The Economic Impact of War: Israel vs. US in 2024

I just wrapped up one of the most powerful interviews I’ve done in a long while — with my friend Hillel Fuld. Many of you may already know him: a tech entrepreneur turned advocate for Israel who has become one of the most influential voices online since October 7th. His story, his warnings, and his call to action are worth your time. Let me break it down for you.

From Tech to the Front Lines of Information

Hillel was born in New York and moved to Israel 30 years ago. For years, he thrived in the country’s booming tech sector, consulting and working with startups. But tragedy struck when his brother was murdered in a terrorist attack seven years ago, and the Hamas massacre on October 7th sealed his decision to put everything else aside.

He shut down his successful business and dedicated himself full-time to defending Israel in the digital space. As a result, over four billion impressions on social media — most of them engaging with audiences predisposed to be anti-Israel. Why? Because he built credibility over years, and now he’s using that platform to counter lies with facts, to challenge hatred with truth.

Before October 7th, Hillel wrote online that the global situation — U.S. tensions with Iran and China, Russia’s war in Ukraine, bitter division in Israel and America — made it clear something big was coming. He didn’t predict the exact attack, but he knew Israel would be at the center. Sadly, he was right.

Now, he feels that same ominous weight again. He is afraid that a large-scale terrorist attack will happen against Jews in the U.S. or Europe. He hopes he’s wrong — desperately hopes — but as he put it, the trajectory is undeniable. Anti-Semitism is exploding. Attacks on Jews are up over 800% in the U.S. alone. Synagogues are being firebombed, Jews are assaulted in broad daylight, mobs wave terror flags in Western capitals, and governments do little or nothing.

His Holocaust-survivor aunt summed it up in two chilling words: “The same.”

Why the Hatred?

Hillel tackled the hardest question: why does Jew-hatred persist across history? His answer had two parts.

First, the theological: Jewish tradition teaches that anti-Semitism is built into the fabric of history.

Second, the historical: every empire that rose to dominance eventually threw out morality. And when morality — the values rooted in the Bible — became inconvenient, those empires lashed out at the messengers: the Jews. From Babylon to Rome, from Nazi Germany to the present day, the pattern repeats.

“The reason they hate us,” Hillel said, “is because we brought morality to the world. They don’t want it shoved down their throats, so they attack us.”

The Information War

We talked about the battlefield that matters most today: not just Gaza or Rafah, but the battle for truth.

Israel has arguably the strongest military defense technology in the world — Iron Dome, David’s Sling, the Arrow system — but in the information war, they’re getting crushed. Hamas and its backers pump out propaganda in slick, coordinated campaigns. Meanwhile, Israel’s truth-tellers are often underfunded, outnumbered, and ignored.

“I’ve reached four billion impressions with my ten fingers,” Hillel told me. “Imagine if I had 300 fingers.”

And here’s the kicker: the other side is organized. They’ve got talking points, PDFs, WhatsApp groups, slogans like “All Eyes on Rafah.” Israel? Not so much.

This is why Hillel’s plea is simple: use your voice. Don’t think your small Facebook following doesn’t matter. Truth spreads when people speak it.

Hillel shared how he was banned from Australia — his visa revoked because of so-called “Islamophobic” tweets. What did he say? That reports of massacres in Gaza weren’t true (later confirmed), and that it’s not irrational to fear radical Islam. That was enough to silence him.

The message was clear: in today’s world, truth itself is considered hate speech.

Despite the hardships, Hillel also sees God’s hand at work. He reminded us of Israel’s missile defense systems — once thought “science fiction,” now operating at 99% effectiveness. And the rockets that do get through? More often than not, they land in “empty fields” — something that simply doesn’t exist in a country as small as Israel.

For him, these are not coincidences. They are daily miracles.

What Can We Do?

Hillel’s challenge to us is clear:

• Speak up. Don’t remain silent in the face of lies.

• Engage online. Share, comment, like — it all matters in fighting the algorithm.

