Today on the Flash Traffic Podcast we talk about the US misadventure in Venezuelan and the Russian misadventure in Ukraine, including secret planes, problems with oil, Nobel-level ass-kissing, freezing civilians, and more.

1. U.S. Attacked Boat With Aircraft That Looked Like a Civilian Plane - The New York Times — https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/12/us/politics/us-boat-attacks-law.html?unlocked_article_code=1.E1A.QY-e.ks7nfeFYtWoC&smid=nytcore-ios-share

2. Russian Missiles Failed in Venezuela During U.S. Attack - The New York Times — https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/12/world/americas/venezuela-russian-weapons-fail.html?unlocked_article_code=1.EFA.eLXe.JjgUP4ncwvT6&smid=nytcore-ios-share

3. Trump blocks defense company payouts until arms production speeds up | Reuters — https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/trump-says-he-wont-permit-dividends-buybacks-defense-companies-till-they-fix-2026-01-07/?utm_source=chatgpt.com

4. Trump’s Plans for Venezuelan Oil Run Headlong Into Reality - The New York Times — https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/12/us/politics/trump-venezuela-oil-dominance-influence.html?searchResultPosition=1

5. Machado Presents Trump With Nobel Peace Prize - The New York Times — https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/15/world/americas/machado-trump-meeting-nobel-peace-prize.html

6. (2) Sean Penn Gives Zelenskiy One of His Oscars - YouTube — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XaikIhD7igs&t=23s

7. Russia Knocks Out the Heat in Ukraine - The New York Times — https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/15/world/europe/ukraine-kyiv-winter-heating-power-outages.html?unlocked_article_code=1.E1A.7yb0.PnazdEYwm1t0&smid=url-share

8. The Separation: Inside the Unraveling U.S.-Ukraine Partnership - The New York Times — https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2025/12/30/world/europe/ukraine-war-us-russia.html?unlocked_article_code=1.D1A.czTX.F-f1qIYYIU_D&smid=url-share

9. Russian soldier.jpeg (1050×1280) — file:///C:/Users/tonyt/OneDrive/Desktop/Russian%20soldier.jpeg

10. Duke Webb, a Green Beret, Went on a Shooting Rampage. Is the Army at Fault? - The New York Times — https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/12/us/blast-brain-injury-green-beret-shooting-duke-webb.html?unlocked_article_code=1.EFA.yfFd.V2oJl-gDjHEk&smid=nytcore-ios-share

11. (1) Usman Goraya on X: "🚨🇺🇦 EPIC GROUND-LEVEL FOOTAGE: UKRAINIAN FPV DRONE INTERCEPTS & BLASTS RUSSIAN SHAHED-136 KAMIKAZE OUT OF THE SKY MID-AIR! 💥🔥 Insane rare clip shows a Ukrainian FPV interceptor hunting down and completely destroying a Russian Shahed-136 suicide drone in real time! 🚀💨 https://t.co/KLmYaoMXP0" / X — https://x.com/MrHunny01/status/2012068242102394886

12. Portrait of a Russian, Russian POW info graphic. t.me/hochu_zhyt