By Col Bhaskar Bharti (Retd)
The Problem with Leaders Who Are Bored
One of the great unanswered questions of modern geopolitics is this: what do world leaders do when they get bored? Some take up golf. Some write memoirs. A few even try yoga. But occasionally a leader decides the best way to pass time is to rearrange West Asia. That appears to be roughly how Operation Epic Fury began, when Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu apparently looked at the world map and thought, “You know what this region needs? A little more excitement! Within hours missiles were flying, diplomats were holding emergency meetings, oil prices were jumping like Bollywood dance numbers, and ordinary citizens across the world were googling “Is there a return policy on global crises?”
The Universal Strongman Formula
Political scientists have spent decades studying strongmen. This is unnecessary. All they really need is a simple formula:
Strongman = Giant Ego + Microphone + Map of the World
Once these three things come together, a very predictable sequence follows. First comes a speech about national greatness. Then comes a dramatic military operation with a name that sounds suspiciously like a video game. And finally comes the moment when everyone else in the world says, “Well… this is going to be a long month.”And then follows a suitable guide to be a Strongman.
A Handy 10-Step Guide to Becoming an Irresponsible Trigger-Happy Leader
(Now, updated with real-time confusion included at no extra cost.)
Step 1: Wake-Up Feeling Historic
Assume history has been waiting specifically for your decision.
Step 2: Simplify Everything
Reduce centuries of geopolitical complexity to: “We’ll sort it out quickly.”
Step 3: Keep the Mic, Lose the Experts
Experts ask questions. Questions slow things down. Avoid both.
Step 4: Name It Like a Blockbuster
Call it ‘Operation Epic Fury’.
Because nothing says “measured policy” like a title that sounds like a weekend action film.
Step 5: Act First, Plan Later
Planning is overrated. Momentum is everything.
Step 6: Watch It Escalate
Observe with mild surprise as “limited action” becomes “regional tension” and then “global concern.”
Step 7: Hold Emergency Meetings about Your Own Decisions
This is crucial. Nothing builds confidence like urgently discussing what you just did. Go flip-flop in your statements.
Step 8: Develop Strategic Confusion
Begin asking: “Did we mean to go this far?” “Was this the plan?”
“Who approved this?”
(Answer: see Step 1.)
Step 9: Hope Silence Means Support
If other nations are quiet, assume they are impressed.
They may actually be shocked – but optimism is important.
Step 10: Leave a Complicated Situation Behind
Exit the scene with statements about strength, while everyone else deals with the consequences.
The New Phase: When Even the Scriptwriters Look Confused
The most fascinating part of modern conflicts is not how they begin – but how quickly even their architects begin to look… uncertain. What starts as decisive action slowly evolves into a series of questions:
- Was the escalation calculated or improvised?
- Is there a clear endgame or just a series of next moves?
- Is this strategy or momentum dressed up as strategy?
At some point, leadership begins to resemble a group project where everyone confidently started the presentation… and is now quietly wondering who prepared the conclusion. The tone shifts. Statements become more careful. Allies become more cautious. And briefings begin to include phrases like “complex situation” and “evolving dynamics”, which is diplomatic language for “this is getting harder to explain.”
The Historical Reunion of Overconfident Leaders
If history had a reunion party for overconfident leaders, the guest list would be impressive. At one table you would find Adolf Hitler explaining how invading Russia in winter was a “minor logistical misunderstanding”. Nearby, Benito Mussolini would insist he almost revived the Roman Empire – he just ran out of time, armies, and reality. Across the room, Saddam Hussein would admit that invading Kuwait sounded better in the meeting than afterwards. And Muammar Gaddafi would still be explaining his philosophy, while everyone politely nods and checks their watches. The moral remains unchanged: history is a museum of certainty followed by regret.
The Hollywoodization of War
Modern wars now come with excellent branding. Gone are the dull days of “Battle of Somewhere”. Today we have titles like Operation Epic Fury – less foreign policy, more streaming content. Somewhere, a sensible person suggested:
- Operation Calm Discussion
- Operation Let’s Think This Through
- Operation Maybe Pause
But those ideas were rejected for lacking “impact”.
Why the World Keeps Watching (and Whispering)
The real mystery is not just the leaders. It is the silence around them. Many nations watch carefully, speak cautiously, and calculate quietly aware that today’s crisis could become tomorrow’s precedent. So the world enters a strange phase: Public statements remain measured.
Private concerns grow sharper. And everyone waits to see who will say out loud what many are already thinking. Countries develop selective amnesia for their own foreign policies.
The Inevitable Historical Ending
History, however, has a wicked sense of humour. The leaders who once spoke with absolute certainty eventually appear in documentaries narrated by calm historians with reassuring accents. Their statues fall.
Their slogans become jokes. Their “decisive actions” become complicated case studies. And ordinary people – the ones who never asked for epic operations are left dealing with the consequences.
Perhaps that is the real lesson: The most dangerous moment in world politics is not when leaders act boldly – but when they act boldly without fully knowing where it leads. Because when leaders rush to make history, history quietly waits… and then writes the ending for them.
(The author is an army veteran and a social commentator. He is an alumnus of National Defence Academy and Indian Military Academy. He is a Post Graduate in HRM and Journalism and Mass Communication. He is based in Dehradun.)