• Support the information warriors. Boots and rifles aren’t the only battle gear needed; so are digital warriors with the means to amplify truth.

• Pray and prepare. As he said, this is a moment in history where our grandchildren will ask: “What did you do?”

I’ve covered wars for over 20 years. I’ve spent months in Israel since October 7th. And I can tell you this: Hillel Fuld is right. The information battle is just as important as the battlefield. The lies being spread about Israel are not just words — they shape policies, embolden terrorists, and endanger lives.

Friends, we cannot be silent. Share this message. Use your voice. And let’s stand together with Israel in truth.

— Chuck Holton

Watch the full interview HERE

Today I want to bring your attention to a brewing crisis that could soon erupt in the Western Hemisphere: Venezuela. And it goes way beyond socialism or oil. We're talking about narco-terrorism, gold cartels, foreign militias, and even the possibility of U.S. boots on the ground.

From Prosperity to Predation

Venezuela, once one of the richest countries in Latin America, has become a failed state under Hugo Chavez and now the illegitimate strongman, Nicolas Maduro. The economy collapsed. Kidnapping became a growth industry. And over 8 million Venezuelans have fled, many of them ending up in the United States under lax border enforcement during the Biden administration.

I have a lot of friends who are Venezuelan, and I admire them. But here's the truth: the culture of dependency and normalized criminality that permeates Venezuela doesn't just disappear when people cross the border. That reality has consequences.

The Cartel de los Soles

The real threat isn’t just failed socialism. It’s that Venezuela has become a full-fledged narco-state. Maduro and his cronies are at the center of a shadowy network known as the Cartel de los Soles — made up of military and government elites trafficking cocaine and laundering gold.

Yes, gold. These guys make more money from illegal gold mining than drugs. I’ve been on the ground in Colombia and seen the devastation firsthand: mercury poisoning rivers, miners risking their lives, and terrorist groups taxing every shovel-full.

Why the U.S. Cares

The Trump administration recently escalated things by placing a $50 million bounty on Maduro’s head. That’s not just about ideology. It’s because Maduro is engaged in asymmetric warfare against the U.S. — using drugs, gold, and foreign allies like Russia, China, and Hezbollah to undermine American society.

4,000 U.S. Marines are now headed to the Caribbean coast of Venezuela. Navy ships and Coast Guard cutters are in motion. And the Pentagon has been green-lit to take kinetic action against the cartels.

Sound familiar? It should. I was there when we parachuted into Panama in 1989 to remove Manuel Noriega. Maduro could be next.

The Guyana Flashpoint

As if that's not enough, Venezuela is now saber-rattling over oil-rich territory in neighboring Guyana. Maduro claims half of Guyana belongs to Venezuela. Why? Because Guyana struck it rich with light, sweet crude — far more valuable than Venezuela’s dirty, hard-to-extract reserves.

There are rumors flying of a U.S. military buildup in Guyana. And while some of that is exaggerated, it’s true that we’re training with Guyanese forces and flying combat patrols. The U.S. isn't just defending Guyana’s sovereignty; we’re protecting our own strategic interests.

Mercenaries, Militia, and Madness

Maduro says he’ll mobilize 4.5 million factory workers and farmers into militias. That’s a joke. He doesn’t even trust his own military. That’s why he surrounds himself with Cuban and Russian mercenaries. But money talks — and with $50 million on the line, don't be surprised if some of his protectors turn into bounty hunters.

I've seen this up close. I once got roped into a secret meeting with Venezuelan defectors planning to overthrow Maduro. I backed away, reported it to the embassy, and sure enough, some of those same guys later launched a failed coup. Two American Green Berets were caught and are still rotting in Venezuelan prison.

A Real Risk to the U.S.

This isn’t just a Latin American problem. With Hezbollah operatives smuggled into the U.S. via Venezuela, suicide drones manufactured there with Iranian help, and widespread corruption, this is a clear and present danger to America.

