By: John Silva – April, 2022
It’s not Rocket Science. All that’s needed is to have a law in place and the consequences of not following the law to be clear. And, one foolish despot to cross the line, and one bullet to end his or her life.
You don’t need boots on the ground, rockets or bombs, and for anyone else to die except the despot. There is no reason that our young men and women need to die to make warmongers richer than God. There is no reason to waste millions of lives and billions of dollars on a contrived war that has no beneficial purpose.
World War II had a purpose. Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan were a waste of lives and resources. And, don’t get me started on Ukraine. The money should have been spent on education, food, housing, and hospitals. Let us rise above the stupidity and greed of our past leaders and firmly set a solid precedent for the future. When despots realize, starting a war will Despots must die! When this action becomes a clear reality, fewer and fewer despots will choose this path because the cost is too high and the rewards are too small.
When an evil despot rises up against his neighbor and/or humanity, he must be stopped. Either he or she must realize this themselves or the world must crush them utilizing the most efficient means possible. He should be eliminated with minimal disruption to innocent citizens and the world. This needs to be done post haste, in the least amount of time possible, and with the least amount of destruction to infrastructure, and be done with the least amount of finances and materials.
Chopping off the head of a poisonous snake is the easiest and most efficient way to kill it. You don’t try to appease it. You stomp it to death. You don’t try to hit it with a stick, or a log, or a tree trunk. You don’t try to choke it or drown it or wound it, or run over it with your car. You find a hoe and chop off its head before it does any damage. You identify it and kill it. The despot must die for his crimes and despicable actions. Collectively the entire process must be codified and made into law, and the consequences clearly spelled out.
Not too long ago, another maniac driven by his lust for power and devoid of conscience and morals started World War II. Directly or indirectly his actions and that of others like him caused over 70 million people to be killed (source Wikipedia). That’s about the same as annihilating twenty cities with a population of the city of Chicago. Additionally, many millions more suffered enormous physical and mental scars. As a result of his delusions and ego, innocent men, women, and children were murdered because he wanted his dream of world domination to become a reality.
How did this happen?
Why was this allowed to happen?
It happened because the collective will of humanity had not yet been codified. We slept passively while others dreamed of taking over the world. No individual or group was there to offer something better. There was no one willing or able to bring this kind of an idea forward. Fear and the wringing of hands, was the accepted response to the annihilation of innocents. Invading sovereign countries was allowed, and considered an acceptable cost until the cost became too great. Letting Hitler invade other countries was chosen as an acceptable way forward until his appetite horrified us to the point of action.
Why did the world allow this to happen?
Why weren’t better solutions brought forward?
Was it a shortage of courageous leaders? Was it a loss of our moral compass? Was it greed and personal gain? Why were only poor choices available?
In hindsight, the reason is clear. There was no Pax Romana as there was in 27 BC. The solution was clear over two thousand years ago. Why are we such dullards? There is a clear alternative. A workable concept leading to peace can be accepted.
For example, what would have happened if Berlin had been razed and Hitler killed in the destruction? Why didn’t this happen? Because at this point in time, there wasn’t leadership with insight and imagination to say that war was unacceptable and would not be tolerated. There was no need for armies, carnage, bloodshed, and horror. Why was it OK for Hitler to invade Poland and it wasn’t OK to Bomb Berlin and kill Hitler? What were we thinking?
What was required? An idea was needed. Did you catch that? The people at the time of the Pax Romana the leader at the time put forth an idea i.e. let’s replace war with an idea and a big stick. Let’s choose to enjoy the benefit of living in a time of relative peace instead of fear and destruction. We can avoid war not with bigger and bigger rockets and bombs, but with the stroke of a pen. A document needs to be created. The slaughter of millions of people is not required.
The idea that war is not needed, required, or desired can be put forward and accepted. Instead of war, the resources that would have been wasted on mass destruction and lost lives and property should be redirected. Rational decisions based on the greater good should be made that place law and order above personal gain. The resulting peace would benefit the world.
Do you understand? War doesn’t have to be accepted as a given. We can choose peace with consequences instead! We can do better. We must do better.
Prior to June 1215 there was no law controlling the power of the king of England. After June 1215 the aristocracy demanded the king accept the Magna Carta which established limits on the power of the king and his government. It sought to prevent the king from exploiting his power, and placed limits of royal authority by establishing law as a power in itself. It was a simple idea that we can adopt as our own. We need to establish limits with consequences as to what despots can and cannot do.
Hitler saw an opportunity and almost brought the world to its knees. All this happened while good people stood by and in safety looked the other way. Then they watched in fear and horror until they finally awoke from their nightmare of inaction. Can we not learn from our mistakes? Are we so stupid that we cannot see where Putin is headed? Let’s set up a Go Fund Me account for the world to support the assination of Putin if he doesn’t get out of Ukraine and put a billion dollar bounty on his head..
Funding the war in Ukraine is not helping. Innocent people are still being killed. Cities are being destroyed. Sending men and women into combat to kill other men and women is not the answer. We have to be smarter and find better ways to deal with deranged people.
What would have happened in 1939 if the countries of the free world would have put a bounty on Hitler’s head… say, a hundred million dollars to be given to any group or person who could deliver him dead or alive? Would this have stopped World War II? Would anyone have collected the bounty? With Hitler dead, would anyone have dared follow in his footsteps knowing that he or she would share the same fate? Is war the only way to dispose of these monsters? Have we lost our minds? Why can’t we simply remove these malignant tumors, and skip the war? Is destroying each other and our children and their dreams the only choice we have? Surely, there are better alternatives.
