In the Time of Soaring Prices and Roaring Images
MUHAMMET ALİ ZURNACI
Eurasia, Near East, and Asia:
Celebrating, ping-ponging, and smiling…
Conscription, devaluation, turmoil…
Roaring, cheering, relaxing…
Gas, tourism, and oil…
Pretending, forcing, forgetting…
Sanction, sanction, sanction…
Tanks, drones, and nuclear weapons…
Why do they play with the soil?
Why do they keep laughing?
One would not call the poem above a masterpiece from the 21st-century classics or mistake me for the great poet Sir Aly the Piper. However, it is becoming increasingly obvious that the PEK has a growing appetite for shows and lyrics—ones even worse than mine. Despite their focus on amateur and right-wing techniques, they are losing ground across economic, political, and ideological spheres, retaining strength only in the military domain. Their theatrics are proving ineffective. The content lacks substance. Their image of alliance is detached from reality. People are growing increasingly unhappy and insecure in their own lands.
From celebrating Putin to ping-ponging Erdogan and smiling Khamenei, PEK reveals an undeniable psychological deficit in its policymaking. This hidden reality suggests a dire need for support, both internally and externally, as they attempt to maintain the illusion that “everything is great.” Though accustomed to weathering economic pressures, the mounting carrots and sticks are likely to weigh heavily on their already burdened shoulders. The more they lean on external powers, the more power brokers perceive PEK as weakening.
The economic costs of their military agenda will likely continue to slow down their ambitious moves. This is why I focus not on their political performances, but on their efficacy. Sometimes, one must contort their perspective to understand the “think positive, be positive” attitudes of struggling leaders. While we may not know if quantum physics can cure psychological wounds in a tragedy, we do know that cognitive science can.
Will they be able to bear the costs and push forward, or will they fall from power? While the future remains uncertain, one thing is clear: they will be remembered by outsiders as ambitious but limited leaders, and by their own official histories as constrained heroes.
According to my understanding of quantum physics and my strong intuition, events are now on a collision course for all. With that in mind, let me bid the first historic farewell to PEK:
Bye-bye, PEK.
20 November, 2022, Muhammet Ali Zurnaci / Istanbul