Worldwide Theaters of The Absurd

We often hear of a rules-based world order. The problem seems to be that no one knows what the rules are, no one can enforce them, and certainly, the word “order” seems misplaced

By Anil Madan

Ever since the world saw the devastation that nuclear bombs could wreak in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the realization that nuclear weapons should never ever again be used sank in. The possession of nuclear weapons came to be viewed as a right reserved for the few “responsible” powers. That the five major nuclear powers made the decision that THEY were the privileged ones had a certain irony to it. With China having nuclear weapons, India was not going to stand idly by. And with India having nuclear weapons, Pakistan was not going to stand idly by. Facing existential threats of annihilation, Israel has not been standing by, albeit not officially confirming that is has nuclear weapons.

In recent years, we have seen North Korea join the nuclear club and Iran get ever so near to be a dues-paying member. And China which had hundreds of nuclear warheads in contrast to the thousands held by Russia and the US, has embarked on a program to increase its nuclear warheads arsenal.

In February 2024, the Lowry Institute reported that the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists’ 2024 Nuclear Notebook estimated that China had increased its nuclear warheads to 500 and was producing more apace to equip future delivery systems. China’s nuclear arsenal is the fastest growing on the planet. About a year ago, the US Department of Defense projected that by 2030, China would have more than 1000 operable nuclear weapons. If China continues this pace of development, by 2035, there will be 1500 or more nuclear warheads. It is not clear whether it will claim that its use of nukes is an “internal matter” as it so often does, remains to be seen.

In December 2023 and January 2024, The New York Times reported on activity at China’s Lop Nur test facility. The level of activity suggests that at a minimum, there is intense preparation for resumption of nuclear testing. Whether this means that testing is in the offing, is not clear. The Chinese Foreign Ministry dismisses concerns about its intentions, emphasized Beijing’s commitment to observing the nuclear test ban, and added that China will spare “no effort to realize the noble aspiration of comprehensively banning and totally eradicating nuclear weapons.”

The absurdity is that China sees building thousands of nuclear warheads as meeting the noble aspiration of eradicating nuclear weapons. True absurdity.

The question is whether anyone, including the Chinese believe their own words.

It has been well telegraphed that China’s position on adding to its nuclear arsenal and its refusal to discuss strategic arms limitation with Russia and the US is grounded in the fear that, starting from a smaller arsenal of nuclear warheads, it will be at a disadvantage if it too must cut its warheads. The absurd notion is that China will be left relatively weaker if it agrees to cuts. Lost in all this is any sense of the absurd and the realization that China, even with 500 warheads, has enough to kill the world several times over.

Use of nuclear weapons in the Ukraine conflict

But this is not the height of absurdity in the world. As we all know, Putin has been threatening to use nuclear weapons in the Ukraine conflict almost from the day he launched his illegal invasion. Kim Jong Nuke has threatened the US, Japan, and South Korea with nuclear weapons. The theater of the absurd has taken new turns in Russia.  Last week, Reuters reported that Sergei Karaganov, a foreign policy hawk who is said to be influential in Russia, stated to a Moscow newspaper that Russia should clearly state its willingness to use nuclear weapons against countries that “support NATO aggression in Ukraine” and expressed his opinion that Russia could launch a limited nuclear strike on a NATO country without triggering all-out nuclear war.

In another development, Anatoly Voyntsev, a physicist and professor at Perm State University, called on Putin to consider striking Ukraine with nuclear weapons to hasten the end of the war and cut off western supply routes. And just three days ago, Russian TV host Vladimir Solovyov, said that Putin already has a “basis to start a nuclear war.”

If you don’t think that is crazy enough, there have been reports of people urging Putin to conduct a nuclear explosion inside Russia to demonstrate to those outside Russia that he is serious. Another report states that Zygar, the founding editor of the independent Dozhd television network, which is banned in Russia and operates in exile in the Netherlands, wrote: “Vladimir Putin has long been known for his special attitude to mysticism. And apparently he combines his interest in Orthodox mysticism with pagan traditions.” This is all in response to a rumour circulating in Moscow that Putin needs the blessing of shamans to use nuclear weapons. Without their consent, he could not dare to take such a serious step for fear of upsetting the spirits. This was the apparent reason for his recent trip to Mongolia. And he reportedly returned from Mongolia satisfied, according to these reports.

