It Might Be Bad, if…

In a bellicose move that really seemed to have no point, offering no substantial gain, Trump renamed the Department of Defense to the Department of War. There doesn’t seem to be any reports on the cost of having new business cards, stationary, signs, and promotional items made, but it was probably expensive. In 2023, an Army official told Congress it would cost $39 million dollars to rename 9 military bases.

It was probably symbolic, a Gulf of America pronouncement with no real meaning. But, as part of an overall aura floating around the administration, it raises concerns. Maybe it’s just talk, an act.

It brings to mind Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow from Macbeth.

“Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow,

Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,

To the last syllable of recorded time;

And all our yesterdays have lighted fools”

On October 29th, President Trump, posted the following policy initiative on social media;

“The United States has more Nuclear Weapons than any other country. This was accomplished, including a complete update and renovation of existing weapons, during my First Term in office. Because of the tremendous destructive power, I HATED to do it, but had no choice! Russia is second, and China is a distant third, but will be even within 5 years. Because of other countries testing programs, I have instructed the Department of War to start testing our Nuclear Weapons on an equal basis. That process will begin immediately. Thank you for your attention to this matter! PRESIDENT DONALD J. TRUMP^[1]”

A post without much basis in reality.

According to ArmsControl.org, Russia has 5,580 nuclear warheads, compared to 5,225 in the US arsenal. China has 600, and according to most experts only added 100 over the last two years. While the US is beginning a 6 trillion dollar retrofitting of the arsenal, but it was implemented by President Obama.^[2] And, the only country admitting to nuclear tests in this century is North Korea.

It’s hard to see what the President is aiming for. A more flexible response to foreign governments practicing aggression in distant countries. A better way to prop up dictators in places like Argentina. A quicker method of appearing tough on crime than blowing up fishing boats in the Caribbean. For 80 years the world has been able to avoid a nuclear holocaust. Mostly through cooperation, and an occasional dose of bluster. However, 80 years is not long enough. Apparently we haven’t learned anything.

Politicians are whimsical creatures with a tenuous grasp on the truth, or at least a comfortable capacity to ignore facts. Few of them are willing to lay it out in such bold statements for everyone to see. And after bombing runs in a sovereign nation, and the destruction of small boats without any proof, his statements sound an ominous tone, a dire warning, “the end is near.”

Or maybe it is just Trump wanting to make the world think there is some method to his madness, or even that his madness is more than hollow gesturing. Just theater, because that’s his only real ability. You have to play to your audience. The only real hope we can find, is the ending of “Tomorrow, and tomorrow and tomorrow.”

“Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player,

That struts and frets his hour upon the stage,

And then is heard no more. It is a tale

Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,

Signifying nothing”

I hope that’s the case, because a man with such impulse control problems and that ability to launch a nuclear first strike is a frightening proposition.

^[1] From Truth Social

^[2] Ten years after he won the Nobel Peace Prize for a moving, meaningless speech about the beauty of a world without nuclear weapons.

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