What are we to make of all of the scenes of Venezuelans celebrating last night's SMO?

[Seeking Serenity]

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What would we say to them?

[Raven123]

1. Enjoy your trip back to Venezuela.

[Seeking Serenity]

4. I hope they do go back to work to rebuild their country.

[Raven123]

15. Absolutely.

.

[underpants]

2. In Doral - yeah. YEAH!

In Venezuela - same boss as the old boss

[bigtree]

3. see: Iraq invasion

...read more.

[Vogon_Glory]

5. These sound like Venezuelans outside of Venezuela

Venezuelan expats are only a fraction of the total Venezuelan population. I don’t think they’re fully representative of the whole. I’d be more interested in seeing how Venezuelans inside Venezuela are reacting to Maduro being taken prisoner.

What do I make of it? I don’t have an opinion yet. I want more information before I make up my mind.

[EX500rider]

10. Quite a large fraction as 8 million of them have fled to other countries

And since 70% of the ones there voted for someone else last election I doubt they will be sad either.

[Vogon_Glory]

14. I'm not saying that I'm bothered by Maduro being out of power

What I do wonder is what percentage of the total Venezuelan population is happy about his being removed from office. As I see it, thinking this way doesn’t make me a left-wing fellow-traveler or an enthusiastic supporter of Donald Trump. Venezuelans might indeed be exultant about Maduro’s removal, but I don’t trust the American corporate media’s reporting. I’m going to wait and see.

[cachukis]

20. My sister in law is Venezuelan. One of my wife's

good friends is Venezuelan. They are very pleased that Maduro is gone. Neither of them are happy about the way it was done. Neither of them like trump.
Both here since 70's. Neither have been able to return home for mother's passing since 2012.
Anecdotal.

[yaesu]

6. They hate their dictator as much as we hate our dictator, but

Wait until they find out the new boss is the same as the old boss

[MorbidButterflyTat]

7. Kinda like Muslims celebrating after 9/11?

"Make Venezuela Great Again" flag?? Really? Gee, I wonder where that came from?

And a big boobed blonde imitating ecstasy?

What a load.

[Abolishinist]

12. I beg your pardon.

Last edited Sat Jan 3, 2026, 10:32 PM - Edit history (1)

I watched the entire second video, hoping to see those depicted on the opening screen jumping up and down with joy. Never happened.

Bummer.

[MorbidButterflyTat]

24. I didn't watch either video

I made my observations from the still pics.

[rog]

28. Yes, I watched that second video, too ...

Pretty laid back crowd, and that thumbnail screen still 'photo' with the ecstatic blond sure looks AI generated to me.

[markodochartaigh]

8. The vast majority of Venezuelans in Florida at those rallies are from the upper class.

They profited for decades under US backed regimes. They have as much similarity to Maduro's working class supporters as marble does to limestone.

[Greg_In_SF]

9. People celebrate

when they get rid of a murderous dictator

[Solly Mack]

11. Celebrating at a Chevron gas station.

Just an observation.

[Hellbound Hellhound]

13. As a brief aside, gas stations are often places of celebration or partying.

Not stating that it's anything to do with Maduro, but gas stations have food, water, tobacco, booze, sometimes narcotics, a massive amount of empty space and obviously gasoline. At a prior job I had to clear AT LEAST two parties a weekend out of a gas station I had to work at.

The location is probably irrelevant.

[Solly Mack]

16. Probably.

Gas station parties. My word.

[Hellbound Hellhound]

18. Never spent any time "Poor"-level in Miami? I'll tell ya, you see some stuff.

All manner of illicit activities up to and including drugs, prostitution and public defecation. "Parties" are functionally the least of our worries. XD

[Solly Mack]

22. Poor in Miami, no. Poor, yes.

[Hellbound Hellhound]

23. Definitely a different animal than anything in the North.

I was the designated "Northern white boy" because I could just hang out in the station's fridge for hours stocking drinks and frozen food without issue, but ask me to step outside out of the AC? Notsomuch. XD

Obviously climate has a huge part of it; in the fall, winter and some spring seasons, parties would ramp the second 2 AM rolled around. Super-tricked-out, Grand Theft Auto-style vehicles rolling in (Full paint jobs and hydraulics and speaker systems), normally in crews of six to ten, often smoking cigs or weed at the pump. We loved the business but we hated the conflict that inevitably came. Unfortunately, I've seen a few people get deleted at my station, but that's why we forced a closure from 2-4 AM even though we were "Technically" a 24/7 operation.

[ColoringFool]

36. A Milieu To Which I Am Thankful I Do Not Belong! Jeez Louise!

Sartre's Hell.

[Seeking Serenity]

37. Oh, mercy. That's beyond my experiences.

[fujiyamasan]

32. Why am I suddenly thinking of Zoolander lol

[Solly Mack]

34. Wake me up before you go-go.

[AloeVera]

21. Oh the irony. Nt

[LT Barclay]

17. Stinks of a CIA operation to me. For a history of similar operations see L. Fletcher Prouty's book on the JFK

assassination

[Raven123]

19. What are we to make of the inconsistency by this administration

How is it that 350,000 Venezuelan immigrants didn’t need protection before Maduro was removed? But now we are told he needed to be removed.

https://www.newsweek.com/supreme-court-lets-donald-trump-end-protections-350000-venezuelans-2074243


It just doesn’t make sense. But if Venezuelans themselves are celebrating, I fully support their return to Venezuela ASAP and hope they can rebuild their country. They might be surprised by how fast that return is facilitated by Noem.

[Don Spikers]

25. Chevron Gas station is the place to hold the rally. Why there?

I find it strange that they gathered at the Chevron gas station. The only U.S. oil company in Venezuela. All ppl that work for Chevron?

Chevron, the only major U.S. oil company operating in Venezuela, has been involved in the country's oil sector since 1923. The company has projects across 74,000 oil and gas acres and has been operating in Venezuela since 1946. Chevron's operations are subject to U.S. sanctions, which have restricted its ability to export Venezuelan oil.

[choie]

26. Just because people are happy that a dictator is no longer in power

does not justify OUR kidnapping said dictator. These Venezuelans in Florida are most likely upper class. I look forward to them going back to their country to help it flourish for ALL Venezuelans, not just the rich.

[enid602]

27. Protest

Do you honestly think that most Venezuelans who live in the US would publicly protest the US invasion? That would be a death wish.

[SunSeeker]

29. What would YOU say to them, Seeking Serenity?

[H2O Man]

30. Valid question.

[Seeking Serenity]

38. Clearly they're happy. I might ask about the principle behind what was done.

Whether they're willing to go home once everything is calmed to help rebuild their country.

I've also seen videos from NYC of white communists denouncing Venezuelans or people of Venezuelan descent for celebrating what'd happen, calling them traitors to their country, etc. I didn't like that at all.

[SunSeeker]

39. They're clearly NOT happy about Trump bashing Maria Corina Machado. They all support her.

I saw several Venezuelan ex pats being interviewed and they all supported Machado and thought she should lead Venezuela. They also were adamant that Machado is very respected in Venezuela, contrary to Trump's assertion. One called what Trump said outright "lies."

[JI7]

31. Why do you need to say anything to them ? What will happen will happen

Maduro was a disaster. Acknowledge that. But Trump isn't doing this to help them. He is doing it to steal from them.

It wasn't the US responsibilty to get rid of Maduro.

[fujiyamasan]

33. They're welcome to go back and fix the country

Not too thrilled that this is how my tax dollars are spent.

[JustAnotherGen]

35. Yeah but

My Constitution and tax dollars outweigh their joy and elation.