Tin Foil Hat: The Cold War Never Ended
I know I know, the first thought reading that headline is “Gorbachev, Tear Down That Wall!!!” And immediately thoughts move next to the fact that the wall separating Germany in two indeed came down. But is it possible that rather than the Soviet Union giving up, it just decided to play a much longer game?
Welcome to this weeks Tin Foil Hat Special where we will address this very question.
Lets look at current events. At the time of this post, Russia and the United States are looking into an actual war with each other. The rest of the world is quite worried as this escalation may involve the very large arsenal of Nuclear Missiles that both nations built in the deadly arms race known as the Cold War.
If Russia was defeated once, it should not be hard to beat them again? Right?
Unless they were not beaten at all. In fact looking at many conflicts over the last thirty years or so indicates that the cold war continued. Lets look at the Middle East, where this Cold War is easiest to spot.
I will create the analogy of a chess board to get my point across. Diagonal moves will represent illegal actions, while Horizontal and Vertical actions represent legal ones.
First you have poor Israel who is trapped in the very center of every conflict in the Middle East. And on both sides of the board, they are the Knight Piece. They only can move in a very specific way without breaking any rules. But they have the benefit of being able to move in an out of enemy territory which is a testament to their advanced technology. Many consider the Knight to be the most valuable piece on the chess board if not up there with the other most important pieces. Israel is viewed the same by any country that seeks to have influence in the entire region. Some desire its destruction to make their lives easier, others seek to preserve the country to continue to make use of down the road.
Right next to Israel you have what is considered the least valuable piece on the chess board. The Palestinians, better known by the entire region as the Pawns. Once again they are on both sides of the chess board as they are being used by every side to further agendas. But their lives are thrown away for sometimes insignificant gains that only become more important as the proxy battles continue. Like the piece they are represented by, the Palestinians are in big trouble no matter who wins this game. Also like the Pawns, most of the time, they live about their lives legally, but when they wish to cause trouble, they can only do it illegally (diagonally)
Just outside of the hotpot, lie the smaller countries in the Middle East. Jordan, Egypt, Iraq and Syria. There are other countries that are involved in this conflict of course that also fit the description that will be outlined, but the point I am ultimately making is best exemplified by the 4 listed here. These are split in two groups. Iraq and Syria on one side, Jordan and Egypt on the other. These are the Rooks. They can only attack legally (horizontally or vertically) They are seen as incredibly valuable and are especially important in protecting the Kings by castling and getting in the direct line of fire to take hits for their respective controller.
Now we move onto the chess piece that has gotten the most media attention lately. The Bishop a piece that only can attack Diagonally (illegally) Hmm, I wonder which groups do that in the Middle East? Oh I know! Terrorist Groups. Ones such as Isis, Boco Haram, Al Queida, Hamas, Hezbolla. There are tons of these groups and once again they are divided into two camps. Mostly by ideology. But for the sake of the argument, remember there are two. I could write an entire post just on the two groups alone. Like the Bishop, terrorist groups are harder to see coming, due to the illegal nature of their attacks. Our eyes also have more trouble looking at diagonal movement as opposed to up and down, making the Bishop a deadly tool in the hands of a master. Masters that will be discussed soon, but remember, there are still two more pieces and any who have been paying attention to this conflict should be able to guess who the next two countries are, and what piece they are on the chess board.
The Queens of the Middle East are of course Iran and Saudi Arabia. These two countries are one of a kind and seen as the greatest instigators of violence in the region. They are capable of doing a whole assortment of moves, both legal and illegal. They are also bitterly opposed and will stop at nothing to crush each other, but while many think that these two are the real power in the Middle East, there is, as in chess, always one last piece. One that tends to sit in the back watching the action but never attacking unless in immediate danger.
Still with me? Good. Now we reveal what the title of this post made painfully obvious. The Kings on this chess board and of the Middle East are *Gasp* Russia and the United States! And looking at the timeline of this conflict, well wouldn’t you know it, it started really in its most modern full swing right after the wall came down!!! Proxy Wars are the surefire sign of a Cold War, and it certainly can be deduced that this has been the game in the Middle East. A battle of ideology and resources, just like the Cold War is known for.
And do not think that the arms race ended with the Berlin Walls destruction either. On top of Nukes, there now exist: Refined Bio and Chemical Weapons, Internet and Hacking Wars over Information, EMPs (Electromagnetic Pulse) and other nasty surprises that are kept top secret by the powers that be.
With a potential Hot War between Russia and the United States on the horizon, things are looking pretty bleak, just like they did when the Cuban Missile Crisis happened. But it was averted before, might it happen again?
But, the fact remains, this conflict is more deadly than the last as a result of the arms race never ending and the nasty doomsday weapons of tomorrow being right here, right now. And should any of the items listed above be implemented, Isis will be the least of the world’s problems.