#nucleardisarmament — Public Fediverse posts

Gharibabadi: Nuclear Disarmament Cannot Be Achieved by Granting Israel Immunity https://www.byteseu.com/2401142/ #Iran #Israel #Nuclear #NuclearDisarmament

Gharibabadi: Nuclear Disarmament Cannot Be Achieved by Granting Israel Immunity

26 September 2026
11:37 PM


WANA (Sep 26) – Kazem Gharibabadi, Deputy…
#Nuclear #Iran #Israel #nuclear #nucleardisarmament
https://www.europesays.com/3274424/

https://www.europesays.com/conflicts/8050/ In France, Pope Leo denounces ‘scourge of war’ in the Middle East #ArtificialIntelligence #EmmanuelMacron #Gaza #MiddleEast #News #NuclearDisarmament #PapalTripToFrance #PopeLeoIV #War #WarNews

In France, Pope Leo denounces ‘scourge of war’ in the Middle East https://www.byteseu.com/2397511/ #ArtificialIntelligence #Conflicts #EmmanuelMacron #Gaza #MiddleEast #NuclearDisarmament #PapalTripToFrance #PopeLeoIV

Opinion | In a World of Nukes and Climate Emergency, Knowledge Is Survival https://www.byteseu.com/2382874/ #Climate #ClimateChange #ClimateEmergency #FossilFuels #GlobalWarming #NuclearDisarmament #NuclearWar #NuclearWeapons #RenewableEnergy

Opinion | In a World of Nukes and Climate Emergency, Knowledge Is Survival

The current state of our world has repeatedly been described as one of the most challenging moments since…
#Climate #ClimateChange #Climate-Change #climatechange #climateemergency #fossilfuels #globalwarming #nucleardisarmament #nuclearwar #nuclearweapons #renewableenergy
https://www.europesays.com/3262214/

North Korea says US-led arms buildup justifies expanding nuclear force

North Korea’s vice defense minister said on Thursday that a growing US-led military buildup and what he called…
#EuropeSays #Korea #KR #NorthKorea #China #JAPAN #KimJongUn #KoreanWar #NorthKorea-USrelations #Nuclear #Nuclearbomb #nucleardisarmament #nuclearprogram. #nuclearweapon #Seoul #SouthKorea #Tokyo #USA #Washington
https://www.europesays.com/korea/158153/

Central Asian States Call for New Arms Controls as Nuclear Framework Weakens

https://fed.brid.gy/r/https://timesca.com/central-asian-states-call-for-new-arms-controls-as-nuclear-framework-weakens/

35 Years After Semipalatinsk, Kazakhstan’s Nuclear Choice Still Challenges the World

https://web.brid.gy/r/https://www.ipsnews.net/2026/08/35-years-after-semipalatinsk-kazakhstans-nuclear-choice-still-challenges-the-world/

35 Years After Semipalatinsk, Kazakhstan’s Nuclear Choice Still Challenges the World

https://web.brid.gy/r/https://www.ipsnews.net/2026/08/35-years-after-semipalatinsk-kazakhstans-nuclear-choice-still-challenges-the-world/

Trump’s Korean catastrophe | The Manila Times https://www.byteseu.com/2319017/ #ArmsControl #ColdWar #Conflicts #CouncilOnForeignRelations #Diplomacy #DonaldTrump #EconomicDevelopment #InternationalSanctions #KimJongUn #NorthKorea #NuclearDeterrence #NuclearDisarmament #NuclearNonProliferationTreaty #NuclearWeapons #RichardHaass #RussiaUkraineConflict #SouthKorea #UsForeignPolicy #USMilitaryAlliance #UsSouthKoreaRelations

Who Gets to Enrich Uranium? Ali Velshi Exposes America’s Nuclear Double Standard.

Ali Velshi asks who decides which nations may enrich uranium, exposing Washington’s unequal treatment of Iran, Saudi Arabia and nuclear-armed Israel.

Who Gets to Enrich Uranium? Ali Velshi Exposes America’s Nuclear Double Standard.

Ali Velshi asks who decides which nations may enrich uranium, exposing Washington’s unequal treatment of Iran, Saudi Arabia and nuclear-armed Israel.

RE: https://en.osm.town/@seav/111420979780585924

Today, 29 August, is the UN International Day Against Nuclear Tests: https://www.un.org/en/observances/end-nuclear-tests-day

Here’s a map I created in 2023 as an infographic showing nuclear testing done by the 🇺🇸 #UnitedStates, the 🇬🇧 #UnitedKingdom, and 🇫🇷 #France in the Pacific region.

#NuclearTests #NuclearWeapons #NuclearDisarmament #maps #cartography #Mapstodon #gischat

RE: https://en.osm.town/@seav/111420979780585924

Today, 29 August, is the UN International Day Against Nuclear Tests: https://www.un.org/en/observances/end-nuclear-tests-day

Here’s a map I created in 2023 as an infographic showing nuclear testing done by the 🇺🇸 #UnitedStates, the 🇬🇧 #UnitedKingdom, and 🇫🇷 #France in the Pacific region.

#NuclearTests #NuclearWeapons #NuclearDisarmament #maps #cartography #Mapstodon #gischat

RE: https://en.osm.town/@seav/111420979780585924

Today, 29 August, is the UN International Day Against Nuclear Tests: https://www.un.org/en/observances/end-nuclear-tests-day

Here’s a map I created in 2023 as an infographic showing nuclear testing done by the 🇺🇸 #UnitedStates, the 🇬🇧 #UnitedKingdom, and 🇫🇷 #France in the Pacific region.

#NuclearTests #NuclearWeapons #NuclearDisarmament #maps #cartography #Mapstodon #gischat

RE: https://en.osm.town/@seav/111420979780585924

Today, 29 August, is the UN International Day Against Nuclear Tests: https://www.un.org/en/observances/end-nuclear-tests-day

Here’s a map I created in 2023 as an infographic showing nuclear testing done by the 🇺🇸 #UnitedStates, the 🇬🇧 #UnitedKingdom, and 🇫🇷 #France in the Pacific region.

#NuclearTests #NuclearWeapons #NuclearDisarmament #maps #cartography #Mapstodon #gischat

Bangkok Post – Trump’s North Korean gamble

US President Donald Trump meets North Korean leader Kim Jong-un at the demilitarised zone separating the two Koreas,…
#EuropeSays #Korea #KR #NorthKorea #DonaldTrump #KimJongUn #Koreanpeninsula #nucleardisarmament #nuclearproliferation #SouthKorea #USforeignpolicy
https://www.europesays.com/korea/131901/

Bangkok Post – Trump’s North Korean gamble https://www.byteseu.com/2307502/ #Conflicts #DonaldTrump #KimJongUn #KoreanPeninsula #NorthKorea #NuclearDisarmament #NuclearProliferation #SouthKorea #UsForeignPolicy

The Ukraine and Iran wars expose fundamental flaws in nuclear deterrence

In recent weeks, Ukraine has been striking targets deep inside Russia with large-scale drone attacks and long-range missiles.…
#Ukraine #UA #Europe #Europa #EU #News #deterrence #droneattacks #Iran #Israel #MaoZedong #nucleararsenal #nucleardisarmament #Nuclearthreat #nuclearwar #nuclearweapons #Russia
https://www.europesays.com/ukraine/31911/

