Last week, Elon Musk challenged Vladimir Putin to a fight.
“Stakes are Ukraine,” he tweeted. “Do you agree to this fight?”
This taunt took me back to my childhood. As a young kid it occurred to me that, rather than sending out large groups of soldiers to wage war on each other, a one-on-one contest where each combatant represented a country made much more sense. My youthful logic argued that pitting a single soldier against another would accomplish the same goal and would certainly cut down on the number of injuries and deaths.
Possibly I picked up the concept in my Sunday School classes. That is where I learned the Old Testament story of David and Goliath. Goliath was described as a fierce giant over nine feet tall who was the champion of the Philistine Army. He would daily taunt the Israelite soldiers to send out a warrior to do battle with him. As the story develops, circumstances lead David, a young boy armed only with five smooth stones and a sling, to go out alone to face Goliath. The boy and the giant face off, David hurls a stone which knocks Goliath to the ground thereby allowing him to chop off the giant’s head using the Philistine’s own sword. It is the classic story of the underdog defeating the superior force.
In addition to the Bible story, I likely formed my sense of the One standing up for the Many from the plethora of westerns I absorbed in those days. On these shows, disputes over larger issues were often settled by two tough, determined gunslingers—One White hat; one black hat—facing off on a dusty street for a winner-take-all duel. It was rough justice and dovetailed perfectly with my youthful moral code.
As I think about it now, I realize the naivety of my youthful conflict resolution argument. From my many years since, I have learned the Good Guy doesn’t always win; It’s not always White Hat versus Black Hat; and furthermore, it’s not always easy to determine who is the Good Guy. As is said about so many relationships these days, “It’s complicated.”
And yet, I find myself wanting to compare the ancient David and Goliath story to the current conflict between Ukraine and Russia. In this war (or “special military operation”) it certainly seems clear to me who plays the Black-hatted Goliath role and who is the White-Hatted David. (Although, considering the contrariness of people, I am sure there would be some who would disagree.) Still, I find myself constantly looking for evidence that will help me clutch onto the hope that is part of all such stories.
As for the fantasy of an Elon Musk vs Vladimir Putin cage match, I found that image kind of funny for about five minutes. Imagine. Two powerful multibillionaires duking it out, probably on Pay per view. Maybe if the proceeds went to the people who are displaced and suffering it might be worth the effort. But, yeah, that’s not going to happen. It’s a silly pipe dream (Right, Elon?), and probably a cynical media exploitation of our world’s current sad situation.
As much as it might be satisfying for the war to be settled by a mano a mano smackdown, it is a simplistic even childish solution to a complex problem. It would be nice if things were easy, but in grown-up reality they rarely are. As they say: It’s complicated.
