A Tamil proverb asks, “How do you fetch water with a leaking bucket using a damaged rope?” This aptly describes the current geopolitical scenario as Putin seeks to negotiate a peaceful settlement—on his own terms—by occupying Ukraine’s legitimate territories. In this analogy, Trump is the leaking vessel, Elon Musk is the damaged rope, European NATO is the well, and Ukraine is the water—both America and Russia trying to claim their lion’s share: Russia coveting strategic land, and America eyeing its rich minerals.
Many journalists, including Palki Sharma Upadhyay [First Post, the only news channel that I watch], have suggested that Putin will have the last laugh in this conflict. However, I doubt America will allow anyone to laugh last when it comes to safeguarding its position as the self-appointed “World Savior.” The British once roamed the world with their “White Man’s Burden” to civilize other nations; now, America does the same—not to civilize, but to dominate through political maneuvers, financial aid, evangelism, trade wars, and other strategies.
Whatever Trump’s alleged “Russian romance” or “Putin infatuation”—as the media often speculates [either a KGB agent or a Russian sympathizer, First Post, 5-5-2025]—he remains, after all, an American. His DNA won’t change in spite of his Russia Romance. Though the Cold War era is supposedly over, it still lingers in a subtler form. Given America’s hegemonic tendencies, it will never allow another country, especially Russia, to usurp its dominant global position. Just as Trump demands Ukraine pay back for the weapons supplied, America also wants Russia to pay, one way or another, for all it spent to contain its influence.
Trump may have unsettled many nations that relied on America for security—just as local merchants depend on street gangs for protection. However, I appreciate how he forced them to rethink their dependence rather than blindly trusting a distant, self-appointed savior. At least the Biblical Savior sent by God was crucified by others; this self-appointed World Savior crucifies others to maintain its crown.
In this regard, I support Trump’s policy of compelling NATO to pay for its own security. Other nations—like Japan, South Korea, and the Philippines—would do well to push American troops out, as African nations have done with French forces, and negotiate with their regional adversaries rather than relying on an unpredictable ally. Trump may not quickly yield to Russia or anyone else, but as a businessman, he seeks economic solutions to the political problems his predecessors created and sustained. As a Tamil proverb says, he is a tiger disguised in a cow’s skin. That’s why Russian is in no hurry for a peace deal.
So, I don’t believe “Tariff Trump” will ever let Putin have the last laugh. Even if he tries, there’s no guarantee his successor will continue the policy—one executive order can erase all that Trump and Musk (or “ElonTrump,” as I call them) are doing today.
Meanwhile, Putin is trying to fetch water with a leaking bucket and a damaged rope. If he pulls too fast, the rope will snap, and the bucket will fall back into the well. If he pulls too slowly, the bucket will reach him empty, save for a little moisture. History, then, will have the last laugh—and the rest of us will merely watch this politico-business spectacle unfold while innocent Ukrainians continue to pay the price. Of course, we too pay a high price for the ticket to watch this play—TARIFF.
I’m not an economist, but when it comes to tariffs, I find it ironic that a country that has long exploited others—especially those in the developing world—by creating environmental disasters for its own luxury, never allowing them to achieve self-sufficiency, now demands equal treatment in the global economy. A tariff is not just a double-edged sword but a multi-edged one—without a handle. And those who try to wield it will be the first to bleed.
As they say in such unpredictable times, we must “wait and watch.” But in this case, there’s nothing to wait for—except to see the self-appointed World Savior crucify more nations to preserve its crown, just as Napoleon crowned himself Emperor. This will continue for decades—unless, thanks to Trump’s policies, other nations wake up and challenge this savior complex.
Trump calling for peace is like the devil quoting the Bible. America thrives on arms sales to warring nations. Even right-wing Indian media acknowledge that its arms revenue has skyrocketed in recent years. In reality, America will never allow peace—otherwise, it cannot sustain its luxurious way of life through arms sales. This “call for peace” is just another American tactic to generate revenue and keep Russia in check. Yet, as one right-wing journalist noted, Putin is smarter than the Americans. A former KGB agent who has survived and thrived, he may well outmaneuver both Trump and America.
There is a Tamil proverb that’s difficult to translate. In Tamil, it goes: “ஆமை புகுந்த வீடும், அமீனா புகுந்த வீடும் உருப்படாது.” A rough English translation would be: “A house where a court orderly enters with an eviction notice won’t survive—just like a house where a tortoise enters.” In Tamil tradition, a tortoise entering a home is considered inauspicious. Similarly, wherever America has intervened in the name of protecting democracy and opposing communism, disaster has followed—Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan, Ukraine, and perhaps even Russia will likely meet the same fate. In the post-World War scenario, wherever you find conflict and war, you can trace back the American hand in it. Once they come and do the damage, they will leave, not even paying for you to clean up all the garbage and destruction they caused.