Facing quagmire in Iran, Trump turns to familiar face Kim Jong-un | World News

By David E Sanger and Anton Troianovski   
The last time President Trump vowed to halt…
#EuropeSays #Korea #KR #NorthKorea #DonaldTrump #Irannuclearprogramme #iranwar #KimJongUn #NorthKoreaNuclearweapons #NorthKoreannucleararsenal #nucleardisarmament #straitofhormuz #TrumpIranpolicy #TrumpKimJong-un #USforeignpolicy #USNorthKoreatalks #US-SouthKoreaalliance
https://www.europesays.com/korea/122884/

https://www.europesays.com/iran/252231/ Can Washington’s economic sanctions squeeze Iran into a deal? #AbuDhabi #BusinessNews #Iran #Neutral #NuclearDisarmament #Shipping #StraitOfHormuz #TransportationAndShipping #War

Beijing Urges Tokyo to Listen to Public on Japan’s Nuclear Policy

China has urged Japan to listen to public opinion and continue following its long-standing policy of not possessing,…
#EuropeSays #Japan #JP #Tokyo #china #defencepolicy #EastAsia #Japansecuritypolicy #nucleardisarmament #NuclearPolicy #nuclearweapons #threenon-nuclearprinciples #us-japanalliance
https://www.europesays.com/japan/71623/

Geopolitical Tensions and the Call for Nuclear Disarmament

📰 Original title: Los otros

🤖 IA: It's clickbait ⚠️
👥 Users: It's clickbait ⚠️

View full AI summary https://en.killbait.com/geopolitical-tensions-and-the-call-for-nuclear-disarmament.html?utm_source=mastodon_world&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=killbait.mastodon_world

#geopolitics #nucleardisarmament #humanextinction

Geopolitical Tensions and the Call for Nuclear Disarmament

📰 Original title: Los otros

🤖 IA: It's clickbait ⚠️
👥 Users: It's clickbait ⚠️

View full AI summary https://en.killbait.com/geopolitical-tensions-and-the-call-for-nuclear-disarmament.html?utm_source=mastodon_world&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=killbait.mastodon_world

#geopolitics #nucleardisarmament #humanextinction

Geopolitical Tensions and the Call for Nuclear Disarmament

📰 Original title: Los otros

🤖 IA: It's clickbait ⚠️
👥 Users: It's clickbait ⚠️

View full AI summary https://en.killbait.com/geopolitical-tensions-and-the-call-for-nuclear-disarmament.html?utm_source=mastodon_world&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=killbait.mastodon_world

#geopolitics #nucleardisarmament #humanextinction

🌎 [EN] 81 years since the US bombing of Hiroshima. While the world rearms, survivors still wait for real action.
Remembering is not enough. Today and always: no to war.

🌐 +infohttps://url.ecoarglobal.org/D35EME
💪 https://pepaloba.org/?lang=en#asociate
✊ https://ecoarglobal.org/en/activist-space

#Hiroshima81 #NoToWar #NuclearDisarmament #HistoricalMemory #Hibakusha

🌎 [EN] 81 years since the US bombing of Hiroshima. While the world rearms, survivors still wait for real action.
Remembering is not enough. Today and always: no to war.

🌐 +infohttps://url.ecoarglobal.org/D35EME
💪 https://pepaloba.org/?lang=en#asociate
✊ https://ecoarglobal.org/en/activist-space

#Hiroshima81 #NoToWar #NuclearDisarmament #HistoricalMemory #Hibakusha

Hiroshima August 6th 1945.
USA drops world's first atomic bomb on Japan.
☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️
No Nordic Nukes!
☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️
https://nonordicnukes.se
☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️
#NoNordicNukes #nonukes #NuclearDisarmament

Hiroshima August 6th 1945.
USA drops world's first atomic bomb on Japan.
☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️
No Nordic Nukes!
☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️
https://nonordicnukes.se
☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️
#NoNordicNukes #nonukes #NuclearDisarmament

Hiroshima August 6th 1945.
USA drops world's first atomic bomb on Japan.
☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️
No Nordic Nukes!
☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️
https://nonordicnukes.se
☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️
#NoNordicNukes #nonukes #NuclearDisarmament

Hiroshima August 6th 1945.
USA drops world's first atomic bomb on Japan.
☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️
No Nordic Nukes!
☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️
https://nonordicnukes.se
☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️ ☮️
#NoNordicNukes #nonukes #NuclearDisarmament

Hiroshima at 81: Japan’s Warning to the World on the Human Cost of Nuclear War

At 8:15 on Thursday morning, Hiroshima fell silent. For one minute, the city paused at the exact moment…
#EuropeSays #Japan #JP #atomicbombing #Hibakushasurvivors #Hiroshimaanniversary #Hiroshimamemorial #Japanwarning #LittleBoy #Nagasakibombing #NewSTART #Nihon #NPTreview #nuclearanxiety #nucleardisarmament #nuclearwar #nuclearweapons #peacememorial #worldwarII
https://www.europesays.com/japan/69710/

NATO plans to strengthen its nuclear deterrence amid Russian threat https://www.byteseu.com/2242400/ #Europe #MarkRutte #NATO #NATOCountries #NuclearAttack #NuclearCapabilities #NuclearDeterrence #NuclearDisarmament #NuclearWeapons #PresidentVladimirPutin #Russia #StrategicNuclearWeapons #USNuclearWeapons

NATO plans to strengthen its nuclear deterrence amid Russian threat

The Western defence alliance NATO plans to expand nuclear deterrence in Europe in light of the ongoing threats…
#NATO #OTAN #Europe #Europa #EU #News #MarkRutte #nato #NATOcountries #nuclearattack #nuclearcapabilities #NuclearDeterrence #nucleardisarmament #nuclearweapons #PresidentVladimirPutin #Russia #strategicnuclearweapons #USnuclearweapons
https://www.europesays.com/nato/9432/

NATO plans to strengthen its nuclear deterrence amid Russian threat

The Western defence alliance NATO plans to expand nuclear deterrence in Europe in light of the ongoing threats…
#NATO #OTAN #Europe #Europa #EU #News #MarkRutte #nato #NATOcountries #NorthAtlanticTreatyOrganization #NuclearDeterrence #nucleardisarmament #nuclearexperts #nuclearweapons #PresidentVladimirPutin #USnuclearweapons
https://www.europesays.com/nato/9428/

Global Nuclear Disarmament and Anti-War Advocacy

📰 Original title: Canada remains anti-nuke, but its potential path to the bomb is getting shorter.

🤖 IA: It's clickbait ⚠️
👥 Users: It's clickbait ⚠️

View full AI summary https://en.killbait.com/global-nuclear-disarmament-and-anti-war-advocacy.html?utm_source=mastodon_world&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=killbait.mastodon_world

#politics #nucleardisarmament #internationalpolicy #antiwaradvocacy

Global Nuclear Disarmament and Anti-War Advocacy

📰 Original title: Canada remains anti-nuke, but its potential path to the bomb is getting shorter.

