Peter Sohler THE SHIP OF FOOLS Historic events in human h istory that offer profound insights Can we still be saved? Tomorrow is the most important day in life. It comes to us at midnight completely pure. It is flawless when it arrives and places itself in our hands. It hopes that we have learned something from yesterday. John Wayne Impressum © 202 6 Peter Sohler (Author) All rights reserved. Cover - Design by Peter Sohler Source: Public domain or Photo licenses ISBN : 9783696769291 2 Summary Foreword: Hello. My name is “Til”.................................................... ... p. 5 Introduction: When God created man, He said: Subdue the earth. And what have we made of it?.....p. 7 Chapter 1 : The paradox: Humans constantly talk about peace yet constantly wage war. Will this never end? ...............................p. 9 1.1 World War I and the Hell of Verdun.....p. 12 1.2 World War II p. 2 1 Chapter 2: 40 valuable years slept away. ........................... .... ....p. 6 0 Chapter 3: SACRILEGE. When Homo Sapiens came to Eden... .. ... p. 6 5 Chapter 4 : Us and the Others — or justice is merely a word......... ... .p. 7 9 Chapter 5 : Modern Times. Genius and Madness out of Control 5 .1 The Industrial Revolution.....p. 8 3 5 .2 Twilight of the Idols.....p. 84 6.3 KO by AI.....:p. 8 5 5 .4 Weapons and the strategy of insanity.....p. 8 9 5 .5 Dante’s Inferno.....p. 90 Chapter 6 : “Interviews” with Wisdom — or what matters between heaven and hell................................. .................................. ...p. 92 6 1 Erich Fromm: The human condition.....p. 93 6 2 Albert Schweitzer: Reverence for life.....p. 99 6 .3 Confucius: To understand Confucius is to understand China. .....p. 1 08 6 4 Albert Einstein: A different kind of thinking is needed if humanity is to survive..... p. 1 14 6 5 Konrad Lorenz: “We are the transition from ape to human”.....p. 1 21 Chapter 7 : Democracy, its God complex, and the ugly truth...........p. 126 7 .1 Democracy: a political aberration? .....p. 1 50 Chapter 8 : Z for TURNING POINT ... .............................. ........ p. 1 54 8 .1 Germany at Year Zero and the good (?) old days.....p. 1 55 8 .2 Putin: From statesman to despot ....168 Xi Jinping. The most powerful man in the world .....p. 176 Chapter 9 : We always want to know our future. Here it is.... ...... p. 179 9 .1 Welcome to reality.....p. 180 9 .2 A devastating record .....p 185 9 .3 And now?.....p. 2 214 Epilogue : The Prophecy ........................................................p. 221 List of Sources 3 About me: Born in 1948, I am a freelance artist and author writing under the pseu- donym "Til“ a self - proclaimed fool, an open - minded free spirit, and an agnostic. Neither an optimist nor a pessimist, I am a realist who views himself as a neutral observer of the world. My aim was for the book to be authentic and to reflect the times in which we have lived and continue to live. For now, I can only hope that I have succeeded in sharpening the per- spective on reality by offering interpretations that encourage reflection 4 Introduction H i , my name is “Till,” and this is the Planet of Fools. I, too, am a fool, and you will meet even more fools on our journey. White, Black, Yellow, and red people; Christians, Jews, antisemites, Muslims, and Islamists; democrats, autocrats, and dictators; unscrupu- lous schemers, great thinkers, and those who beli eve that narrow - mindedness is a virtue. Great powers and minorities, great statesmen and dangerous little runts. The rich and the poor, and many who have nothing at all — save for a ticket to their deaths. Freedom, international law, human rights, dignity, e mpathy, tolerance, morality, justice, values, or even peace — none of these exist here. There are only interests, ruthlessly pursued. Whatever the cost. Democracies are faltering, and the far right is on the rise. We have cre- ated a political and ecological disaster; and the fact that wars are being fought over spheres of power and influence — precisely when the preservation of the planet’s life - sustaining co nditions is at stake — is sheer, unadulterated madness. Problems, problems, problems, nothing but self - inflicted problems. Effective strategies? Not a chance. 5 One increasingly gets the impression that the world is being run by fools. Let’s be honest: we are stumbling from one crisis to the next, yet the truly bad times haven’t even begun, for the climate crisis will exacerbate many existing problems and create new ones. All that remains is out- rage; the rest is silence. *Quo vadis*? Tha t is the question, for there is no other world. There is only a different way of living — because the Doomsday Clock is ticking... There are now some 8 billion passengers on board, and the numbers keep growing — and growing, and growing, and growing... You are surely wondering what all this has to do with you. Well, we are all passengers on this "ship," and who knows , if you look close enough, you might even find yourself on board. 6 When God created mankind, he said, "Subdue the earth." And what have we done with that?! This overall picture offers little cause for satisfaction, because our world is on the brink of disaster and the doomsday clock is ticking. Can we still be saved? “We have a choice: collective action or collective suicide.” António Guterres (2022), UN Secretary - General. 