
So blowing up the dead body of the man Trump deliriously claims stole the 2020 presidential election from him was part of a *law enforcement operation* targeting an entirely different leader?
Pull the other leg now.
Pull the other leg now.
Reposted by Dr Bob Hall
"But Wiles conceded that attacking targets on Venezuela’s mainland would force Trump to get congressional approval. 'If he were to authorize some activity on land, then it’s war, then [we’d need] Congress.'"
- WH Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, Nov 2, 2025 interview
www.vanityfair.com/news/story/t...
- WH Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, Nov 2, 2025 interview
www.vanityfair.com/news/story/t...
Trump’s Inner Circle, On the Record (Part 2 of 2)
Susie Wiles discusses the Epstein files, Pete Hegseth’s war tactics, and “retribution” against Letitia James.
www.vanityfair.com
January 3, 2026 at 1:35 PM
"But Wiles conceded that attacking targets on Venezuela’s mainland would force Trump to get congressional approval. 'If he were to authorize some activity on land, then it’s war, then [we’d need] Congress.'"
- WH Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, Nov 2, 2025 interview
www.vanityfair.com/news/story/t...
- WH Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, Nov 2, 2025 interview
www.vanityfair.com/news/story/t...
Reposted by Dr Bob Hall
Marco Rubio is reportedly saying Maduro will stand trial in US courts.
Which means it’s now the US administration’s position that US courts can hold foreign presidents, but not the US president, accountable for crimes.
Which means it’s now the US administration’s position that US courts can hold foreign presidents, but not the US president, accountable for crimes.
January 3, 2026 at 10:52 AM
Marco Rubio is reportedly saying Maduro will stand trial in US courts.
Which means it’s now the US administration’s position that US courts can hold foreign presidents, but not the US president, accountable for crimes.
Which means it’s now the US administration’s position that US courts can hold foreign presidents, but not the US president, accountable for crimes.
Reposted by Dr Bob Hall
Today is probably the day that I shifted to “whatever it takes to build European strategic autonomy”
The best time to build it was 10 years ago, the second best time to build it is now
The best time to build it was 10 years ago, the second best time to build it is now
January 3, 2026 at 12:26 PM
Today is probably the day that I shifted to “whatever it takes to build European strategic autonomy”
The best time to build it was 10 years ago, the second best time to build it is now
The best time to build it was 10 years ago, the second best time to build it is now
Reposted by Dr Bob Hall
Good morning.
You are waking up to the irony of a convicted felon president, who spent years avoiding his own criminal trials, capturing the president of a sovereign nation and holding him captive for criminal trials.
You are waking up to the irony of a convicted felon president, who spent years avoiding his own criminal trials, capturing the president of a sovereign nation and holding him captive for criminal trials.
January 3, 2026 at 12:29 PM
Good morning.
You are waking up to the irony of a convicted felon president, who spent years avoiding his own criminal trials, capturing the president of a sovereign nation and holding him captive for criminal trials.
You are waking up to the irony of a convicted felon president, who spent years avoiding his own criminal trials, capturing the president of a sovereign nation and holding him captive for criminal trials.