🤖 IA: It's clickbait ⚠️
👥 Users: It's clickbait ⚠️

View full AI summary https://en.killbait.com/global-nuclear-disarmament-and-anti-war-advocacy.html?utm_source=mastodon_world&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=killbait.mastodon_world

#politics #nucleardisarmament #internationalpolicy #antiwaradvocacy

Webinar on Nuclear Disarmament and Anti-War Strategies

📰 Original title: Not Even Israelis Are Willing To Die For Israel

🤖 IA: It's not clickbait ✅
👥 Users: It's not clickbait ✅

View full AI summary https://en.killbait.com/webinar-on-nuclear-disarmament-and-anti-war-strategies.html?utm_source=mastodon_world&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=killbait.mastodon_world

#politics #nucleardisarmament #antiwarstrategies #webinar

Webinar on Nuclear Disarmament and Anti-War Strategies

📰 Original title: Not Even Israelis Are Willing To Die For Israel

🤖 IA: It's not clickbait ✅
👥 Users: It's not clickbait ✅

View full AI summary https://en.killbait.com/webinar-on-nuclear-disarmament-and-anti-war-strategies.html?utm_source=mastodon_world&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=killbait.mastodon_world

#politics #nucleardisarmament #antiwarstrategies #webinar

Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Humanity: Nobel Laureates Call for Global Safeguards

https://web.brid.gy/r/https://www.ipsnews.net/2026/07/artificial-intelligence-and-the-future-of-humanity-nobel-laureates-call-for-global-safeguards/

Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Humanity: Nobel Laureates Call for Global Safeguards

https://web.brid.gy/r/https://www.ipsnews.net/2026/07/artificial-intelligence-and-the-future-of-humanity-nobel-laureates-call-for-global-safeguards/

Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Humanity: Nobel Laureates Call for Global Safeguards

https://web.brid.gy/r/https://www.ipsnews.net/2026/07/artificial-intelligence-and-the-future-of-humanity-nobel-laureates-call-for-global-safeguards/

Nuclear Disarmament Voyage: 22,000+ Miles for a Radiation-Free Future

📰 Original title: Israel And The United States Are Merging Their Militaries. Here’s Why.

🤖 IA: It's clickbait ⚠️
👥 Users: It's clickbait ⚠️

View full AI summary https://en.killbait.com/nuclear-disarmament-voyage-22-000-miles-for-a-radiation-free-future.html?utm_source=mastodon_world&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=killbait.mastodon_world

#currentaffairs #nucleardisarmament #radiationfreeenvironment #nuclearinformation

Global Efforts for Nuclear Disarmament and Radiation-Free Environment

📰 Original title: The hidden military pressures behind the new push for small nuclear reactors

🤖 IA: It's clickbait ⚠️
👥 Users: It's clickbait ⚠️

View full AI summary https://en.killbait.com/global-efforts-for-nuclear-disarmament-and-radiation-free-environment.html?utm_source=mastodon_world&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=killbait.mastodon_world

#politics #nucleardisarmament #radiationfreeenvironment #globalinitiatives

Remember Your Humanity

https://web.brid.gy/r/https://www.ipsnews.net/2026/07/remember-your-humanity/

Remember Your Humanity

https://web.brid.gy/r/https://www.ipsnews.net/2026/07/remember-your-humanity/

Remember Your Humanity

https://web.brid.gy/r/https://www.ipsnews.net/2026/07/remember-your-humanity/

Nuclear Disarmament and Climate Action: A Global Imperative

📰 Original title: The Heat Is the Story—Climate Change Is the Cause

🤖 IA: It's clickbait ⚠️
👥 Users: It's clickbait ⚠️

View full AI summary https://en.killbait.com/nuclear-disarmament-and-climate-action-a-global-imperative.html?utm_source=mastodon_world&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=killbait.mastodon_world

#climatechange #climatechange #nucleardisarmament

Nuclear Disarmament and Climate Action: A Global Imperative

📰 Original title: The Heat Is the Story—Climate Change Is the Cause

🤖 IA: It's clickbait ⚠️
👥 Users: It's clickbait ⚠️

View full AI summary https://en.killbait.com/nuclear-disarmament-and-climate-action-a-global-imperative.html?utm_source=mastodon_social&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=killbait.mastodon_social

#climatechange #climatechange #nucleardisarmament

Global Advocacy for Nuclear Disarmament and Radiation-Free Initiatives

📰 Original title: Flatteries and falsehoods – A multi-million dollar PR campaign can’t hide nuclear power’s ugly truth

🤖 IA: It's clickbait ⚠️
👥 Users: It's clickbait ⚠️

View full AI summary https://en.killbait.com/global-advocacy-for-nuclear-disarmament-and-radiation-free-initiatives.html?utm_source=mastodon_world&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=killbait.mastodon_world

#environment #nucleardisarmament #radiationfree...

Global Nuclear Disarmament Advocacy and Radiation-Free Environment Campaign

📰 Original title: The new nuclear madness is climate criminality

🤖 IA: It's clickbait ⚠️
👥 Users: It's clickbait ⚠️

View full AI summary https://en.killbait.com/global-nuclear-disarmament-advocacy-and-radiation-free-environment-campaign.html?utm_source=mastodon_world&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=killbait.mastodon_world

#environment #nucleardisarmament #radiationsafety #globalactivism

#DoctorDoom #Marvel #CloakandDagger #NuclearDisarmament

#DoctorDoom #Marvel #CloakandDagger #NuclearDisarmament

Hexing the Bomb

Hot on the heels of my little foray into the Battle of the Beanfield I decided to dig a little deeper into another important and largely forgotten nugget of social history. This one incorporates a couple of my favourite subjects, neither of which is politics. It does, however, have women standing up together and achieving the seemingly impossible and witches.

Pull up a chair… 🙂

There are moments in history when politics, folklore and belief collide in ways that seem almost impossible to imagine. One such moment unfolded on the windswept perimeter fences of Greenham Common during the final decades of the Cold War, when thousands of women gathered to oppose the presence of American nuclear missiles on British soil. Among the banners, songs and acts of civil disobedience was something few journalists expected to find at the heart of a major political protest. Witches.

For nearly two decades, Greenham Common became one of the most significant centres of peace activism in modern British history. It was a place of arrests, demonstrations, campfires and confrontation. It was also a place where ancient symbols found new life. Women danced in circles, wove webs across military fences, invoked goddesses, cast symbolic spells and drew upon centuries of folklore to challenge one of the most powerful military alliances in the world.

To understand why, we must first return to a Britain gripped by fear.

The early 1980s were shadowed by the threat of nuclear war. Relations between East and West had deteriorated. The Soviet Union and NATO were engaged in a dangerous arms race. Television viewers watched films such as Threads and The Day After, which depicted the horrific consequences of nuclear conflict. Schoolchildren grew up with the knowledge that a single political miscalculation could end civilisation in an afternoon.

Against this backdrop, the British government agreed to host American cruise missiles at RAF Greenham Common in Berkshire. To supporters, the deployment was a necessary deterrent. To opponents, it made Britain a target and increased the likelihood of nuclear confrontation.

In September 1981, a small group of Welsh women marched from Cardiff to Greenham Common. Their intention was straightforward. They wanted a public debate about nuclear weapons. When their concerns were ignored, some chose to remain.

Few could have imagined that their decision would create one of the most influential protest movements in modern British history.

The Greenham Common Women’s Peace Camp became a permanent presence outside the military base. Women arrived from every corner of Britain and beyond. Some stayed for days. Others remained for years. Grandmothers camped alongside students. Teachers shared fires with artists, nurses, activists and travellers. The camp developed its own culture, traditions and rituals.

Media coverage was often hostile. Newspapers portrayed the women as scruffy, eccentric or dangerous. Politicians dismissed them as naïve. Yet Greenham continued to grow. By December 1982, around 30,000 women joined hands around the nine-mile perimeter fence in one of the largest demonstrations Britain had ever seen.

As the movement evolved, some participants began drawing upon folklore, mythology and spiritual traditions to express their opposition to nuclear weapons.