We have come from understanding the only legitimate reason for having a nuclear arsenal was as a deterrent, i.e., to ensure that they would NEVER be used, to the point that playing a game of nuclear chicken in public seems acceptable to leaders and diplomats at the highest levels of government.

Not to be outdone in this Kabuki Theater of the Absurd, outgoing NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg said that allowing Ukraine to use Western long-range missiles to strike Russian territory would not trigger an escalation from Moscow. Stoltenberg extrapolated from the fact that Putin had previously set red lines that he then ignored and argued that that NATO’s nuclear deterrent coupled with its military superiority, rendered unlikely any direct nuclear attack by Putin.

Not surprisingly, Putin’s spokesman, Dmitry Peskov criticized Stoltenberg for being “extremely provocative and dangerous,” and for failing to take Putin’s warnings seriously.

Meanwhile, President Biden and British PM Keir Starmer had a high-level discussion about whether Ukraine should be allowed to use long-range western missiles to strike deep into Russia. Somehow, the absurd notion that tying one hand behind Ukraine’s back in its battle for survival will endear the Western allies to Putin, seems to have infected these world leaders. In any event, reports suggest that Biden and Starmer have okayed long-range strikes by Ukraine but will not officially admit having done so.

A rules-based world dis/order

My mentioning the Kabuki Theater of the Absurd should, of course, bring the entirely disunited States of America in all its dysfunctional glory to mind. Never mind that Donald Trump has been convicted of sexual assault (which a Senior federal district court judge ruled was the equivalent of rape under New York law), that he has been convicted of fraudulently falsifying business records, that he has been caught on a recording instructing a Mar-a-Lago employee to destroy video evidence of records on his property that he denied having, that he urged state electors not to vote to certify the election and instead submit slates of fake electors based on false affidavits, the election still seems close.

It is truly absurd that a country of 335 million people should have so much difficulty finding qualified candidates for the presidency.

At its best, the American election season is a farce. It too has now descended to the absurd. About a week ago, I sent this to friends: “In weak moments, I have thought that given the certainty that Donald Trump is demented and most definitely, a lunatic who should be locked up in an asylum, I muse that if J.D. Vance succeeds him, perhaps, just perhaps, he still has a brain after his sojourn at Yale Law School.

But I wrote: “Now, I’m even more worried than ever. J.D. Vance is even more of a lunatic than Trump.” What prompted my concern was that after Trump and Vance spread utterly false stories about Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, eating the cats and dogs of their white neighbours, Vance was challenged. His response: “If I have to create stories so that the American media actually pays attention to the suffering of the American people, then that’s what I’m going to do.”

The latest development is that a woman who filed the police report about her missing cat that started the rumours, told a newspaper that her pet, Miss Sassy, was found in her basement days after she contacted the police. The woman, who was wearing a Trump shirt and hat when the reporters spoke with her, told them that she had since apologized to her Haitian neighbours. No apology to the cat from the Haitian neighbours was necessary.

In the meantime, Springfield, Ohio has experienced more than 33 bomb threats and had to shut schools and events down. Trump has vowed to deport the Haitians. Good luck with that, since they are in the US legally. And J.D. Vance does not seem to understand that these residents of Ohio are his constituents. He is a Senator from Ohio.

One of Trump’s supporters, Laura Loomer, a noted right-wing wacko and race baiter, complained that if Kamala Harris were elected, the White House would smell of curry. J.D. Vance when asked about this, didn’t have the presence of mind to say: “Well, my house smells like curry” but instead offered: “I make a mean curry.” Well, I challenge J.D. to a curry cookoff.

The American judiciary has shown lately that anyone can be a judge, even those who can’t tell the different between a good curry and bouillabaisse. So, applications to judge the JD vs. Bwana curry cookoff are open.

Cheerz…
Bwana

Mauritius Times ePaper Friday 20 September 2024