Could this escalate into war? Possibly. But what’s more likely is covert operations, private military action, and targeted strikes. Still, if Venezuela hits back — say, with suicide drones on U.S. soil — all bets are off.

Final Thought

Venezuela is a failed state led by a criminal cartel that masquerades as a government. And while Americans are busy arguing over pronouns and plastic straws, our enemies are plotting how to destroy us from within.

We better wake up.

Comment below your thoughts about this. If you missed the live, you can watch it HERE

I’m writing to you today from the mountains of Kazakhstan. It’s been a whirlwind few days out here in Central Asia, and I’ve been watching closely as history played out thousands of miles away in Alaska. I want to break down for you what happened at the first U.S.-Russia presidential summit since the war in Ukraine began — and why the optics may be very different from the reality.

Pomp Without Circumstance

Two days ago, President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin met at Joint Base Elmendorf in Alaska. This was the first time the two men had been face-to-face in a decade, and the event was choreographed to the hilt. Red carpet, honor guards, F-22 Raptors on the tarmac, and even a flyover by B-2 stealth bombers — all staged to project American strength.

But what did we actually get from it? Not much. It was political theater — smiles, handshakes, and photo ops. The summit ended abruptly with no lunch, no press questions, and only carefully scripted remarks. That alone should tell you the talks didn’t go as well as advertised.

Putin’s Win on Sanctions

So why did Putin make the trip? One word: sanctions. The Trump administration had been preparing to roll out secondary sanctions — penalties not only on Russia, but also on countries like India and China that have been helping Moscow skirt existing restrictions. These measures had the potential to choke off Russia’s war machine, because while Putin doesn’t mind sacrificing soldiers, he does mind losing the economic lifeline that fuels his military.

At the end of the day, Putin walked away without making a single concession — but he did secure at least a delay on those secondary sanctions. That’s a huge win for Moscow. No wonder Russians are celebrating this summit as a victory.

Meanwhile, Ukraine is in the best battlefield position it has been since the war started. They’ve got more than 750,000 men under arms, and they’ve learned to innovate at lightning speed — fielding drones, unmanned vehicles, and even remote casualty evacuation systems that save soldiers’ lives.

Russian tactics, on the other hand, remain rooted in old Soviet-style warfare: meat waves of troops, staggering casualties, and little innovation beyond drones. Every square kilometer they seize costs them hundreds of dead soldiers.

And here’s a fact you won’t hear on mainstream news: Ukraine is now producing more ammunition than it consumes. They’re no longer entirely dependent on Western supplies. That’s a game changer.

Optics vs. Reality

Here’s what worries me: the optics of this summit play directly into Russia’s cognitive warfare doctrine. Moscow believes wars are won by shaping minds, not just by winning on the battlefield. Optics are the battlefield.

Putin, riding in “the Beast” limousine, smiling alongside Trump, Lavrov wearing a USSR sweatshirt — those images tell the world Russia is on equal footing with the United States. That perception is a victory in itself, even if the reality is that Russia’s economy is crumbling and their military is bleeding men at an unsustainable rate.

The Human Cost

I also want to remind you what’s at stake here. Russia has abducted tens of thousands of Ukrainian children, rebranded them as Russian, and in some cases sent them to fight against their own countrymen. They’ve run “filtration” camps in occupied Ukraine, separating families, torturing civilians, and disappearing countless people.

I’ve seen the aftermath of these atrocities firsthand. In places like Bucha and Mariupol, Russia’s brutality is real and ongoing. This is why Ukraine refuses to accept any “peace deal” that leaves its people in Russian hands.

For Russia, the summit was a public relations victory and a temporary reprieve from crippling sanctions. For the U.S., it was a show without substance. And for Ukraine, it was yet another reminder that their fate is often being negotiated without them at the table.

If the United States truly wants to end this war, the most effective way is still maximum economic pressure — cutting off Russia’s oil revenues and enforcing secondary sanctions without hesitation. That’s the lever that will eventually break the Kremlin’s grip.

You can watch the full video on this topic HERE