2/16/2006
Ali. R. Forootan

The weapon of mass destruction is not a new-clear (“nuclear” as pronounced by GWB), it is a cartoon.

A N-bomb destroys at most about 150 miles around a spot and it takes several thousands to destroy the earth. If you blow up a bomb over a populated country, as the US did over Japan. The attacked country will accept defeat in The War. Then the said country will immediately set on the reconstruction of its war and economically ravaged land. It will use your money of course to do this. Then they start building these really bad transistor radios and begin to sell them in the global market. Then they will make better radios and call them Walkman and take over the radio business. They also make bad cars called Datsun and eventually make the best cars around and call them Accura. In 40 years they become your fiercest rival in all aspect of global economy. They will buy up your long term debts to hold over your head like a sharp sword. They will come close to defeating you economically if they could.

A small series of bad cartoons, emanated from equally bad minds, on the other hand, will destroy the relationship amongst nations and religions. It will start destructive riots in several countries with crowds shouting for the head of their own president, the president of the country where the offending cartoon was published, the publisher, the artist, the editor, the copy writer, the printer, the newspaper delivery man, the newspaper kiosk vendor, and the writer of this article. All of these happen on a delayed reaction. It seems that it takes a while to get the crowd necessary together to do a good deal of damage. Upon congregation, the crowd will immediately set on a rampage through their own hometowns, destroying buildings, cars, and attacking innocent bystanders that resemble a foreigner; even if that person is their own sister that has colored her hair to look more promising to their neighbor’s son. They manage to make poor, poorer, hurt themselves economically, and give an excuse to their government to kill a few of them for being unruly.

Some governments allow or ask an unruly mob to take over peaceful demonstrations against the offending country. This will show the offending country that they mean business. The offending country, generally a Western country, will punish them by isolating them in the international community. They also hide behind the banner of freedom of speech. Although, the freedom of speech will go as far as the red lines they have drawn and not other independent people. They will make speeches at the world forums, threaten with actions in WTO, WHO, WLIC, WC, WECO, and UNSC.

By now, everybody is in a rage. Everybody threaten the other with bombings, with banning, with travel restrictions, with expulsion of diplomatic core, and with prevention of play in the World Cup. It is not before long that the world finds itself in frenzy. It is divided between good and evil. Except that each party claims to be the good side of the argument. They each spend billions of their citizens’ money to fight a propaganda war without any winners, only losers. The economic fall out will hurt the poor on both sides by not having an outlet to sell their goods or by their own government suppressing them in the name of honor, prestige, respect, freedom, freedom, freedom.

A benefit of the cartoon is that in 50 years no one will remember it, but an image of an atomic explosion will never be wiped off anyone’s memory.