The far right is advancing in Europe and the United States and so is militarism. Together with these, political violence is unleashed, not only verbal, which is already deafening, but physical attacks on public representatives. Likewise, anti-Semitic attacks and xenophobic attacks are increasing while the wars in Ukraine and Gaza have escalated.
The State defends itself with more violence than before against the challenges of its own people. Public opinion demands a tough hand against immigrants and dissenters. It calls for the deployment of riot police when someone plants themselves on a bridge or college campus.
We move to the extreme right, but not in search of answers, but protection. We fear and justify self-defense, even if it causes collateral damage, i.e. thousands of innocent victims.
Margaret Thatcher’s old motto is reaffirmed: “There is no alternative” The British Prime Minister was referring to capitalism, but now we use it for everything.
We believe that there is no alternative to war and fences, to fighting fire with fire. To think this way is a tragic mistake, induced by a wrong perception of reality, a negative narrative that emerges from the anonymous depths that move social networks, shape information and condition the decisions of our leaders, as well as our vote.
Violence is part of our culture. It’s been a tool of our civilization since Cain and Abel, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t an alternative. There always have been. We have it at hand. There are very few people who do not distinguish right from wrong and we all want to live in peace.
Talking about peace, like this, in general, is like talking about nothing. It even sounds cheesy and pusillanimous under a sky full of hawks. However, there is a way. It is demanding, it requires a great common effort, but it can be done if we are guided by morality and pragmatism.
First we need to fight more and better against disinformation. Freedom of expression must not be an armor for human and mechanical bots at the service of the enemies of coexistence. Artificial intelligence should identify them, and justice should silence them.
With this silence, the political debate would be more serene and profound. Possibly, Robert Fico, the prime minister of Slovakia, would not be seriously injured today. Possibly, he wouldn’t have turned into an ultra-nationalist xenophobe either. He came from social democracy, but he made his way to power through anti-European and pro-Russian populism. If it were up to him, Ukraine would not receive more weapons.
Ukraine backs down. It loses about a hundred meters a day on a front of more than a thousand kilometers that it cannot defend. He needs weapons and money to regain the initiative and force a negotiation with Russia. The US and the EU would help better if they weren’t so afraid of an escalation.
Putin will go as far as he can, but he hasn’t done anything that wasn’t predictable. After meeting with Xi in Beijing this week, he has stated that he does not want to occupy Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second city, but to create a security zone to protect Belgorod, 40 kilometers north of the border. The Ukrainian defenses around Kharkiv force him to exercise moderation and pragmatism. Deterrence works and is the best strategy for an armistice.
Netanyahu believes that Israel has not yet restored the deterrence it believed it had before the October 7 massacre. The hard core of Hamas resists in the catacombs of Gaza. There is no indication, however, that he remains hidden under Rafah. It is possible that it has moved again to the north of the strip. The military solution, as the White House insists, will cause unjustifiable harm to the civilian population and does not guarantee victory.
The Israeli prime minister has an alternative to peace if he takes irreversible steps towards a Palestinian state. If so, if there is a ceasefire and a hostage-for-prisoner exchange, Saudi Arabia will recognize Israel and a new alliance will be established against Iran. Netanyahu, however, believes that any territory he cedes to the Palestinians will be a sanctuary for terrorists. A Palestinian state, in any case, will be much more than a territory, it will be a country that will link its future to that of Israel. Netanyahu knows that no Israeli will live in peace until all Palestinians can. The United States, China and the Arab League are determined to create the necessary security and confidence-building measures.
Just because it’s possible doesn’t mean it’s easy. Coming back from the front is always complicated. It is hard to leave the rifle when it has protected you from your enemies. War transforms citizens, modifies social relations and normalizes atrocities. Nothing is the same again, but at the same time, there is nothing that should be repeated. We have an alternative to violence. It’s always there when you get home.
The Europe that was reborn from the ashes of the Second World War is an example of peace and cooperation, of collective progress.
The fear we have of tomorrow is the same as the men and women who rebuilt Europe had in the past. If we use it as well as they do, violence will stop harassing us.