7 How did it ever come to this? There must be a reason for it. There is no simple answer. One must look at the past to grasp the present. Only in retrospect can a causal link between yesterday and today be estab- lished to contextualize the course of events, f or the shadows of the past extend into the present. Since the Club of Rome’s warning some 40 years ago — when the clock stood at five minutes to midnight — everything has been known, yet *nothing* has changed despite constant warnings. Logically, the clock now stands at one minute until midnight, and humanity faces a new adversary it has yet to comprehend: TIME We have only about ten years left because forty years were squandered years in which realistic and entirely feasible solutions could have been implemented. Conse- quently, the barbaric business model of plundering an entire planet will soon collapse like a house of cards; we are already in the midst of a drama and have but one minute — ten years — left to avert a tragedy. Success is possible, but only if we finally realize that "I" must become "We" and that *doing without* is the only way forward; the time for sugar - coating and half - hearted compromises is d efinitively over. The *ultima ratio* is this: either we voluntarily scale back now, or we will be scaled back. "Moderation" (L. Erhard) is the magic word, for if one can- not exercise restraint at the peak, downfall follows. That has always been the case. The bottom line: without insight, there is no prospect. 8 Chapter 1 The paradox: Humans constantly talk about peace yet constantly wage war. Will this never end? Apparently not, because now we have war again in Europe and the Gaza Strip, and the next one (Taiwan) is already in the starting blocks. But first, let's examine the question of why humans wage wars at all. The sound that has resonated most persistently throughout the entire history of humankind is that of war drums. Tribal wars, religious wars, civil wars, dynastic wars, colonial wars, national and revolutionary wars, wars of conquest and liberation, wars to prevent and end wars — these have followed one another in a chain of compulsive repetition since time immemorial. Even a cursory glance at history reveals that the number of individual murders committed for selfish motives plays an insignificant role in hum an tragedy compared to the number of those slaughtered out of selfless loyalty to a tribe, a nation, a dynasty, a church, or a political ideology — "od majorem gloriam Dei" — for the greater glory of God. Wars, with few exceptions, are not fought for per- sonal gain, but out of loyalty and devotion to king, fatherland, or a cause. In all cultures, including our own, murder for personal reasons is rare. Murder for selfless motives, at the cost of one's own life, is the predominant phenomenon in history. 9 Anyone who has ever served in an army can attest that in the dreary routine of warfare, aggressive feelings toward the enemy hardly play a role. Soldiers don't hate. They are afraid, bored, sexually frustrated, and homesick; either they fight resignedly be cause they have no other choice, or they fight fervently for king and country, the true religion, the just cause, driven not by hatred, but by loyalty. With few exceptions, humankind's wars have not been fought over the individual possession of a piece of land. The man who goes to war leaves the home he is supposedly meant to defend; he fights and shoots far from home. What drives him is not the biological compulsion to defend his personal land, his fields and meadows, but his devotion to symbols derived fr om tribal myths, divine commandments, or political slogans. Wars are not fought over territories, but over words. This brings us to the next point in the catalog of possible reasons for human misery: Humankind's deadliest weapon is language. We are as susceptible to the hypnotic power of slogans as we are to contagious diseases. And in the case of an epidemic, it is g roup mentality that pre- vails. It obeys its own laws, which differ from the behaviors and rules of the individual. When a person identifies with a group, their capacity for rational thought is diminished, while their emotionally driven reactions are amplified. The individual is not the killer; the group is. This diabolical dialectic is reflected in the human history of wars, per- secutions, and genocides. By identifying with it, the individual is trans- formed into a killer. 10 And the hypnotic power of words is the main catalyst for such trans- formation. Adolf Hitler's speeches were the most powerful weapons of destruction in his time. Without words, there would be no poetry and no war. Language is a constant threat to our surviv al. The surest way to abolish war would apparently be to abolish language. Jesus seems to have recognized this when he said: "Let your 'Yes, yes' and 'No, no' be anything beyond this. Anything beyond this comes from the evil one." Albert Einstein also grappled with the question of war in general, not in relation to a specific conflict. Is there a way to eliminate war once and for all? Given the current state of affairs , this question seemed to Ein- stein the most important one for civilization. This was in July 1932, a year before Adolf Hitler came to power in Germany. Einstein was re- flecting on the development of what we call civilization. From its begin- nings, shrouded i n the mists of history, to its uncertain outcome. The reasons why humans wage war are generally considered a complex web of inner motivation and external influences. Often, a distinction must be made between purported and true motives. He also pondered whe ther there is a way to free humanity from the threat of war, for the Earth has become a dangerous place. The planet is ruled by a species that makes life difficult for itself and all other species there. To refrain from all attacks among themselves, to invest energy and money in preserving the habitat instead of armaments "Homo sapiens" simply isn't that clever. 