Humanity has taken another step in its exploration of the Moon. A new leap forward to discover the hidden face of the celestial body. The space milestone of NASA's Artemis II mission, with a group of humans positioning themselves at a record distance from Earth – 406,771 kilometers away – has coincided with a dark moment on Earth itself, also with the United States as protagonists. The president who can boast of the lunar achievement is the same one who has threatened humanity with destruction, not of a religious dictatorial regime but of "an entire civilization." In this case, the name does make sense and evidences the mentality of a Donald Trump who acts like a barbarian announcing the end of a "civilization."
The contrast is eloquent. Human civilization capable of conquering the Moon is simultaneously flirting dangerously with a self-destructive warlike escalation, with the latent nuclear threat looming over us. There is the option of pretending that it is all a game of verbal absurdities and that no one will dare to go further. But can we really be calm? No. The game has been going on for too long, and its protagonists show no sign of de-escalation. On the contrary.
Right now, the Middle East is much more than a powder keg; it is an uncontrolled and large-scale fire, with leaders acting militarily outside all formal humanitarian limits provided for in international law in case of conflict: Trump's unpredictability, Netanyahu's insatiable determination to make Greater Israel a reality – Gaza, the West Bank, Lebanon... – and the response of a wounded and cornered Iran portend nothing good.
What was supposed to be a quick and exemplary operation for the US president is turning into a multi-front war: with his partners –Europe and the Gulf monarchies– increasingly uncomfortable; with China waiting, hoping that Trump will have to back down, and with the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, taking advantage of the opportunity to gain ground against Ukraine. And, meanwhile, the global economic crisis is only worsening, and the consequences of the stoppage of the energy flow of fossil fuels due to the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, even if a military stoppage were to occur now, would be prolonged over time. We are making a bad global deal. Is anyone really coming out ahead?
Planet Earth is at a very delicate crossroads. General anxiety is growing. We have moved seamlessly from the more or less coordinated and complex fight against climate change to the classic fratricidal struggle between humans, increasingly on the verge of the worst dramas of the 20th century. The fact that we are simultaneously seeing the hidden face of the Moon for the first time makes the inability to seek negotiated, diplomatic solutions even more absurd. However difficult and insecure they may be, they will always be better than the cost in lives and destruction caused by missiles and drones. We must not fall into naivety: progress has never been linear, the idea of progress has long been in doubt. But the speed and frivolity with which we are going backwards, towards the dark side of humanity, is surprising.
