Jan. 14 (UPI) -- There have been 100-year wars and 30-year wars. The June 1973 Arab-Israeli War lasted six days. Twenty-eight years later, after a lengthy bombing campaign, Saddam Hussein's army was driven from Kuwait and obliterated in 100 hours. And it took 79 days in 1999 for NATO to compel Slobodan Milosevic to end the Kosovo slaughter.
But, never in modern history has there ever been a one day war. That was until Donald Trump ordered a relatively small commando force into Caracas to seize and detain Nicolas Maduro and his wife Jan. 3.
Yes, a large naval armada lay off the Venezuelan coast. Still, for the time being -- and that could change -- this fait accompli seemed to be a dramatic success.
The acting president, Delcy Rodriguez, appeared compliant and willing to accept American dominance without a single pair of U.S. boots on the ground. Venezuela permitted the appropriation or theft of 50 million barrels of its oil by the United States worth about $2.5 billion. And, discussions over formal recognition are reportedly underway.
How can this be? The United States spent fortunes in blood and treasure in Vietnam and with allies in Afghanistan and Iraq attempting to make successful regime changes. All failed.
