STIRRING UP A HORNET’S NEST

 

I don’t recommend that you try out the following experiment, but just take my word for it.  Throw a rock at a hornet’s nest and the hornets will come out fast and furious, hopping mad and ready to sting anything on sight.  With their nest destroyed they may disperse, but they will find a way to regroup and build a new nest and when it comes to destroying a human hornet’s nest it will come replete with long lingering memories and with sharpened stingers that can’t wait to retaliate.

The current batch of aggressors that are attacking Iran and turning the entire Middle East into a charnel house, are so high on testosterone that they have lost sight, not only of their humanity, but what they hope to achieve with their punitive, one-sided actions.  For the uninitiated, Iran has never been in a position to threaten anyone because western powers have consistently interrupted their nuclear program with bombing raids and acts of sabotage.  Punitive sanctions have impoverished and undermined the ability of its people to create a meaningful economy.  Sectarian regimes are also notorious for concentrating on the hearts and minds of the faithful, rather than on all matters economic and political.  Afghanistan is a prime example of how quickly sectarian governments stagnate and isolate themselves.

No real resistance.

Iran is not in a position to wage an effective counter offensive against Israel and the United States.  They lack the military hardware and sophistication to launch a counter attack.  But they are hitting back.  By attacking neighboring states that support American bases and troops they are widening the conflict and provoking others to join in.  This so-called limited military action to invoke regime change has the power to embroil the entire region into a drawn-out conflict.  Keep the Americans bottled up and let the war expenses go through the roof.  It worked for the Taliban!  They know that the Americans have no appetite for putting boots on the ground.  Their track record from Vietnam to Iraq, Afghanistan and Syria has been disastrous.  The indiscriminate bombing and the outright murder of innocent civilians will only incite hatred and that is the proverbial hornet’s nest.  The devastation on the ground, the casualties and the horrendous damage inflicted will not be mitigated and replaced by lofty promises once the dust settles on this conflict.  And it will.  Eventually all conflicts grind to a halt.  What regime change will look like is anyone’s guess and it could end up being worse than the one it may replace.

A bankrupt nation reaching out with bankrupt solutions.

The United States is basically broke and soon enough there won’t be enough cash on hand to keep their ships afloat and prevent all that military hardware from rusting in a junkyard.  The United States is leading the global pack when it comes to incurring huge debts.  They’re not alone.  All levels of government and governments in general are keeping themselves afloat on a sea of red ink.  Trump and company are reaching out with pathetic attempts to shore up the American economy and their standing in the world, but there are no prizes out there big enough to compensate for the losses incurred and the amount of debt accumulated.

Shooting sitting ducks.

This is not a war with two equal parties dueling it out.  This is not a battle that will go down in history as a heroic fight, but as a nasty group of belligerents using their weapon’s superiority like shooting fish in a barrel.  No fair contest here.  Nothing to be proud of.  Vainglorious posturing and they have the audacity to congratulate themselves on their destructive capabilities.  What Iran is able to retaliate with can be compared to poking a weak straw at a huge hornet’s nest.  The behavior of the current batch of aggressors, the United States, Israel and Russia, is no better than thugs beating up a helpless homeless person. 

When it comes to foreign affairs and international diplomacy trust is a crucial element.  Respecting the sovereignty of other nations a cornerstone in negotiations.  Basically showing respect.  Between the current batch of bad actors, the United States, Israel and Russia, their lack of consultation and unilateral acts of war and aggression, doesn’t sit well with allies, neighbors and nations that find themselves at the receiving end of punitive threats and tariffs.

There are no winners.

Under the direction of Trump and company America will only further isolate itself and when they declare insolvency nobody will come to their aid.  Under the tutelage and lobbying pressures applied by America’s wealthiest we have witnessed America’s manufacturing base shrinking and leaving for more profitable shores.  The United States, no matter what hoops it tries to jump through, will not reverse this process and restore domestic jobs and prosperity.  Greed is no longer restricted by borders and generous election donations will keep the wealthy insulated and protected.  There are other global players but they are wisely staying on the sidelines.  For now!

China and India are struggling with huge population numbers that are dragging their economies down.  Government programs and services to keep the masses from rebelling are costly and unsustainable.  At the moment they are content to stand back and watch how the United States drains itself financially and politically.  Russia is a sad sideshow and has turned into a tattered old bear with a network of crooked politicians having joined forces with criminal gangs to rob the nation blind and to keep the masses in a state of perpetual poverty and ignorance.  Within the fragile state of overall global decline there is not a single opportunity out there for any nation to emerge as a winner or to claim supremacy.  Creating an existentialist crisis will only hasten the existentialist crises we face as a species as planet Earth cannot sustain the ballooning human numbers in the face of a finite physical reality (the planet doesn’t expand like a balloon), dwindling natural resources and opportunities.

Physical wealth in the form of money, precious metals, gems, gold or properties mean absolutely nothing in the face of existential decline and with billions of people scrambling for leftovers, desperate to stay alive.

Die-off.

Species extinction has taken place for billions of years and is as old as the planet itself.  We would be naïve to assume that it can’t happen to us.  What we have done to ourselves and the planet in a few millennia surpasses anything that has come and happened before us, and we’ve done it in record time!  I don’t think we will be done in by nukes (if all else fails, let it all go to hell, a favorite expression from the recent past’s worst psychopath, Adolf Hitler), but by our numbers, ignorance and a superior intelligence we have used to devise horrible weapons of mass destruction.  To top it off, we are increasingly progressing with what can only be described as the most asinine political decisions, human actions and activities.

We're not all that bright either!

We’re not exempt.

We are no different than any other lifeforms we share the planet with and that should be a sobering wakeup call.  The energy intake needed to sustain our species is no different than what the natural world needs to survive.  But in our case it only takes a heck of a lot more to keep everything going, and more is not what we’re left with.

To justify the recent descent into violence in the Middle East all parties involved are ramping up the rhetoric, rumors and speculative stories about potential threats.  No attempts are made to deescalate and turn down the heat.  And again, we once more follow the predictable path that all conflicts take.  Iran is a sad example of past colonial interference, attempts at regime change and failing to respect Iran as a sovereign nation.  The current regime is sectarian in nature and more concerned with daily prayer, the hearts and minds of its people, than running a nation based on sound economic practices, trade and engaging respectfully with potential partners.  Unfortunately you don’t sustain bellies on prayer alone and it doesn’t stop intelligent people from wanting to take part in a progressive society that wants to be part of the real world, and not one dictated by an oppressive sectarian regime obsessed with saving souls.  However, it is up to the Iranian people to decide, not through interference by third parties, and most definitely not by bombing the hell out of the nation.

And as far as the aggressors is concerned: You can’t stay where you are not wanted and you can’t take what doesn’t belong to you.  These lines are not mentioned anywhere in the bible or the Koran, but it should be enshrined in the constitution of every nation—in bold letters!

And we should all remember:

Justice perverted is justice denied.

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