For many women involved in the peace camp, the figure of the witch held profound significance.The witch has never been simply a character from fairy tales. Across European history she has represented independence, resistance and the refusal to conform. She is the village healer, the wise woman, the outsider and the scapegoat. She embodies knowledge that exists beyond accepted authority.

Many women at Greenham recognised parallels between historical witch hunts and contemporary attempts to dismiss or marginalise female voices. The image of the witch became a powerful symbol of protest.

Some protesters identified as pagans or practitioners of modern witchcraft. Others were not religious at all but embraced the symbolism. Together they transformed folklore into a political language.

At various demonstrations, women dressed as witches, carrying besoms and wearing pointed hats. They conducted symbolic rituals outside the base gates. Circles were formed. Chants were spoken. Songs echoed through the Berkshire countryside.

Perhaps most striking were the webs.Women frequently attached ribbons, wool, photographs, toys and personal objects to the military fences. These creations resembled enormous spider webs stretching across the perimeter. They symbolised connection, community and the fragile threads linking humanity together. Military planners saw security barriers. The women transformed them into canvases for storytelling.

One protest became known as the “Embrace the Base” demonstration, during which thousands of women encircled Greenham Common. The act itself echoed ancient traditions of protective circles and boundary rituals found throughout British folklore.In many folk traditions, circles create sacred space. They mark a distinction between the ordinary and the extraordinary. Whether consciously or unconsciously, Greenham’s protesters drew upon symbolism that would have been recognised by generations of cunning folk, ceremonial magicians and village communities.

There were also reports of symbolic spell-casting directed not at individuals but at the weapons themselves.

These actions were largely theatrical and symbolic. Yet symbolism has always been one of humanity’s most powerful tools. Flags, crowns, crosses and national monuments derive their power from collective belief. Greenham’s witches understood this. They recognised that ritual could attract attention, build solidarity and create memorable images capable of travelling far beyond the camp itself.Photographs from the period remain remarkable. Women dance beneath military floodlights. Costumed protesters stand before coils of razor wire. Sacred imagery appears alongside anti-nuclear slogans. Ancient archetypes confront modern technology.

The contrast could hardly have been more dramatic.

Behind the spectacle lay a serious philosophical question. How should ordinary people respond when faced with systems that appear too vast to challenge?

For some, the answer lay in petitions or political lobbying. For others, it involved direct action. At Greenham, many women chose creativity. They responded to missiles with songs, fences with artwork and military authority with myth.

It is tempting to dismiss such actions as eccentric. Yet history suggests otherwise.Throughout the centuries, folklore has often emerged during periods of uncertainty and upheaval. Communities create stories to explain fears, express hopes and challenge power structures. Ballads mocked landlords. legends criticised rulers. Folk customs strengthened communities during times of hardship.

Greenham Common followed the same pattern.The camp generated its own folklore almost immediately. Stories circulated among protesters. Songs were composed. Rituals evolved. Shared symbols developed meaning through repetition. What began as a political protest became something resembling a living folk tradition.

Even the landscape itself absorbed these stories.

Greenham Common is now remembered not only as a military site but as a place of resistance. The fences have gone. The missiles have long since been removed. Yet the stories remain. Visitors still encounter traces of the movement in memorials, artworks and local memory.

The protest ultimately achieved far more than many observers predicted. Cruise missiles were removed from Greenham Common in 1991 following the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty. The peace camp remained for several years afterwards before finally closing in 2000.

Whether Greenham alone changed government policy remains a matter of debate. Few historians would argue that it was the sole cause. Yet its influence on public discourse is undeniable. The movement helped shape conversations about nuclear weapons, gender, protest and citizenship. It inspired campaigns around the world and demonstrated the power of sustained grassroots activism.

The witches of Greenham Common occupy a particularly fascinating place within that story.

They remind us that folklore is not confined to dusty books or distant centuries. It remains a living force, capable of adapting to new circumstances and addressing modern concerns. Ancient symbols continue to resonate because they speak to enduring human experiences.

The women who danced around Greenham’s fences were not attempting to retreat into the past. They were using the past to imagine a different future.

In an age dominated by military technology, political rhetoric and the machinery of the Cold War, they answered with stories, songs, rituals and symbols that had survived for centuries.

Whether one believes in magic is ultimately beside the point.

The real magic of Greenham Common lay in its ability to transform fear into action, isolation into community and protest into legend.

More than forty years later, the image remains unforgettable. A line of women standing beneath winter skies, facing one of the most formidable military establishments on Earth armed with banners, determination and the enduring power of folklore.

History remembers the missiles.

Folklore remembers the witches.

Further Reading

Common Women, Uncommon Practices by Sasha RoseneilGreenham Women Everywhere by Rebecca Mordan

Peace Camps: A Study of Greenham Women by Lynne Jones

The archives of the Greenham Common Women’s Peace

CampRecords held by the Women’s Library at the London School of Economics

Imperial War Museum collections relating to Greenham Common

Oral history projects documenting former Greenham residents

Copyright Notice:

© 2026 Mysterious Times. All rights reserved.This article is published exclusively for Mysterious Times. No part may be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form without prior written permission, except for brief quotations used for review, commentary or educational purposes with appropriate attribution.

Hexing the Bomb

Hot on the heels of my little foray into the Battle of the Beanfield I decided to dig a little deeper into another important and largely forgotten nugget of social history. This one incorporates a couple of my favourite subjects, neither of which is politics. It does, however, have women standing up together and achieving the seemingly impossible. And witches.

Pull up a chair… 🙂

There are moments in history when politics, folklore and belief collide in ways that seem almost impossible to imagine. One such moment unfolded on the windswept perimeter fences of Greenham Common during the final decades of the Cold War, when thousands of women gathered to oppose the presence of American nuclear missiles on British soil. Among the banners, songs and acts of civil disobedience was something few journalists expected to find at the heart of a major political protest. Witches.

For nearly two decades, Greenham Common became one of the most significant centres of peace activism in modern British history. It was a place of arrests, demonstrations, campfires and confrontation. It was also a place where ancient symbols found new life. Women danced in circles, wove webs across military fences, invoked goddesses, cast symbolic spells and drew upon centuries of folklore to challenge one of the most powerful military alliances in the world.

To understand why, we must first return to a Britain gripped by fear.

The early 1980s were shadowed by the threat of nuclear war. Relations between East and West had deteriorated. The Soviet Union and NATO were engaged in a dangerous arms race. Television viewers watched films such as Threads and The Day After, which depicted the horrific consequences of nuclear conflict. Schoolchildren grew up with the knowledge that a single political miscalculation could end civilisation in an afternoon.

Against this backdrop, the British government agreed to host American cruise missiles at RAF Greenham Common in Berkshire. To supporters, the deployment was a necessary deterrent. To opponents, it made Britain a target and increased the likelihood of nuclear confrontation.

In September 1981, a small group of Welsh women marched from Cardiff to Greenham Common. Their intention was straightforward. They wanted a public debate about nuclear weapons. When their concerns were ignored, some chose to remain.

Few could have imagined that their decision would create one of the most influential protest movements in modern British history.

The Greenham Common Women’s Peace Camp became a permanent presence outside the military base. Women arrived from every corner of Britain and beyond. Some stayed for days. Others remained for years. Grandmothers camped alongside students. Teachers shared fires with artists, nurses, activists and travellers. The camp developed its own culture, traditions and rituals.

Media coverage was often hostile. Newspapers portrayed the women as scruffy, eccentric or dangerous. Politicians dismissed them as naïve. Yet Greenham continued to grow. By December 1982, around 30,000 women joined hands around the nine-mile perimeter fence in one of the largest demonstrations Britain had ever seen.

