What's on your 2026 bingo card?

I'm not really in the prediction game, but 2026 got me feeling a little frisky.

What follows aren't predictions so much as what I'll keep my eyes on for the next year, though you'll be able to see my bias in how I present the following stories of interest.

So let's get to it and dig into what lies ahead.

Especially because one of my bingo card items already hit.

The US will invade Venezuela

As of January 3, 2026, this one's a gimme, as President Trump claims the US has captured Nicolas Maduro of Venezuela.

Another reason this one was a gimme: You don't rename the Department of Defense to the Department of War if you plan to sit on the sidelines.

The Russia-Ukraine war will continue

I know there have been reports of peace negotiations taking place, but I still say this one's gonna keep on keepin' on in 2026.

For the record, if a peace agreement is reached but Russia attacks again, then that counts as a hit on my 2026 bingo card.

Israel-Gaza will end

This one feels like it will come to an end. The world can't have too much conflict, right? We gotta get a break somewhere.

China will invade Taiwan

You didn't think we were just gonna get rid of one conflict (Israel-Gaza), did ya? No, we gotta make room for the BIG ONE!

China wants Taiwan back. America will stretch itself too thin with other conflicts. Now is the time to strike.

Once China goes after Taiwan, we can say goodbye to the Democrat hoax we call 'affordability', because no one will be able to afford an electronic device ever again!

The AI bubble will burst

I've been calling this one since 2021, and I've been wrong every year since.

But 2026 will be different. Why? Because I gotta be right at some point. I mean it--any day now, the bubble will burst. It has to, because it has little substance. There's just no there there, ya know?

While the bubble must burst, the last few years have shown that desperate money can prop up a house of cards far longer than you'd think possible.

Trump won't finish the year as president

I'm not predicting an assassination, or another impeachment, this time followed by removal/resignation from office.

I'm not even saying Trump will die from natural causes. But I think natural causes will lead to his downfall.

MAGA is a coalition. And coalitions are weak, because they're made up of people with conflicting priorities who banded together to conquer a common enemy.

The problem comes when the coalition starts winning, making progress, changing things. That's when everyone disagrees about what the future should look like, and that's when the cracks starts to show.

MAGA appears to be fragmenting. Or, at least, it doesn't appear as strong as it once did. Whenever there's a power vacuum (or appearance of), people look to fill it. So I expect more conflict within MAGA.

Because MAGA is a coalition, they have no real shared values, aside from owning the Libs. (I'm a big believer that being against something isn't nearly as meaningful as being for something. Whatever you're against changes according to your opponent, but whatever you're for is consistent, regardless of the parties involved.) As soon as Trump is weak enough for others to pounce (to force him out of office for their own gain), someone's gonna pounce. Maybe someones. Maybe too many someones.

What's got you feeling frisky?

My bingo card is kinda boring: war, AI, Trump (the usual headlines in post-COVID America).

It's a big, bright, beautiful world out there, so I know I'm missing a lot.

So help me out: What's on your 2026 bingo card?

What do you know is gonna hit that everyone else is overlooking?

Drop me a line and let me know.