World crises at climax: Bad news for our future
02.03.2019 – In one of the most memorable comedies of Turkish cinema, “G.O.R.A.,” one character’s line has since become a hallmark of Turkish popular culture. In this Cem Yılmaz science-fiction-comedy, this character emerges randomly in different scenes and warns the main characters, particularly the commander of the space ship, Commander Logar, about an object approaching the spaceship, indicating a looming threat (Komutan Logar, bir cisim yaklaşıyor efendim).
After each and every warning the main characters are annoyed and irritated by the character and try to kick him out of the room. Looking at current discussions on the future of the international system, coming chaos in global affairs and the increasing unpredictability and uncertainty of U.S. foreign policy, the current state of affairs time and again remind us of that famous line of a coming threat or threats to the world.
The behavior of the great powers in the international system, emerging threats to international security, declining expectations from international organizations, surfacing nationalism and protectionism and arising trade wars all signal that something is approaching or the world is quickly approaching a point of total disarray.
For some, like Robert Kagan, it is the return of normalcy in international relations, as he titles his most recent book, “Jungle Grows Back.” Thus, the Cold War years were just a parenthesis in the long history of humanity, when the major powers suffered from war fatigue, economic destruction and the introduction of nuclear weapons to the equation made them reconsider their previous strategies.
Of course, in the meantime the U.S. assumed roles in international security and economy that it refrained from for its entire history. Now, the U.S. does not want those roles and the other major powers desire going back to the factory settings of the international relations. Ian Bremmer at the height of the global financial meltdown described this new situation in his book “Every Nation for Itself: What Happens when No One Leads the World.”
It is not certain when every state around the world started to reconsider its policies by taking into account these changes, but today it is not an assumption or projection but a reality on the ground. Every state knows today an object is approaching, and every state is willing to take some precautions to handle these risks to its national wealth, security and stability.
This debate on the future of the world order reached one of the highest points this week as a result of multiple developments in various parts of the world. The absence of any effective mechanisms to manage and resolve conflicts and the increasing irrelevance of the U.N. system to handle crises in different regions once more time revealed itself.
The first of these incidents took place in Kashmir, one of the most complicated ethnic and territorial conflicts. Although some considered the issue a frozen conflict with different dotted lines on the Google map, the situation quickly escalated after the dogfight between Pakistani and Indian jets last week. Two nuclear powers in South Asia exchanged fire, which led to an Indian jet being shot down and its pilot detained. The video surfaced after the incident and quickly circulated in social media in our globalized world, resulting in nationalist reactions in India. The situation demonstrated latent conflicts that can quickly restart due to provocations even between two nuclear powers.
Restraint turns out to be the only hope to prevent escalation. While this crisis was taking place between two nuclear powers, President Trump was trying to reach an agreement with Kim Jong Un of North Korea to denuclearize the Korean peninsula. The meeting ended abruptly without an agreement. Some criticized the U.S. administration for lack of preparation and planning ahead of the meetings, while Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that Kim was not ready for a deal, starting another period of unpredictability and uncertainty for another major crisis.
In the meantime, the U.S. and China try to negotiate an agreement to prevent the trade war – negotiations that are considered the best hope to prevent the return of mercantilism in world politics. The outcome will determine global economic stability, and there is not much optimism about the future. In the midst of all these, the U.S. and Russia blocked each other’s resolutions in the U.N. Security Council on the crisis in Venezuela, demonstrating one more time that the U.N. Security Council is the place for rhetorical action and vetoing maneuvers.
The game they play does not even look like a chess match anymore, it always lacked sophistication but now it is too monotonous, tiresome and tiring. Instead of a chess game, debates in the U.N. Security Council sound like angry birds, but the game actually looks like Atari’s old Pong game. And while all this is taking place, yes something is approaching Commander Logar
Second climate change march pupils told by headteacher to prove they care about the environment
Skolstrejk för klimatet
Second climate change march pupils told by headteacher to prove they care about the environment
Thousands of school students gather in Parliament square having walked out of school in protest at government inaction over climate change on February 15, 2019 in London, England Credit: Guy Smallman/Getty Images Europe
Pupils planning to participate in a second climate change march must prove they care about the environment, as one headteacher attempts to clamp down on those hoping to exploit the rally and play truant.
Oxford Spires Academy has ruled its schoolchildren will only be allowed to join protests in the city tomorrow if they answer four questions which outline their concerns about the environment and the impact of the strikes.
Headteacher Marianne Blake said the measures were introduced after some students took the opportunity to miss school and not attend the nationwide protests, despite indicating they would.
The Youth Strike 4 Climate in the UK follows action taken by 15,000 students last month calling on the Government to take more stringent action on climate change.