As the movement evolved, some participants began drawing upon folklore, mythology and spiritual traditions to express their opposition to nuclear weapons.

For many women involved in the peace camp, the figure of the witch held profound significance.The witch has never been simply a character from fairy tales. Across European history she has represented independence, resistance and the refusal to conform. She is the village healer, the wise woman, the outsider and the scapegoat. She embodies knowledge that exists beyond accepted authority.

Many women at Greenham recognised parallels between historical witch hunts and contemporary attempts to dismiss or marginalise female voices. The image of the witch became a powerful symbol of protest.

Some protesters identified as pagans or practitioners of modern witchcraft. Others were not religious at all but embraced the symbolism. Together they transformed folklore into a political language.

At various demonstrations, women dressed as witches, carrying besoms and wearing pointed hats. They conducted symbolic rituals outside the base gates. Circles were formed. Chants were spoken. Songs echoed through the Berkshire countryside.

Perhaps most striking were the webs.Women frequently attached ribbons, wool, photographs, toys and personal objects to the military fences. These creations resembled enormous spider webs stretching across the perimeter. They symbolised connection, community and the fragile threads linking humanity together. Military planners saw security barriers. The women transformed them into canvases for storytelling.

One protest became known as the “Embrace the Base” demonstration, during which thousands of women encircled Greenham Common. The act itself echoed ancient traditions of protective circles and boundary rituals found throughout British folklore.In many folk traditions, circles create sacred space. They mark a distinction between the ordinary and the extraordinary. Whether consciously or unconsciously, Greenham’s protesters drew upon symbolism that would have been recognised by generations of cunning folk, ceremonial magicians and village communities.

There were also reports of symbolic spell-casting directed not at individuals but at the weapons themselves.

These actions were largely theatrical and symbolic. Yet symbolism has always been one of humanity’s most powerful tools. Flags, crowns, crosses and national monuments derive their power from collective belief. Greenham’s witches understood this. They recognised that ritual could attract attention, build solidarity and create memorable images capable of travelling far beyond the camp itself.Photographs from the period remain remarkable. Women dance beneath military floodlights. Costumed protesters stand before coils of razor wire. Sacred imagery appears alongside anti-nuclear slogans. Ancient archetypes confront modern technology.

The contrast could hardly have been more dramatic.

Behind the spectacle lay a serious philosophical question. How should ordinary people respond when faced with systems that appear too vast to challenge?

For some, the answer lay in petitions or political lobbying. For others, it involved direct action. At Greenham, many women chose creativity. They responded to missiles with songs, fences with artwork and military authority with myth.

It is tempting to dismiss such actions as eccentric. Yet history suggests otherwise.Throughout the centuries, folklore has often emerged during periods of uncertainty and upheaval. Communities create stories to explain fears, express hopes and challenge power structures. Ballads mocked landlords. legends criticised rulers. Folk customs strengthened communities during times of hardship.

Greenham Common followed the same pattern.The camp generated its own folklore almost immediately. Stories circulated among protesters. Songs were composed. Rituals evolved. Shared symbols developed meaning through repetition. What began as a political protest became something resembling a living folk tradition.

Even the landscape itself absorbed these stories.

Greenham Common is now remembered not only as a military site but as a place of resistance. The fences have gone. The missiles have long since been removed. Yet the stories remain. Visitors still encounter traces of the movement in memorials, artworks and local memory.

The protest ultimately achieved far more than many observers predicted. Cruise missiles were removed from Greenham Common in 1991 following the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty. The peace camp remained for several years afterwards before finally closing in 2000.

Whether Greenham alone changed government policy remains a matter of debate. Few historians would argue that it was the sole cause. Yet its influence on public discourse is undeniable. The movement helped shape conversations about nuclear weapons, gender, protest and citizenship. It inspired campaigns around the world and demonstrated the power of sustained grassroots activism.

The witches of Greenham Common occupy a particularly fascinating place within that story.

They remind us that folklore is not confined to dusty books or distant centuries. It remains a living force, capable of adapting to new circumstances and addressing modern concerns. Ancient symbols continue to resonate because they speak to enduring human experiences.

The women who danced around Greenham’s fences were not attempting to retreat into the past. They were using the past to imagine a different future.

In an age dominated by military technology, political rhetoric and the machinery of the Cold War, they answered with stories, songs, rituals and symbols that had survived for centuries.

Whether one believes in magic is ultimately beside the point.

The real magic of Greenham Common lay in its ability to transform fear into action, isolation into community and protest into legend.

More than forty years later, the image remains unforgettable. A line of women standing beneath winter skies, facing one of the most formidable military establishments on Earth armed with banners, determination and the enduring power of folklore.

History remembers the missiles.

Folklore remembers the witches.

Further Reading

Common Women, Uncommon Practices by Sasha RoseneilGreenham Women Everywhere by Rebecca Mordan

Peace Camps: A Study of Greenham Women by Lynne Jones

The archives of the Greenham Common Women’s Peace

CampRecords held by the Women’s Library at the London School of Economics

Imperial War Museum collections relating to Greenham Common

Oral history projects documenting former Greenham residents

Copyright Notice:

© 2026 Mysterious Times. All rights reserved.This article is published exclusively for Mysterious Times. No part may be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form without prior written permission, except for brief quotations used for review, commentary or educational purposes with appropriate attribution.

Hexing the Bomb

Hot on the heels of my little foray into the Battle of the Beanfield I decided to dig a little deeper into another important and largely forgotten nugget of social history. This one incorporates a couple of my favourite subjects, neither of which is politics. It does, however, have women standing up together and achieving the seemingly impossible and witches.

Pull up a chair… 🙂

There are moments in history when politics, folklore and belief collide in ways that seem almost impossible to imagine. One such moment unfolded on the windswept perimeter fences of Greenham Common during the final decades of the Cold War, when thousands of women gathered to oppose the presence of American nuclear missiles on British soil. Among the banners, songs and acts of civil disobedience was something few journalists expected to find at the heart of a major political protest. Witches.

For nearly two decades, Greenham Common became one of the most significant centres of peace activism in modern British history. It was a place of arrests, demonstrations, campfires and confrontation. It was also a place where ancient symbols found new life. Women danced in circles, wove webs across military fences, invoked goddesses, cast symbolic spells and drew upon centuries of folklore to challenge one of the most powerful military alliances in the world.

To understand why, we must first return to a Britain gripped by fear.

The early 1980s were shadowed by the threat of nuclear war. Relations between East and West had deteriorated. The Soviet Union and NATO were engaged in a dangerous arms race. Television viewers watched films such as Threads and The Day After, which depicted the horrific consequences of nuclear conflict. Schoolchildren grew up with the knowledge that a single political miscalculation could end civilisation in an afternoon.

Against this backdrop, the British government agreed to host American cruise missiles at RAF Greenham Common in Berkshire. To supporters, the deployment was a necessary deterrent. To opponents, it made Britain a target and increased the likelihood of nuclear confrontation.

In September 1981, a small group of Welsh women marched from Cardiff to Greenham Common. Their intention was straightforward. They wanted a public debate about nuclear weapons. When their concerns were ignored, some chose to remain.

Few could have imagined that their decision would create one of the most influential protest movements in modern British history.

The Greenham Common Women’s Peace Camp became a permanent presence outside the military base. Women arrived from every corner of Britain and beyond. Some stayed for days. Others remained for years. Grandmothers camped alongside students. Teachers shared fires with artists, nurses, activists and travellers. The camp developed its own culture, traditions and rituals.