Oh, and by the way, do you think a hundred million dollars is too much money to pay to stop a war? How much do you think World War II cost? Adjusted for inflation, the cost was over four trillion dollars. For more information you can search for The Cost of U.S. Wars Then and Now on Google.
How many lives could have been saved if a one bullet one despot policy was in place in 1939? Why start a war when all that needs to happen is to take out a power hungry fiend. His death would be a small price to pay for peace. Can the people demand a new mandate? Is it reasonable for everyone to accept a universal law that states that anyone who causes a group of people to invade another country is immediately terminated. There is no need to start a war. We can choose to make the cost of starting a war prohibitive i.e. the despots’ life. We just need to replace the outmoded thinking that war is our only option! How should we deal with such monsters? Fast and furious!
Has this been tried? Is there precedent? Do you think such an action is repugnant or untenable? Did you know that a Libyan businessman offered over a million dollar bounty for Muammar Gaddafi dead or alive. Did you know the US government offered a twenty-five million dollar reward for the capture and conviction of Osama bin Laden, Ayman al-Zawahiri, the current leader of al-Qaeda, and Saddam Husain? Or, that the Russian government offered a fifty million dollar reward for information that would lead to the terrorists responsible for blowing up a Russian plane over Egypt in October 2015. The death of a tyrant seems like a very small price to pay for preventing a war and its wanton slaughter.
What would Putin do if twenty countries each put a bounty of fifty million dollars on his head? Twenty times fifty million equals a billion dollars. What would the Russian people do? Would they be angry or rejoice? Would they overcome their fear of Putin? Would there be an individual or group in Russia willing to take the offer? With the offer available to everyone in the world would there be anywhere where Putin could hide or feel safe? If he sees his actions leading to his own death or living the rest of his life in disgrace, hiding, isolation, and fear, would he withdraw the Russian troops from Ukraine? Should we send a clear message to Putin and other deranged leaders with such maniacal thoughts of grandeur?
Would a threat to terminate Putin get the desired results? Would this be enough pressure? Perhaps the ante should be upped. A billion dollar bounty on Putin and a harsh and unrestrained lock down of the Russian economy and its borders might help. Perhaps such an action would give the Russian people the impetus to remove Putin from power and replace him with someone more reasonable and responsible. If China realized any attempt to support Putin would not be in their best interests would they still support him? Would this help or hinder world peace?
Perhaps the United States and the European countries are fearful of a nuclear retaliation. With Putin dead, would anyone be demented enough to push the button? Would this be enough to start a world war? Would anybody even care? Would it stop the war in Ukraine? Could a one bullet one despot approach be enough to end this and future wars?
What if the funding source for a bounty on Putin was unclear? Instead of NATO threatening Russia, what would happen if the bounty were established by a “Go Fund Me” account? And ordinary people around the world could contribute to a bounty on Putin allowing each person in the world who had a dollar or or a hundred dollars or a thousand dollars or more to contribute to stopping Putin and this despicable war. Where would he drop his bombs?
What a novel idea. Each of us could rid ourselves of this helpless feeling. This approach would give us a voice in undoing the nightmare of this demented psychopath and others like him. Each of us could finally do something. A bloodless coup and no boots on the ground. Putin would be given a choice… pull out of Ukraine or die. If he stops the war, the bounty would be canceled and the funds collected would be used to rebuild Ukraine.
Wars are a scourge that devastate peoples, economies, lives, futures, and countries. They result in huge numbers of deaths and unspeakable injuries to thousands of innocents. Left unchecked, wars could destroy the economic stability of the world and perhaps life on earth. Can’t we stop the madness? If we can go to Mars, why can’t we stop wars?
Together, can thoughtful people develop an alternative to war? Maybe the answer lies not with the politicians and/or generals. Perhaps the answers lie in grassroot movements… common people that are determined to stop all wars. Perhaps our hopes lie with the ideas of dreamers and thinkers who can see beyond war and discern other paths and options. Maybe you have a better solution. If so, tell everyone via the internet.
Can these thoughts and others find a way to the ears of determined, caring people and can we find a way to end all wars?
Why should we play the game with Putin’s rules? Can’t we turn the tables on him and other despots? How do we rally the Russian people and all of the people of the world to stop Putin and other monsters who have no respect for the lives of their fellow man.
As a child of the sixties, I admired the following song written by Bob Dylan. It touched my heart and mind… I got it. I saw the futility and stupidity of war. I saw its pain and devastation. Blowing in the Wind
By Bob Dylan
How many roads must a man walk down
Before you call him a man?
How many seas must a white dove sail
Before she sleeps in the sand?
Yes, and how many times must the cannonballs fly
Before they’re forever banned?
The answer, my friend, is blowin’ in the wind
The answer is blowin’ in the wind
Yes, and how many years can a mountain exist
Before it’s washed to the sea?
Yes, and how many years can some people exist
Before they’re allowed to be free?
Yes, and how many times can a man turn his head
And pretend that he just doesn’t see?
The answer, my friend, is blowin’ in the wind
The answer is blowin’ in the wind
Yes, and how many times must a man look up
Before he can see the sky?
Yes, and how many ears must one man have
Before he can hear people cry?
Yes, and how many deaths will it take ’till he knows
That too many people have died?
The answer, my friend, is blowin’ in the wind
The answer is blowin’ in the wind But then, I couldn’t see an alternative… but now. now I see many alternatives to war. Now, I am 80 years old, and I say really? The answer is blowin’ in the wind. Is this the best we can do? Surely, we have better choices! As individuals and countries, we have a lot to do and think about. I hope we awake from our stupor and seek better choices and do a better job of protecting our future. Do we have the will? Are we up to the cause? Are we willing to fight for what’s right?