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A post from Gregory Burgess – Alright, I’m going to say this once — and I genuinely don’t care who it makes uncomfortable.I’m not Venezuelan.But some of my closest friends are.I’ve sat across the table from people who grew up in Venezuela.I’ve listened to the stories.I’ve watched their faces change when the topic comes up.I’ve heard what they lost — homes, businesses, futures, family members, years of their lives.So if you have never lived there…Didn’t grow up there…Didn’t watch your country collapse in real time…Didn’t stand in food lines…Didn’t watch your parents lose everything…Didn’t flee your home because staying meant starvation…Then you need to understand something very clearly:You do not get to lecture people who did.And you definitely don’t get to lecture people who listen to them.My friends watched Venezuela go from a functioning country to a hollowed-out disaster. Not overnight — but fast enough to scar you for life.This isn’t a political thought experiment to them.It’s not a debate topic.It’s not a hashtag.It’s trauma.Before socialism took the wheel, Venezuela wasn’t perfect — but it worked.There was trade.There were jobs.There was food.There was medicine.There was investment.There was a future people could actually plan for.Then came the “good intentions”: Nationalize everything!• Push out private business• Block imports• Impose price controls• Let corruption explodeAnd the country didn’t just decline — it collapsed.Not slowly.Not politely.Violently.My friends didn’t lose everything because of “capitalism” or “the U.S.” or whatever lazy slogan gets repeated online by people who’ve never missed a meal in their lives.They lost everything because socialism destroyed incentives, destroyed production, destroyed trust, and destroyed hope.People in Venezuela today aren’t arguing ideology on social media.They’re trying to eat.They’re trying to find medicine.They’re trying to keep their families alive.So when I see people in the West — posting from comfortable homes, full refrigerators, stable currencies, and safe streets — lecturing about “imperialism,” “U.S. bad,” or dragging Trump into it like a coping mechanism…No.It’s not nuanced.You’re just ignorantOnce more for the people in the back...YOU ARE IGNORANT!China isn’t rebuilding Venezuela.Russia isn’t rebuilding Venezuela.Cartels aren’t rebuilding Venezuela.They’re looting what’s left.If the U.S. comes in and reinvests…If refineries get rebuilt…If infrastructure is restored…If imports reopen…If food, water, and medicine become accessible again…If people can work and earn with dignity…Then yes — take the oil.Because my friends would rather see something built than watch everything rot.This isn’t about perfection.It’s about hope.Hope families can eat.Hope people don’t have to flee.Hope a broken country can function again.And if you’ve never lived through a national collapse…Never watched socialism wipe out everything around you…Never had to leave home because staying meant starvation…Then maybe — just maybe — listen to the people who did.Because this isn’t theory.This isn’t politics.This is lived experience — and I trust the people who lived it.This isn’t about you.It’s not about Donald Trump.It’s not about your weird obsession with saying his name like it’s a nervous tic.This is about real people getting a chance at a real life again.Food. Work. Dignity. Stability.Things you already have — and clearly take for granted.So spare everyone the self-centered commentary and ideological cosplay.This isn’t your culture war prop.It’s their survival.