A Conflict Since The Dawn of Time…
It’s beginning to seem like the West is on the wrong side of a conflict that feels almost biblical. As Israel takes the center stage of rapidly growing tensions between the Global South and the West… It’s become increasingly clear that the finale of this superpower battle will dramatically change the world.
There’s not much middle ground between the two most likely outcomes.
The most optimistic outcome that anyone with even a trace of humanity should favor… Is a cooperative world positioned to tackle the litany of existential problems threatening the future of our species.
The most pessimistic outcome is some form of Armageddon. Whatever the outcome, it will likely be highly influenced and even perhaps determined by Western leadership.
Ukraine & The Weaponization of Money
Shortly after the war began in Ukraine, it felt ironically like a higher power was sending mankind a message. And that message was this: we either find a way to cooperate or face the consequences of taking this marvelous planet for granted.
Instead of responding by facing the existential threats which confront humanity, the West selfishly allowed its unquenchable desire for worldwide hegemony to rule out the utterly necessary path of cooperation– between all nations on a global scale.
Ukraine was a point of inflection that shredded any hope for peaceful, productive cooperation between the world’s two superpowers. At the same time, the conflict quickly made it clear that the West’s most powerful weapon – money – was no match for the strong bond between the two seemingly disparate cultures of Russia and China. The two countries, albeit in different ways, share deep-seated cultural norms. One of those norms includes fealty to family, indeed a sacred value that Thomas Jefferson thought necessary to define our once-great American democracy.
One month into the Ukrainian conflict, it was clear the Russians would dominate. The resulting surge in the Russian ruble left no doubt that American sanctions were backfiring. The failure of our only real weapon boomeranged back to smack the U.S. in the face, giving Russia evermore control.
Yet when Ukraine and Russia agreed to negotiate a potential ceasefire and peace agreement back in 2022, a delusionary West sent a clownish attack dog to Ukraine to handle the situation. Foolishly, they sent the previous British Prime Minister, Boris Johnson to handle the situation. Brother, that was a fatal error of epic proportions.
Documents that prove evidence of a nearly-reached peace negotiation between Russia and Ukraine… Were practically torn up as a result of Johnson’s involvement. In combination with his promise to Ukraine for unwavering Western support– he reassured it would result in Ukraine’s victory against a tired and weak Russian military. Without Western support, he insinuated little hope of Ukraine’s victory or ever becoming part of the Western alliance. With that said, after Boris Johnson’s departure from Kiev, all peace negotiations were off the table.
The past 18 months have been absolutely horrible for the West. Let’s start with the first, most ironic event that occurred in the wake of the Ukrainian conflict…
Over the past six months or so… the ruble has been declining. Although the decline in the currency wasn’t a result of the delayed effect of roughly a dozen sanction packages. Russia’s trade surplus was accelerating at a rapid clip and had reached record highs. Meanwhile, a plethora of developing countries depend on Russian exports of natural resources. In other words, Western sanctions had left Russia stronger economically and geopolitically. That was the first major pitfall.
An Epic Tragedy In The Making
Likewise, despite all the best Western weaponry and more than $100 billion dollars in foreign aid, Ukraine has become an epic tragedy. By Western counts, at least half a million young Ukrainians have been killed. The Ukrainian population has fallen by about 50%.
Next, virtually every Russian-speaking area of Ukraine is controlled by the Russians. It’s only a matter of time before the Russians set their sights on the final major target, Odessa, a Russian city that had produced great Russian musicians, before Ukraine ever existed.
Once Odessa is captured, it will leave Ukraine a land-locked nation – effectively a failed state. But in the West, the only way you’d know how badly Ukraine is being defeated is by the fact that, even before Israel was making headlines, Ukraine had disappeared from the front pages.
Goodness knows America has failed in many military efforts over the past 50 years – Vietnam, Afghanistan, the second Iraq invasion… all come immediately to mind.
“It was the Ukraine war, though, that showed the world how ineffectual the once-powerful U.S. military has become.”
The Ukraine War also strengthened the alliance between Russia and China. When you combine a country whose resource endowments far surpass that of any other country (Russia) with a country who has the world’s largest economy according to purchasing power parity and manufacturing capacity by a wide margin (China) then it’s safe to say you’ve created a dynamic duo.
For good measure, according to broad-based surveys (such as one from the British journal Nature) China now surpasses the U.S. in comprehensive measures of scientific achievement. Recent evidence came when the most sanctioned company in the world, Huawei, introduced a product fully competitive with the world’s best smartphones, including the Apple iphone. Not to mention China’s lead in quantum computing, artificial intelligence, and renewable energy to name a few.
Wrap Up…
While Ukraine was the point of inflection that showed a unipolar world led by the United States was no longer a reality, the current conflict centering around Israel will likely be decisive in determining how, or even whether, the world proceeds. The goal of a sustainable planet that can support a decent life for all its inhabitants, hangs precariously in the balance. It’s truly ironic that this crucial point in human history should be determined in the Middle East and intertwined with the fate of Israel, the promised land that has been embroiled in conflict since what seems like… The dawn of time.
