Daily Tribune (Philippines)

Give him the Nobel Peace Prize

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Although Donald Trump possesses some flaws as we all do, he also has admirable qualities we can all strive to follow —- traits that have been instrument­al in helping him achieve outstandin­g success. His legacies qualify him for the Nobel Prize for Peace.

Trump has the talent and charm to make warring men friends. He met both Kim Jung Un, the leader of North Korea, and Moon Jae-In, the President of South Korea, right at the border village of Panmunjom, a breakthrou­gh for peace, symbolic of his obsession.

Trump also struck a peace accord between Israel and the United Arab Emirates. The peace pact between Israel and Bahrain may be followed by the rest, as Kosovo agreed to recognize Israel, and Syria also moved to imitate. During Trump’s presidency, peace was starting to grow across the Middle East.

Many scholars have posited that a global thermonucl­ear war with a Cold War-era stockpile, even with a current smaller stockpile, may lead to human extinction. This position was bolstered when nuclear winter was conceptual­ized and modeled in 1983.

Can humans survive a nuclear war between NATO and Russia?

Russian leader Vladimir Putin has suggested that he would consider using nuclear weapons if confronted with a NATO military response in Ukraine, or if faced with a direct threat to his person or regime. That means that Russia’s conflict with Ukraine is a personal matter for Putin, and if death becomes a certainty to him, he might as well take the entire world with him and his regime.

If the war spreads to a NATO country like Poland, a direct US-Russia confrontat­ion would take place, with a clear degree of runaway nuclear escalation. Our world, therefore, is now closer to nuclear conflict than at any other time.

The advice of

His Eminence,

Luis Antonio

“Chito” Cardinal

Tagle, has become relevant for all the 91 million Roman Catholics (80 percent of 114 million Filipinos) here and abroad to lead the prayer, to take heed of his advice on the life-giving touch of Jesus.

“My dear brothers and sisters, let us all beg Jesus to touch us, and continue to touch us. Let us beg Jesus to touch us, our families, and our world.”

Cardinal Chito’s advice: Take heed. “Let us have the courage to go to Jesus to touch Him, and do not allow the envious devil to touch us, and continue touching the world, destroying the world.” Because there is now the likelihood of complete human extinction.

What would a full-scale nuclear exchange look like in reality? Is it truly global Armageddon? Would it be survivable for some people and places?

Many scientists have investigat­ed the question. The result of their investigat­ion is not known by many. It must be because, in peacetime, no one wants to think the unthinkabl­e.

In 1932, Einstein asked Freud, “Is there any way of delivering mankind from the menace of war?” Freud answered that war is inevitable because humans have an instinct to self-destroy, a death instinct that must be externaliz­ed to survive.

How can the world prevent a nuclear war?

Reducing the risk of nuclear war will require domestic policy changes in all those countries, as well as cooperatio­n and verified agreements between them. Diplomacy has a strong track record.

Nuclear weapons are meant to deter nuclear attacks by other countries. However, current policy allows the United States to begin a nuclear war by being the first to use nuclear weapons in a conflict—in response to a non-nuclear attack by North Korea, Russia, or China.

A “no-first-use” policy would take this option off the table. The United States could pledge that it will never be the first to use a nuclear weapon, regardless of the circumstan­ces.

Doing so would reduce the risk of a miscalcula­tion during a crisis and limit the possibilit­y of a nonnuclear conflict escalating into a nuclear one.

“What would a fullscale nuclear exchange look like in reality? Is it truly global Armageddon? Would it be survivable for some people and places?

“Many scholars have posited that a global thermonucl­ear war with a Cold War-era stockpile, even with a current smaller stockpile, may lead to human extinction.

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