Its organisers are demanding the curriculum give more priority to environmental issues and for the government to declare a ‘state of climate emergency’ to highlight the severity of the ‘ecological crisis’.
However, headteachers across the country have expressed their suspicions about the protest being used as a cloak by some pupils to truant from their lessons.
Ms Blake wrote in a letter to parents: “Unfortunately there were a number of students who were provided with permission from parents who did not to attend the rally on February 15 and this is not acceptable.
“Additional requirements have been put in place for this strike to ensure that the students attending are attending for the right reasons. Students will need to complete a written application. This must be submitted to me no later than 6pm on Wednesday.”
The turnout for the second demonstration, which will see sizeable protests in major cities including London and Leeds, is expected to attract more students that attended the last ones.
The action is part of a much wider global movement- spanning from Germany to Australia- known as Schools 4 Climate Action.
It began when 15-year-old Greta Thunberg, from Sweden, skipped class to sit outside government buildings in September to protest at her country for not following the Paris Climate Agreement
Youth Strike 4 Climate wants the voting age to be lowered to 16 so young people can shape future environmental policy as they feel politicians are currently ignoring it.
Jake Woodier, from the Youth Strike 4 Climate said: “Students have proven over the last month that they’re highly intelligent and passionate about climate change. Schools are delivering an inadequate level of climate change education to students around the country, so it’s ironic that they’re choosing to examine students on climate change when they have been questioning the status quo.”
But school leaders have warned that the strikes are causing major disruptions to planned lesson time which is damaging for pupil development.
“Geoff Barton, General Secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said: “We appealed to all involved in last month’s climate change ‘strike’ not to repeat the exercise, and we are disappointed that another protest is taking place. It places schools in a difficult position.
“The problem is not only the disruption and loss of learning time but the fact that schools have responsibility for the safety and wellbeing of pupils, and it is a serious concern if pupils are off site and unsupervised.
“While we understand the strength of feeling over climate change, missing school is not the right approach.”
GRETA THUNBERG, 16-YEAR-OLD SWEDISH ENVIRONMENTAL ACTIVIST, HAS BEEN NOMINATED FOR THE NOBEL PEACE PRIZE
Greta Thunberg hasn’t graduated high school yet, but she’s already a nominee for the Nobel Peace Prize. As TIME reports, the Swedish activist is being considered for the honor in recognition of her work in the fight against climate change.
Three Norwegian lawmakers nominated her for the Nobel Peace Prize, with parliamentary representative Freddy Andre Oevstegaard telling the Norwegian media outlet VG, “We have nominated Greta because the climate threat may be one of the most important causes of war and conflict.” If she wins the award in October, she will become the youngest Nobel Peace Prize laureate ever. Malala Yousafzai, who was 17 when she won for her work defending children’s education, currently holds that title.
More than half a year after leading her first climate protest, Thunberg’s movement is going strong. Student protests set for Friday, March 15 are expected to be the largest Friday for Futuredemonstrations yet, with tens of thousands of students in 100 countries planning to participate
16-YEAR-OLD ENVIRONMENTAL ACTIVIST GRETA THUNBERG IS NOMINATED FOR A NOBEL PEACE PRIZE
Greta Thunberg, the 16-year-old Swedish student and activist has been nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize for her efforts in climate activism and fighting global warming. Thunberg is best known for sitting in front of Swedish parliament every day for three consecutive weeks in August 2018, when she was 15, to protest the lack of action on the climate crisis. She posted her actions on Instagram and Twitter and soon went viral.
In September 2018, Thunberg pledged to stand outside of Swedish Parliament every Friday until they created an agreement to keep temperature rise below two degrees Celsius. (Thunberg’s proposal matches France’s Paris Agreement, an agreement within the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change that seeks to combat climate change and its related effects.)
Thunberg’s Nobel Prize nomination comes on the eve of her biggest strike to date. On Friday, her #FridaysforFuture strike will see school students across the globe marching for climate change efforts in 1,659 places across 105 countries.
“We have proposed Greta Thunberg because if we do nothing to halt climate change, it will be the cause of wars, conflict and refugees,” said Norwegian parliament representative, Freddy Andre Ovstegard. “Greta Thunberg has launched a mass movement which I see as a major contribution to peace,” he added.
If she wins the prize in her category, she will be the youngest person to receive a Nobel Prize. The youngest person that has earned this honor is women’s rights and education activist Malala Yousafzai, who won the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize at age 17 for defying the Taliban by demanding women’s education in her native Pakistan. Yousafzai was shot in the head by a Taliban member in 2012 and survived, ultimately going across the world to share her story and demand education rights for the women in her country.
The Nobel Prize winners will be formally announced in October of this year after the Nobel Committee conducts a majority vote. The award ceremony for the Nobel Prize recipients will take place on December 10 in Oslo, Norway
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