Media coverage was often hostile. Newspapers portrayed the women as scruffy, eccentric or dangerous. Politicians dismissed them as naïve. Yet Greenham continued to grow. By December 1982, around 30,000 women joined hands around the nine-mile perimeter fence in one of the largest demonstrations Britain had ever seen.

As the movement evolved, some participants began drawing upon folklore, mythology and spiritual traditions to express their opposition to nuclear weapons.

For many women involved in the peace camp, the figure of the witch held profound significance.The witch has never been simply a character from fairy tales. Across European history she has represented independence, resistance and the refusal to conform. She is the village healer, the wise woman, the outsider and the scapegoat. She embodies knowledge that exists beyond accepted authority.

Many women at Greenham recognised parallels between historical witch hunts and contemporary attempts to dismiss or marginalise female voices. The image of the witch became a powerful symbol of protest.

Some protesters identified as pagans or practitioners of modern witchcraft. Others were not religious at all but embraced the symbolism. Together they transformed folklore into a political language.

At various demonstrations, women dressed as witches, carrying besoms and wearing pointed hats. They conducted symbolic rituals outside the base gates. Circles were formed. Chants were spoken. Songs echoed through the Berkshire countryside.

Perhaps most striking were the webs.Women frequently attached ribbons, wool, photographs, toys and personal objects to the military fences. These creations resembled enormous spider webs stretching across the perimeter. They symbolised connection, community and the fragile threads linking humanity together. Military planners saw security barriers. The women transformed them into canvases for storytelling.

One protest became known as the “Embrace the Base” demonstration, during which thousands of women encircled Greenham Common. The act itself echoed ancient traditions of protective circles and boundary rituals found throughout British folklore.In many folk traditions, circles create sacred space. They mark a distinction between the ordinary and the extraordinary. Whether consciously or unconsciously, Greenham’s protesters drew upon symbolism that would have been recognised by generations of cunning folk, ceremonial magicians and village communities.

There were also reports of symbolic spell-casting directed not at individuals but at the weapons themselves.

These actions were largely theatrical and symbolic. Yet symbolism has always been one of humanity’s most powerful tools. Flags, crowns, crosses and national monuments derive their power from collective belief. Greenham’s witches understood this. They recognised that ritual could attract attention, build solidarity and create memorable images capable of travelling far beyond the camp itself.Photographs from the period remain remarkable. Women dance beneath military floodlights. Costumed protesters stand before coils of razor wire. Sacred imagery appears alongside anti-nuclear slogans. Ancient archetypes confront modern technology.

The contrast could hardly have been more dramatic.

Behind the spectacle lay a serious philosophical question. How should ordinary people respond when faced with systems that appear too vast to challenge?

For some, the answer lay in petitions or political lobbying. For others, it involved direct action. At Greenham, many women chose creativity. They responded to missiles with songs, fences with artwork and military authority with myth.

It is tempting to dismiss such actions as eccentric. Yet history suggests otherwise.Throughout the centuries, folklore has often emerged during periods of uncertainty and upheaval. Communities create stories to explain fears, express hopes and challenge power structures. Ballads mocked landlords. legends criticised rulers. Folk customs strengthened communities during times of hardship.

Greenham Common followed the same pattern.The camp generated its own folklore almost immediately. Stories circulated among protesters. Songs were composed. Rituals evolved. Shared symbols developed meaning through repetition. What began as a political protest became something resembling a living folk tradition.

Even the landscape itself absorbed these stories.

Greenham Common is now remembered not only as a military site but as a place of resistance. The fences have gone. The missiles have long since been removed. Yet the stories remain. Visitors still encounter traces of the movement in memorials, artworks and local memory.

The protest ultimately achieved far more than many observers predicted. Cruise missiles were removed from Greenham Common in 1991 following the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty. The peace camp remained for several years afterwards before finally closing in 2000.

Whether Greenham alone changed government policy remains a matter of debate. Few historians would argue that it was the sole cause. Yet its influence on public discourse is undeniable. The movement helped shape conversations about nuclear weapons, gender, protest and citizenship. It inspired campaigns around the world and demonstrated the power of sustained grassroots activism.

The witches of Greenham Common occupy a particularly fascinating place within that story.

They remind us that folklore is not confined to dusty books or distant centuries. It remains a living force, capable of adapting to new circumstances and addressing modern concerns. Ancient symbols continue to resonate because they speak to enduring human experiences.

The women who danced around Greenham’s fences were not attempting to retreat into the past. They were using the past to imagine a different future.

In an age dominated by military technology, political rhetoric and the machinery of the Cold War, they answered with stories, songs, rituals and symbols that had survived for centuries.

Whether one believes in magic is ultimately beside the point.

The real magic of Greenham Common lay in its ability to transform fear into action, isolation into community and protest into legend.

More than forty years later, the image remains unforgettable. A line of women standing beneath winter skies, facing one of the most formidable military establishments on Earth armed with banners, determination and the enduring power of folklore.

History remembers the missiles.

Folklore remembers the witches.

Further Reading

Common Women, Uncommon Practices by Sasha RoseneilGreenham Women Everywhere by Rebecca Mordan

Peace Camps: A Study of Greenham Women by Lynne Jones

The archives of the Greenham Common Women’s Peace

CampRecords held by the Women’s Library at the London School of Economics

Imperial War Museum collections relating to Greenham Common

Oral history projects documenting former Greenham residents

Copyright Notice:

© 2026 Mysterious Times. All rights reserved.This article is published exclusively for Mysterious Times. No part may be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form without prior written permission, except for brief quotations used for review, commentary or educational purposes with appropriate attribution.

Trump: The Deeply Disturbing Descent Into Megalomania.

Article republished by Jerry Alatalo | May 18, 2026

[Editor’s note: Lawrence S. Wittner (https://www.lawrenceswittner.com/ ) is Professor of History Emeritus at SUNY/Albany and the author of Confronting the Bomb (Stanford University Press). Please share the article far and wide. Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments. Thank you very much. Peace.]

***

The Man Who Seeks to Rule the World

May 18, 2026

tags: authoritarianism, Board of Peace, international security, military spending, Trump, United Nations, war

by Lawrence Wittner

Although Donald Trump has never been modest about his abilities or reluctant to exercise personal power, during his second term in office he has shown clear signs of megalomania.

One sign, of course, is his blatant demand for the territory of other nations.   Since January 2025 alone, he has suggested annexing or seizing control of Greenland, Canada, Mexico, the Panama Canal, Gaza, Venezuela, and Cuba.  In addition, he has proclaimed the “Donroe Doctrine,” declaring that “American dominance in the Western Hemisphere will never be questioned again.”

Although the NATO alliance, a collective security pact, has been the cornerstone of U.S. defense policy for the past 77 years, Trump has become a bitter critic of NATO to such a degree that its other members, aghast at this turn of events, have begun exploring the reshaping of the Western alliance without the participation of the United States.

Other actions, too, have underscored Trump’s decision to “go it alone” in world affairs.  Like the foremost military conquerors of the past, Trump has been busy building up his nation’s armed forces and their weaponry.  The United States is already the world’s biggest military spender, with about three times the military spending of the number two nation (China).  

Nevertheless, this April Trump proposed adoption of a record $1.5 trillion U.S. military budget, with the largest annual increase ever in Pentagon funding:  42 percent.  This dramatic increase does not include an expected supplemental budget for the Iran war, which could cost an additional $200 billion.

