Like most of us, I am troubled by the conflict in Ukraine. But before I began writing this blog post, I thought I might pop over to chat.openai.com to ask my little buddy, ChatGPT, what he/she/it/they thought about the causes of the conflict. He/she/it/they/them noted that the conflict in Ukraine is highly complex and listed seven key factors that have contributed to the conflict. “Euromaidan Protests”? I spent seven hours on that topic alone, surfing from site to site, before deciding that enough it enough. Yes, way too complex. And who am I anyway to be solving this dilemma?
What I did instead was develop a proposal for creating peace in the region – as a matter of fact, in ALL regions.
So rather than go through the seven factors that ChatGPT thinks (?) are behind the conflict, I am going to cut through all that and get right into my peace proposal instead.
I’m sure that every head of state for every country on Earth would claim that each and every citizen of his or her country is of utmost value, that it’s the primary duty to further the welfare of every citizen. I’m sure that Presidents Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky would declare such values. Yet what happens instead? They wage war with each other thus guaranteeing that many thousands of their citizens will die a violent death.
Instead of continuing with such folly, I invite them both to take on my peace process, one that will bring about peace with hardly a penny spent nor the loss of a single life.
First, the two men sequester themselves in a fine hotel, perhaps in Liechtenstein, a small and neutral nearby European country. (I thought that having this meeting at the United Nations Headquarters was the best choice but the fact that it sits in New York had me think that might be a negative choice for President Putin.) They each have adjoining suites that connect to a common meeting room. They have given their word to their countries and to each other to not leave the hotel until they have worked out a peace agreement. A third participant has agreed to be there, a skilled negotiator, perhaps someone like UN Secretary-General António Guterres, who surely must be an impartial adjudicator. Meanwhile both Russia and Ukraine have ceased all hostilities. The world awaits.
Second… But wait! – there are no second, third, fourth or any subsequent points. That’s it. Two individuals recognized as leaders of their countries promise upon their sacred honours to resolve a dispute that might otherwise result in the death of one of their countrymen. Just that single possibility, a single death, is and was enough to declare a state of national emergency, get on the phone to António, and quickly get the meetings going.
By the way, I have the 100% backing of the United Nations for this idea! I had also asked my ChatGPT buddy another question, “Why was the United Nations formed?” to which ChatGPT replied,
“The primary motivation behind the formation of the UN was to create an international organization that could prevent future conflicts and provide a platform for dialogue and negotiation among nations. The devastation caused by World War II underscored the need for a more effective international system to address global issues and prevent another global conflict.”
So of course General AG gives this meeting his highest priority, immediately I call this putting one’s money where one’s mouth is. “… prevent future conflicts and provide a platform for dialogue and negotiation…”.
Here’s another observation. The UN declared my peace plan to be their peace plan back in 1945, around the time that I was one-year old. I asked my buddy, Chat about wars since the UN foundation but he was a bit vague on numbers. Then I tried my other AI buddy, Bing over at Microsoft and here’s what Bing said:
Since 1946, there have been no conflicts on the same scale as World War II but major conflicts have continued. Data collected by the Uppsala University in Sweden identifies 285 distinct armed conflicts having taken place since 1946.
Hmmm? 285 distinct armed conflicts. Sounds like the UN has been a huge failure. Yet Google tells me that their 2023 budget is USD 3.22 billion. How on earth can one keep throwing good money after bad?
I think it’s time to revisit my previous post, The Biggest Problem Facing Mankind. Zelensky and Putin are simply unable to see that they have this biggest problem, that their emotions are so huge they cloud the simple fact that going to war means innocents will die and that is not a fact acceptable to a rational being. It’s that simple. What’s not so simple is to come to grips with the emotions that are in conflict with the simple fact that innocents dying is not acceptable to a rational being. I would assert that what both Putin and Zelensky are emotionally driven by is pure, unadulterated lust for power. It’s this power to rule others that’s at stake for them. It’s the evolutionary remnants of the alpha male, the pre-human drive coming from might is right, I want it therefore I’ll get it from you by force.
Bring peace to the world? Neither Putin nor Zelensky want that. The evidence for this statement is self-evident. We have war in Ukraine. The alpha male ape versus the honourable thinking human. Clearly we have none of the latter here.
Two people with a dispute? Sit down and work it out in peace and quiet. Two leaders of countries with a dispute. Sit down together and work out a solution, exactly what’s being hoped for by the people back in their respective homelands. Bring an impartial negotiator to the discussions. It’s not hard. Power over others or peace in the world? So simple. Choose.
A World of Honour 