It occurs to me that some of my regular readers may be wondering why I’ve never chosen to comment on the horrific Israel-Gaza situation, or on Donald Trump’s claimed success in negotiating a first-step, partial ceasefire and prisoner exchange. In fact, the answer is simple:

Like Vladimir and Estragon — Samuel Beckett’s protagonists in his immortal play, “Waiting for Godot: A tragicomedy in two acts” — I am waiting for a final result that may, or may not, ever occur.

While inexplicably anticipating the arrival of a mysterious person named Godot, the two obviously homeless men, with nothing better to do, engage in an endless stream of musings and dialogues that lead the reader — willingly or not — to contemplate the ultimate truth: the meaning of life itself.

In the context of our modern world, what I am waiting for — and can only hope to live long enough to learn — is the truth behind Donald Trump’s own “tragicomedy in two acts.”

In his second stab at running the country and the world, he now claims to have set the entire Middle East on the path to a lasting peace — an area of the world that has seen nothing but conflict since the times of the ancient Babylonian, Persian, Greek and Roman Empires. But, without an iota of knowledge of the complex history of the region, he believes he has magically been able to convince the current political and religious leaders of the various countries to set aside centuries of deep-seated animus . . . just because he says they should.

But how can we know what promises he has made in order to gain their agreement to his “deals”?

While I — and most of the world — would love nothing better than to see that dream become a reality, I am a realist. And looking at Trump’s recent record of other claimed successes, I cannot bring myself to celebrate this one based only on a tenuous agreement to a temporary solution.

Think about it. How many times has Trump claimed that he has succeeded in convincing Vladimir Putin to sit down with Volodymyr Zelensky in order to bring an end to Russia’s war against Ukraine? But has it happened yet?

And those seven other “wars” he claims to have ended . . . How many of them were actual wars? And how many of his alleged solutions have lasted?

While he promises to be solving all of the world’s problems, what about the conflicts he has been creating between the United States and its traditional allies, or the ones he has exacerbated with China, North Korea, and now even Venezuela?

How can we put our faith in the word of one who has set his own country on a course of self-destruction, single-handedly annihilating 250 years of democratic rule and economic success by dismantling the essential agencies of the government itself, and instituting martial law in cities that needed no “help” from his storm troopers?

*. *. *

So you see, I am simply unable to shout “Hoorah!” as yet. Any exchange of prisoners and hostages is, of course, an event to celebrate; and for that success, honor is certainly due. But beyond that, I must join Vladimir and Estragon by their tree, and await the arrival of my own elusive Godot.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
10/11/25