What do Waterloo and haiku have in common? Very little apart from an end rhyme and that I am going to combine the two in today’s blog.
From early this week, I’ve wondered if Greenland will be Trump’s Waterloo. Probably a faint hope but the Greenland issue is resulting in the greatest show of international spine so far in the face of Trump’s bullying behaviours. Personal experience, and online advice for people dealing with bullies, doesn’t include appeasement, but most international leaders appear to think if they are nice to Trump he will be nicer to them despite zero evidence. Finally, Mark Carney (Canadian Prime Minister) is calling Trump out, Gavin Newsom (Governor of California) is decrying the appeasement tactic, Emmanuel Macron is criticising his approach, and Zelenskyy is telling the EU to stand firm rather than bowing down to the USA and Trump. European leaders have broadly said Trump should back off Greenland. France, Norway, Sweden, Spain, the UK and Slovenia have declined the offer of joining the Trump-chaired ‘Board of Peace’ to manage world conflicts (and Mark Carney has been uninvited). Who do you think gets the $1B membership fee for the Board of Peace?
Why has Greenland invoked stiffened spines where Venezuela and threats of invading Iran did not? Probably because Greenland is too close to home for many European countries to feel comfortable with Trump’s actions. Direct impact is what counts, for individuals and for countries. When people are scared, or cold, or hungry they take action. However, there may not yet be enough countries scared by Trump’s proposal to take over Greenland for a Waterloo moment.
Napoleon was defeated in the Battle of Waterloo, after 23 years of France attempting to dominate Europe. The battle was won because forces from multiple countries combined in two armies: the British British-led force with the Duke of Wellington at the helm (which included units from the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Hanover, Brunswick and Nassau) and the Prussian Army led by Field Marshal Blücher. The two forces attacked the French from different directions. If enough world leaders stand up against Trumps tactics and antics can we hope more will follow to form a critical mass so wherever Trump turns he will meet opposition?
But enough of Trump for this week. The rest of this blog is about our current ski trip in Japan. I decided to write a haiku poem each day inspired by a photo, so here’s this week’s collection. Haiku is the opposite of Trump’s style of rhetoric. According to the classic haiku poets of Japan, haiku should present the reader with an observation of a natural, commonplace event, in the simplest words, without verbal trickery.
Buddy House
Asahikawa
Apartment sanctuary
Small and sufficient
Sapporo Beer
The perfect balance
Malt & hops gives you
A great experience
No Peeing
Do not pee here Chris,
mid-stream he says, I read don’t
park here. But we parked?
Out of It
The management is
out of it past this rope. Ski
with care or with glee.
Container Haven
Shelter from the snow.
Exchanging sips of hot tea.
What more could one desire?
Pink Digger
Wanting a digger
Which colour to consider?
I think I’ll have pink.
Dissembling Bridge
A boardless bridge
Is a hole in which you fall
Next time be wary.
Ski Touring
Snow drifts in my path
Every step an exploration
Or disappearing.
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