NOBLESSE OBLIGE.

The title of this chronicle was a proverbial saying during the time when aristocrats ruled over us. The common folk were taught that the nobility felt obliged to do good deeds. I imagine that in those days, this interpretation must have been a source of great amusement in many courts and palaces. The actual meaning was well understood there: whatever good or bad a king, prince, viscount, or knight might do, it mattered little, as long as they ensured that respect for nobility and their right to ownership remained intact.

The "blue blood" as a unifying element lost its color and luster. It has been replaced by capital ownership. Today, the United Financial Elite (UFE) governs the world. Revolutionary ideas cost the nobility its power. However, apart from the communists, there was no real notion of curbing large-scale capital ownership. Only vast land ownership faced some challenges. The communists, who did address this, made a different mistake: they too failed to erect barriers against the formation of new ruling elites.

The UFE mirrors the old aristocracy. They gather vassals to keep the common people in check for them. There is even a Young Leaders training center for it in Davos. In return, these vassals enjoy minor privileges. Just like their noble predecessors, the elite often quarrel among themselves, sometimes escalating into wars. No one seems to object to this. The killed victims do not protest, and the survivors blame the opposing side for the misery. The elite do not care who among their ranks defeats the other, as long as large-scale capital ownership is not endangered. In the tournaments of old, a knight would sometimes fall dead from his horse as well.

The general public is usually unaware of these internal conflicts within the UFE, as they occur behind the scenes. That is why the 2024 electoral contest in the US between two presidential candidates is so fascinating. For days, the public witnessed two fractions of the UFE battling each other head-on.

Trump appears to want to move away from the war over control in Ukraine. Harris, a vassal of another UFE fraction, seemed intent on perpetuating it indefinitely. However, Trump is clearly inclined toward escalating the war in Southwest Asia, while Harris prefers to de-escalate it. Her UFE fraction likely believes there is still something to gain even if the conflict continues to simmer. From this, I infer that Trump's fraction believes the property rights to Ukraine's valuable assets are already sufficiently secured by their members. In Southwest Asia, with some moderate fear of war, the situation is similar for those whom Harris, Obama, and Clinton serve. Trump's allies think there is more to be gained there with more bloodshed and occasionally a small - good for our image - transfusion.

For the UFE as a whole, it is no different from the aristocrats of old. Except that now, it is not just landownership that is untouchable, but all forms of property. How they divide the loot is fought out among themselves; the commoners have no say in the matter and only serve to perish during their elite tournaments.

In the last century, one thing has changed compared to the heyday of the aristocracy: awareness of the finite nature of resources essential for our existence. Back then, it seemed there was so much land to conquer that scarcity was not a concern. Now, both the UFE and the commoners realize that everything has its limits, something that must be postponed as long as possible. Fewer people consuming the Earth's resources seems an obvious thought. However, our clan instinct makes this acceptable only when it concerns fewer other people."

For the UFE, this is simple: others are the useless commoners. The commoners have it harder. They must choose between Palestinians, Christians, Communists, Catholics, Muslims, Chinese, Jews, Republicans, Zionists, Russians, or the "useless"... They've never heard of the UFE; that was dismissed as fake news.

The old aristocracy didn't care whether the commoners were celebrating or suffering. But the UFE knows better: there are too many useless people. That number must be reduced!
The odds are not equal. The UFE clearly holds the best cards. We actually only know how things will proceed from their perspective. "We own nothing, and they own everything."
The aristocratic form of governance and caste systems have survived for centuries. It seems to me that the new elite has more security of existence than those armored knights of old. So, their era might last even longer. Throughout the history of humans and animals, herds without wise shepherds have lost out as chaotic gangs against well-organized groups. Thus, the commoners will lose.
I think I know who will face each other in the finals a century or so from now. I bet on an exciting duel between the Rockefellers and the Rothschilds. By then, no one will remember Trump or Harris.

Nieuwegein, 2024-11-15.