If you ask them to pay to clear the mess they created, they will say, ‘Our only dharma is to come, destroy, and leave you to struggle to recover. Otherwise, you will become a threat to us.’ If you insist they pay, they will ask the people to leave their land, where they were born and have lived for centuries, so they can build seaside resorts, relocating the natives to a desert to live in tents. Their only logic to justify this is: ‘You are used to this kind of hardship in life. What is the problem if you continue to live such a life again? Whereas we need your place for our luxury, as we are used to only that kind of life.’ Or they won’t even mind claiming other countries for their own safety and security in the name of world security—because for them, ‘world security’ means American security, as the rest of the world never exists for them. And if it does exist, it is only to serve them as woodcutters and stone dressers. They have no respect for others’ sovereign rights but will use all means to accomplish their ends. This is, in a nutshell, American triumphalism or Trumpism.
This reminds me of the definition of America by Shashi Tharoor:
“You know what a freeloader is, boy?”
“Yes, sir. It’s… it’s American, sir. Someone who doesn’t pay for what he gets.”
(Shashi Tharoor, The Great Indian Novel, Picador, 1994, p. 212.)
Boss, remember one thing: Being a Boss is a lonely thing. If you want to be the Boss of the World, you not only have to play that role but also pay for it. You cannot have the cake and eat it too. There is no Glory without Golgotha and no Crown without the Cross. If you expect others to sign on the dotted line and only answer “Yes, Boss”, as traditionally all the NATO members, particularly Britain and Canada, have done so far, you now make them say, “You too, Brutus,” as justly Justin said: “If they can do this to their bosom friends, what can they not do to others?”—even calling Trump Donald, as he has already resigned and has nothing to lose except gaining an increment in his approval rating, which annoyed Trump (First Post, 6-3-2025). If the green trees receive such treatment, what can be said about the dry trees that were made to die because of your environmental policies? This is famously known as “cutting one’s throat after gaining their trust.” A rough equivalent would be “namak haraam” (betrayer). As the saying goes, “One can forgive an enemy, but never a traitor.”
This is exactly how most NATO members feel today—having stood by America in every battle to protect its own security back home, under the pretext of eliminating terrorism in other countries like Afghanistan, only to witness the devastation it caused to ordinary people’s lives there.
In Indian villages, particularly in South India, the hereditary village head will receive the first honor in all the village functions. So he will naturally be expected to share more in the expenses of the function. In spite of his personal financial problems at home—sometimes depriving his family of luxuries—he has to bear a major part of the expenses if he still wants to remain the Boss of the Village. If he says, “No, no, this is not fair. I will contribute as all others are doing,” then people will say, “Okay, then come and stand at the end of the queue—not only to have the darshan but also to receive the prasad.” You cannot play the role of the Godfather to a mafia gang and refuse to safeguard their interests.
Ultimately, with an unpredictable President and an equally unpredictable billionaire [both bulling others] running the show, other nations must tread carefully. A Tamil proverb describes their predicament well:
“நரி வலமும் போகவேண்டாம், இடமும் போகவேண்டாம், மேலே விழுந்து கட்டிக்காம இருந்தா போதும்.”
Loosely translated, it means: “A fox should neither cross from the left nor from the right; as long as it doesn’t pounce on us, we’re safe.”
Right now, most NATO nations and the rest of the world find themselves in this exact situation—learning to mend ties with hostile neighbors rather than relying on America. Thanks to Trump, the world is waking up from its long slumber. In the end, the world got the president it had long been waiting for. But Trump has done one great service to the world—and a disservice to his own people. However hard future Presidents might work to reclaim their old position as the World Leader, Trump has already thrown water on it. In the post-Trump world scenario, no one will trust America in any matter and won’t say “Yes, Boss” anymore.
This is, in one way, good for all of us. While crowning Trump for the second time, Elon—who always dances either with a chainsaw or some other weapon—dropped the crown before placing it on Trump’s head (as he claims he has done). Now JD Vance, picking it up, places it on his boss. But a fallen crown won’t have the same credit it once had. Your lost glory as the world’s boss will never return to you. In this sense, Trump and Elon have done a great service to the world, and they deserve our heartfelt thanks for that. And we wish and hope that they will complete their job until it reaches its logical conclusion—creating a multipolar world order rather than having one self-appointed Savior crucifying others to keep his crown. A democracy with only bipolar centers—Republicans and Democrats—will never understand the importance of a multipolar world, where there is no place for hegemony. Not only its people, but as a global power, the entire world—caught between a rock and a hard place—must choose between the devil and the deep sea in any bipolar order.
A unipolar system—still strangely called ‘democracy’ in China—is, at the very least, a given for its people, as they have no other choice for survival. But for the rest of the world, being forced to choose between the devil and the deep sea is ultimately suicidal. Meanwhile, in America, the people will build themselves a golden drone to survive alone. Better for them to colonize Mars and leave the rest of the world live in peace and all can have the final laugh.
Let me end this Elontrump episode with a famous joke—slightly modified to fit our present situation:
First person: If one American goes to Mars, he will be called an angel. What if two go?
Second person: Two angels.
First person: And if ten Americans go?
Second person: Ten angels.
First person: What if all Americans go?
Second person (without a second thought): PEACE ON EARTH.
WOULDN’T IT BE BEAUTIFUL!
This is just a joke, and I hope others take it in the same spirit. A joke is a joke—I don’t believe in labeling them as good or bad. It all depends on how one perceives it. After all, even many Sikhs laugh at the famous Sardarji jokes, demonstrating the true spirit of enjoying humor. Only those who have lost their sense of humor create this artificial distinction.
Hydrabad, 7-3-2025
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