11 Here are the two worst wars that have befallen humanity. World War I. We are still destined for greatness, and I will lead you toward glorious days ahead. We are the victorious nation to which we have always been destined. My course is the right one, and it will continue to be steered.” Wilhelm in a speech in 1892. Long before 1914, the schools of the German Empire systematically mobilized and inspired young men for heroic death. Hurrah! Hurrah! Hurrah! It's off to war! For God, Emperor, and Fatherland. “Well, let's inject a bit of that primal Prussian spirit into th is affair. May God be with us.” But He wasn't. Millions were literally slaughtered in the trench warfare. This gave rise to the terms “cannon fodder” and “meat grinder.” Man was not a human being, but merely material. In exile, he occupied himself with his favorite hobby: felling trees. He then saw World War II as the culmination of his work. He congratulated Hitler on his victory over the French and dreamed of the reintroduction of the monarchy. 12 In retrospect: World War I was an armed conflict fought from 1914 to 1918 in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, East Asia, and across the oceans. Approximately 17 million people lost their lives, although these estimates are subject to considerable uncertainty. Around 40 n ations participated in what was then the most extensive war in history, with a total of nearly 70 million people under arms. The main belligerents were Germany, Austria - Hungary, and the Ottoman Empire on the one hand (the defeated powers), and France, Great Britain and its British Empire, Italy, and the USA on the other (the victors), as well as Russia (which withdrew early). In the assassination in Sarajevo on June 28, 1914, Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria and his wife were murdered by Gavrilo Princip, a member of the revolutionary underground organization Mlada Bosna, which was linked to, or believed to be linked to, offi cial Serbian authorities. The main motive was the desired "liberation" of Bosnia - Herzegovina from Austro - Hungarian rule, with the goal of unifying the South Slavs under Serbian leadership. For its actions against Serbia, Austria sought the backing of the German Empire (Mission Hoyos), as intervention by Russia, its protecting power, was anticipated. Kaiser Wilhelm II and Chancellor Theobald von Bethmann Hollweg pledged their unconditional su pport to Austria - Hungary at the beginning of July. 13 The July Crisis began with the issuance of this so - called "blank check." Serbia received a promise of military assistance from Russia in the event of conflict, a promise influenced by Pan - Slavic motives. France reaffirmed the Franco - Russian alliance in cas e of war. Serbia subsequently partially rejected the Austro - Hungarian ultimatum. On July 28, 1914, Austria - Hungary declared war on Serbia. The interests of the great powers and German military planning (the Schlieffen Plan) caused the local war to escalate within a few days into a continental war involving Russia (Germany declared war on August 1) and France (Germany declared war on August 3). The political consequences of the Schlieffen Plan, which bypassed the French fortifications between Verdun and Belfort, led to German troops attacking France from the northeast, thereby violating the neutrality of Belgium and Luxembourg. This prompted Great Britain and its Dominions to enter the war (British declaration of war on August 4th), which escalated into a world war. The German advance stalled at the Marne in September, and between November 1914 and March 1918, the front in the west became static. Because Russia continued to participate in the war in the east until the October Revolution of 1917 and the separate Treaty of Brest - Litovsk, Germany found itself fighting a two - front war for a considerable period, contrary to its original plan. Trench warfare and battles of attrition, characterized by heavy losses and mostly minor territorial gains, became typical features of the fighting. 14 Gas warfare was considered a particularly serious escalation. Horses and mules have been used in wars since time immemorial, including in World War I. Almost all were literally torn to pieces in the hail of bullets or became entangled in barbed wire. Approximately 9 million died a miserable death. And those that survived were often slaughtered to feed starving civilians. --------------------------------------------- Russia's withdrawal from the war was made possible by the ultimately unsuccessful German Spring Offensive of 1918. In July, the Allies finally gained the initiative in the Second Battle of the Marne. Supply shortages resulting from the British naval blocka de, the collapse of the Allies, and developments on the Western Front during the Allied Hundred Days Offensive led the German military leadership to conclude that the Western Front had become untenable. On September 29, 1918, contrary to all previous