Trump’s 2027 fiscal year military budget calls for $98 billion in nuclear weapons spending, most of it to build a new generation of U.S. nuclear weapons.  Having unilaterally withdrawn the United States from previous nuclear arms control and disarmament treaties with Russia and recently let the last of them lapse, he now has fewer treaty constraints on his nuclear ambitions.  

Accordingly, he recently announced that he has given orders for the resumption of U.S. nuclear testing, which has not been conducted since 1992.  

Furthermore, like past U.S. presidents, Trump has assumed the power to launch a nuclear war totally on his own.  And he has publicly and repeatedly threatened to do so.

Although the U.S. Constitution gives Congress―and not the President―the authority to declare war, Trump has shown no hesitation at sending U.S. armed forces into combat.  In a little more than a year, without so much as consulting Congress, he ordered the obliteration bombing of Iran’s nuclear facilities, the destruction of dozens of suspect boats and their crews, the bombing of Venezuela and the kidnapping of its president, a naval blockade of Cuba, and―jointly with Israel―a devasting war upon Iran.  

The latter, which has already killed thousands and wounded tens of thousands of people, displaced 3.2 million Iranians, and thrown the global economy into turmoil, is widely unpopular and continues today.  Queried in January 2026 about such international actions, Trump brushed aside international law and said that he relied solely on his own opinion, which was “the only thing that can stop me.”    

Not surprisingly, Trump has no use for the United Nations and most other international organizations, and has worked zealously to cripple them.  Since his second term began, he has had the U.S. government withdraw from such key UN agencies as the World Health Organization, the UN Human Rights Council, the UN Relief and Works Agency, and UNESCO.  In addition, the Trump administration has imposed severe sanctions on the International Criminal Court and its top officials.

U.S. funding cuts for the United Nations have been severe.  In July 2025, the Trump administration pushed rescissions legislation through the Republican-controlled Congress that pulled back $1 billion in funding previously allocated to the world organization, with devastating effects on a broad variety of programs, including UNICEF, the UN Environment Program, and the UN Fund for Victims of Torture.  

Furthermore, the administration refused to make its mandated dues payments to the United Nations, running up a debt to it―by far the world’s largest―of nearly $4 billion.  As a result, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned in February 2026 that the world body faced “imminent financial collapse.”

On September 23, 2025, Trump’s hostility toward the United Nations spilled over into what Le Monde called “a blistering speech” during his first UN General Assembly appearance since his re-election.  In what the French newspaper termed a “full-frontal attack on the global organization,” Trump condemned it for “empty words,” failing to assist him in the seven wars that he claimed to have ended, and for “funding an assault” by refugees on Western nations.  He also depicted climate change as “the greatest con job ever perpetrated on the world.”

Although it’s tempting to regard this behavior as reflecting an overheated nationalism, the remarkable degree to which Trump regards himself as the savior of the world suggests a more personal lust for supreme power.

The Trump-centered vision of the world is exemplified by his creation, soon thereafter, of an international “Board of Peace.”  Although the Board’s initial activity was a peace project for Gaza, its charter called for “a more nimble and effective international peace-building body,” which―together with Trump’s remarks―has led disgruntled European officials to describe it as a substitute for the United Nations.  

Trump, who appointed himself lifetime chair of the Board of Peace, would decide which nations could join the Board (with those paying $1 billion or more becoming permanent Board members) and which members could join the Executive Board (which would implement the decisions of the Board of Peace).  The power to veto decisions of the Executive Board was granted by Trump . . . to Trump!

This descent into megalomania is deeply disturbing, for the dangers to the world, and even to human survival, are sharply enhanced by one-man rule, and even by one-nation rule.

How long will it take to recognize that international security requires the sharing of power by all people and nations in the human community?

(Source: PeaceandHealthBlog.com)

Trump: The Deeply Disturbing Descent Into Megalomania.

Article republished by Jerry Alatalo | May 18, 2026

[Editor’s note: Lawrence S. Wittner (https://www.lawrenceswittner.com/ ) is Professor of History Emeritus at SUNY/Albany and the author of Confronting the Bomb (Stanford University Press). Please share the article far and wide. Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments. Thank you very much. Peace.]

***

The Man Who Seeks to Rule the World

May 18, 2026

tags: authoritarianism, Board of Peace, international security, military spending, Trump, United Nations, war

by Lawrence Wittner

Although Donald Trump has never been modest about his abilities or reluctant to exercise personal power, during his second term in office he has shown clear signs of megalomania.

One sign, of course, is his blatant demand for the territory of other nations.   Since January 2025 alone, he has suggested annexing or seizing control of Greenland, Canada, Mexico, the Panama Canal, Gaza, Venezuela, and Cuba.  In addition, he has proclaimed the “Donroe Doctrine,” declaring that “American dominance in the Western Hemisphere will never be questioned again.”

Although the NATO alliance, a collective security pact, has been the cornerstone of U.S. defense policy for the past 77 years, Trump has become a bitter critic of NATO to such a degree that its other members, aghast at this turn of events, have begun exploring the reshaping of the Western alliance without the participation of the United States.

Other actions, too, have underscored Trump’s decision to “go it alone” in world affairs.  Like the foremost military conquerors of the past, Trump has been busy building up his nation’s armed forces and their weaponry.  The United States is already the world’s biggest military spender, with about three times the military spending of the number two nation (China).  

Nevertheless, this April Trump proposed adoption of a record $1.5 trillion U.S. military budget, with the largest annual increase ever in Pentagon funding:  42 percent.  This dramatic increase does not include an expected supplemental budget for the Iran war, which could cost an additional $200 billion.

Trump’s 2027 fiscal year military budget calls for $98 billion in nuclear weapons spending, most of it to build a new generation of U.S. nuclear weapons.  Having unilaterally withdrawn the United States from previous nuclear arms control and disarmament treaties with Russia and recently let the last of them lapse, he now has fewer treaty constraints on his nuclear ambitions.  

Accordingly, he recently announced that he has given orders for the resumption of U.S. nuclear testing, which has not been conducted since 1992.  

Furthermore, like past U.S. presidents, Trump has assumed the power to launch a nuclear war totally on his own.  And he has publicly and repeatedly threatened to do so.

Although the U.S. Constitution gives Congress―and not the President―the authority to declare war, Trump has shown no hesitation at sending U.S. armed forces into combat.  In a little more than a year, without so much as consulting Congress, he ordered the obliteration bombing of Iran’s nuclear facilities, the destruction of dozens of suspect boats and their crews, the bombing of Venezuela and the kidnapping of its president, a naval blockade of Cuba, and―jointly with Israel―a devasting war upon Iran.  

The latter, which has already killed thousands and wounded tens of thousands of people, displaced 3.2 million Iranians, and thrown the global economy into turmoil, is widely unpopular and continues today.  Queried in January 2026 about such international actions, Trump brushed aside international law and said that he relied solely on his own opinion, which was “the only thing that can stop me.”    

Not surprisingly, Trump has no use for the United Nations and most other international organizations, and has worked zealously to cripple them.  Since his second term began, he has had the U.S. government withdraw from such key UN agencies as the World Health Organization, the UN Human Rights Council, the UN Relief and Works Agency, and UNESCO.  In addition, the Trump administration has imposed severe sanctions on the International Criminal Court and its top officials.

