When dismounting the tiger

SOMETHING is notably common in the politics of Donald Trump, Benjamin Netanyahu, Narendra Modi, Nawaz Sharif, Imran Khan, Sheikh Hasina and even Asif Zardari. Several others qualify, naturally, but this little sample explains the way democracy has turned into a zero-sum game between political leaders at the expense of the masses. In other words, all the eminences listed above are either riding the tiger of power or rode one to face its fateful consequences. A zero-sum game is a competitive situation in game theory where one participant’s gain is exactly balanced by another’s loss, meaning the total benefits and losses sum to zero. The total amount of resources is fixed, so one player can only win at the expense of another. The masses can only stare in disbelief. Abraham Lincoln and Immanuel Kant would be horrified by the hollowing out of democracy into a fossil of itself. All the above leaders would likely be in jail should they get off the tiger’s back, assuming they are not already there or living in exile. The fear of reprisal grips Trump and Netanyahu most starkly. They may be the most powerful men today, going about wrecking the world at will and threatening Armageddon. Trump faces impeachment the moment he leaves office, having revelled in the fear and anguish of his foes during his stay at the helm. The revenge could come earlier, in November, should the mid-term polls give Democrats a majority in both Houses. Desperately, Trump’s supporters have floated the idea of a perpetual presidency or at least a third term even if it is done without legal sanction. Why do politicians turn to crime to get even with the opponent? Supporters see another remote route to Trump’s reprieve. They saw Gerald Ford granting Richard Nixon the presidential pardon. Trump may be hoping for similar reprieve from J.D. Vance or Marco Rubio, should one of them muscle their way to the next presidency. A Hillary Clinton-supported Democratic presidency, on the other hand, remains Trump’s bi