prono uncements, the Supreme Army Command informed the German Emperor and the government about the hopeless military situation of the army. 15 On October 4/5, Chancellor Max von Baden therefore requested peace negotiations and an armistice from the Allies, a combination seen as an admission of defeat. At the end of October, the naval command, with a fleet order, triggered the Kiel Mutiny, which led to the November Revolution and thus to the abdication of Wilhelm II and the proclamation of the Republic in Germany on November 9. The Armistice of Compiègne finally came into effect on November 11. The peace terms were negotiated in the Paris Peace Treaties between 1919 and 1923. Of the defeated powers, only Bulgaria was able to retain its pre - war state structure; the Ottoman Empire and Austria - Hungary disintegrated, and the German Empire collapsed, as did the Tsarist Empire in Russia. This also marked the end of the golden age of four monarchies that had shaped European history for centuries: the Hohenzollerns, Habsburgs, Romanovs, and Ottomans. The First World War provided fertile ground for the rise of Soviet Leninism, as well as for Fascism in Italy and National Socialism in Germany, and became the precursor to the Second World War, which the National Socialists explicitly viewed as the "unreso lved legacy of the First." Because of the upheavals the First World War unleashed in all areas of life and its lasting consequences, which extend into the recent past, it is considered the "seminal catastrophe" of the 20th century. 16 The Bloody Balance Sheet of the First World War After approximately four years and three months, the First World War ended on November 11, 1918. It was the bloodiest conflict in history up to that point. Soldiers called the front a "meat grinder" and left millions dead in its wake. Victims of a new form of warfare. Between 1914 and 1918, approximately 9,442,000 soldiers lost their lives on the battle- fields, in the rear, in hospitals, and at home, on both sides. The fact that the majority of casualties fell on the German Reich (two million) and not on Russia (1.8 million) points to the structure of the war. It favored the defenders. Because the Germans sought to force a decisive victory with large - scale offensives involving multiple armies in 1914 and 1918, their losses were correspondingly high. In August 1914, they amounted to 12.4 percent, and in September, they reached 16.8 percent. The fig- ures were of a similar order of magnitude in the spring of 1918 and during the retreat battles of the same year. Russian losses were prob- ably higher, but withdrawing from the war in 1917 spared the country further devastation. This devastation was then inflicted by the civil war. Entire generations had been wiped out by the war. Almost half of all those k illed on the German and British sides were between 19 and 24 years old. Although soldiers over the age of 35 constituted slightly more than 30 percent of the enlisted men, they accounted for only about one - tenth of the dead. They were apparently less frequ ently deployed on the front lines. In the second half of the war, newly conscripted soldiers were particu- larly at risk of fatal injury, writes historian Benjamin Ziemann in the rel- evant article "Soldiers" in the "Encyclopedia of the First World War." 17 The breakdown of the weapons responsible for the deaths also reveals much about the nature of the war. From the end of 1914 to 1917, artil- lery shells accounted for 76 percent of French wounds. The German figures were of a similar magnitude. Infantry ammuni tion followed with 16 percent, hand grenades with one to two percent, poison gas with 1.7 percent, and edged weapons with 0.1 percent. The mechanized war- fare had nothing in common with the bold, hurrah - style attacks of the past. This also changed the menta lity of the soldiers. Those who had to endure the trenches primarily saw themselves as victims, while the crews of the guns, positioned 50 meters behind the front lines, viewed the infernal power emanating from them primarily as a technological achievement . “The intensity of the artilleryman’s technologically en- hanced killing actions far exceeded his moral capacity,” writes Ziemann. Nevertheless, technological progress had brought soldiers an advantage. The death rates in military hospitals, which in 19th - cen- tury wars had slightly exceeded those on the battlefields, fell signifi- cantly. Improved medical care ensured that only one - tenth of German losses were attributable to d isease, while in the French army it was one - fifth. However, psychological trauma was widespread. Enduring days of barrage in dugouts, eking out a living in stagnant trenches among rats and corpses, and living in constant fear of artillery am- bushes, snipers , and assault troops led to war neuroses, known as "shell shock" or "war tremors." Nearly 600,000 cases were diagnosed in the German army alone. There was virtually no treatment. In the eyes of the generals, they were ultimately malingerers and had to retu rn to the front. 18 The others were therefore mostly in need of care for the rest of their lives. Added to this was the confrontation with the suffering of many com- rades who, although alive, had been disfigured by horrific wounds. When the German delegation signed the Treaty of Versailles in June 1919, they had to pass a group of severely wounded Frenc h veterans whose faces were disfigured. 19