U.S. funding cuts for the United Nations have been severe.  In July 2025, the Trump administration pushed rescissions legislation through the Republican-controlled Congress that pulled back $1 billion in funding previously allocated to the world organization, with devastating effects on a broad variety of programs, including UNICEF, the UN Environment Program, and the UN Fund for Victims of Torture.  

Furthermore, the administration refused to make its mandated dues payments to the United Nations, running up a debt to it―by far the world’s largest―of nearly $4 billion.  As a result, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned in February 2026 that the world body faced “imminent financial collapse.”

On September 23, 2025, Trump’s hostility toward the United Nations spilled over into what Le Monde called “a blistering speech” during his first UN General Assembly appearance since his re-election.  In what the French newspaper termed a “full-frontal attack on the global organization,” Trump condemned it for “empty words,” failing to assist him in the seven wars that he claimed to have ended, and for “funding an assault” by refugees on Western nations.  He also depicted climate change as “the greatest con job ever perpetrated on the world.”

Although it’s tempting to regard this behavior as reflecting an overheated nationalism, the remarkable degree to which Trump regards himself as the savior of the world suggests a more personal lust for supreme power.

The Trump-centered vision of the world is exemplified by his creation, soon thereafter, of an international “Board of Peace.”  Although the Board’s initial activity was a peace project for Gaza, its charter called for “a more nimble and effective international peace-building body,” which―together with Trump’s remarks―has led disgruntled European officials to describe it as a substitute for the United Nations.  

Trump, who appointed himself lifetime chair of the Board of Peace, would decide which nations could join the Board (with those paying $1 billion or more becoming permanent Board members) and which members could join the Executive Board (which would implement the decisions of the Board of Peace).  The power to veto decisions of the Executive Board was granted by Trump . . . to Trump!

This descent into megalomania is deeply disturbing, for the dangers to the world, and even to human survival, are sharply enhanced by one-man rule, and even by one-nation rule.

How long will it take to recognize that international security requires the sharing of power by all people and nations in the human community?

(Source: PeaceandHealthBlog.com)

Trump: The Deeply Disturbing Descent Into Megalomania.

Article republished by Jerry Alatalo | May 18, 2026

[Editor’s note: Lawrence S. Wittner (https://www.lawrenceswittner.com/ ) is Professor of History Emeritus at SUNY/Albany and the author of Confronting the Bomb (Stanford University Press). Please share the article far and wide. Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments. Thank you very much. Peace.]

***

The Man Who Seeks to Rule the World

May 18, 2026

tags: authoritarianism, Board of Peace, international security, military spending, Trump, United Nations, war

by Lawrence Wittner

Although Donald Trump has never been modest about his abilities or reluctant to exercise personal power, during his second term in office he has shown clear signs of megalomania.

One sign, of course, is his blatant demand for the territory of other nations.   Since January 2025 alone, he has suggested annexing or seizing control of Greenland, Canada, Mexico, the Panama Canal, Gaza, Venezuela, and Cuba.  In addition, he has proclaimed the “Donroe Doctrine,” declaring that “American dominance in the Western Hemisphere will never be questioned again.”

Although the NATO alliance, a collective security pact, has been the cornerstone of U.S. defense policy for the past 77 years, Trump has become a bitter critic of NATO to such a degree that its other members, aghast at this turn of events, have begun exploring the reshaping of the Western alliance without the participation of the United States.

Other actions, too, have underscored Trump’s decision to “go it alone” in world affairs.  Like the foremost military conquerors of the past, Trump has been busy building up his nation’s armed forces and their weaponry.  The United States is already the world’s biggest military spender, with about three times the military spending of the number two nation (China).  

Nevertheless, this April Trump proposed adoption of a record $1.5 trillion U.S. military budget, with the largest annual increase ever in Pentagon funding:  42 percent.  This dramatic increase does not include an expected supplemental budget for the Iran war, which could cost an additional $200 billion.

Trump’s 2027 fiscal year military budget calls for $98 billion in nuclear weapons spending, most of it to build a new generation of U.S. nuclear weapons.  Having unilaterally withdrawn the United States from previous nuclear arms control and disarmament treaties with Russia and recently let the last of them lapse, he now has fewer treaty constraints on his nuclear ambitions.  

Accordingly, he recently announced that he has given orders for the resumption of U.S. nuclear testing, which has not been conducted since 1992.  

Furthermore, like past U.S. presidents, Trump has assumed the power to launch a nuclear war totally on his own.  And he has publicly and repeatedly threatened to do so.

Although the U.S. Constitution gives Congress―and not the President―the authority to declare war, Trump has shown no hesitation at sending U.S. armed forces into combat.  In a little more than a year, without so much as consulting Congress, he ordered the obliteration bombing of Iran’s nuclear facilities, the destruction of dozens of suspect boats and their crews, the bombing of Venezuela and the kidnapping of its president, a naval blockade of Cuba, and―jointly with Israel―a devasting war upon Iran.  

The latter, which has already killed thousands and wounded tens of thousands of people, displaced 3.2 million Iranians, and thrown the global economy into turmoil, is widely unpopular and continues today.  Queried in January 2026 about such international actions, Trump brushed aside international law and said that he relied solely on his own opinion, which was “the only thing that can stop me.”    

Not surprisingly, Trump has no use for the United Nations and most other international organizations, and has worked zealously to cripple them.  Since his second term began, he has had the U.S. government withdraw from such key UN agencies as the World Health Organization, the UN Human Rights Council, the UN Relief and Works Agency, and UNESCO.  In addition, the Trump administration has imposed severe sanctions on the International Criminal Court and its top officials.

U.S. funding cuts for the United Nations have been severe.  In July 2025, the Trump administration pushed rescissions legislation through the Republican-controlled Congress that pulled back $1 billion in funding previously allocated to the world organization, with devastating effects on a broad variety of programs, including UNICEF, the UN Environment Program, and the UN Fund for Victims of Torture.  

Furthermore, the administration refused to make its mandated dues payments to the United Nations, running up a debt to it―by far the world’s largest―of nearly $4 billion.  As a result, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned in February 2026 that the world body faced “imminent financial collapse.”

On September 23, 2025, Trump’s hostility toward the United Nations spilled over into what Le Monde called “a blistering speech” during his first UN General Assembly appearance since his re-election.  In what the French newspaper termed a “full-frontal attack on the global organization,” Trump condemned it for “empty words,” failing to assist him in the seven wars that he claimed to have ended, and for “funding an assault” by refugees on Western nations.  He also depicted climate change as “the greatest con job ever perpetrated on the world.”

Although it’s tempting to regard this behavior as reflecting an overheated nationalism, the remarkable degree to which Trump regards himself as the savior of the world suggests a more personal lust for supreme power.

The Trump-centered vision of the world is exemplified by his creation, soon thereafter, of an international “Board of Peace.”  Although the Board’s initial activity was a peace project for Gaza, its charter called for “a more nimble and effective international peace-building body,” which―together with Trump’s remarks―has led disgruntled European officials to describe it as a substitute for the United Nations.  

Trump, who appointed himself lifetime chair of the Board of Peace, would decide which nations could join the Board (with those paying $1 billion or more becoming permanent Board members) and which members could join the Executive Board (which would implement the decisions of the Board of Peace).  The power to veto decisions of the Executive Board was granted by Trump . . . to Trump!

This descent into megalomania is deeply disturbing, for the dangers to the world, and even to human survival, are sharply enhanced by one-man rule, and even by one-nation rule.

How long will it take to recognize that international security requires the sharing of power by all people and nations in the human community?

(Source: PeaceandHealthBlog.com)