The Tantrum King’s new board: Authority, whims, and power games

From the king of tantrums, the world has just been blessed to receive a board of peace (or pieces?). How Hans Christian Andersen, the author of literary folktale The Emperor’s New Clothes, would have dealt with this peacockish arrival of a board remains anyone’s wild guess. Had the Danish author been around, he might have titled his modern masterly tale as The Tantrum King’s New Board. Yet, who will have the horse sense to reveal the truth about this board, just as the child in The Emperor’s New Clothes. And even if it were there, will people listen to the ‘voice of innocence’?

By now it is well known that the king of this board cannot be checkmated, signifying that everybody else will have the privilege to serve as pawns under the authority of a self-created, and Navratnas-less, crown. There will merely be rank and file and gambits, but surely no promotions. This board might witness many games, but don’t expect any decoys. Much like the Danish writer’s classic, intentions of the board members are as clear as a ‘piece of the ice’ since the very beginning.

When a big ‘piece of ice’ hit a passenger liner ages ago, it was a Titanic moment as the ‘unsinkable’ sank and along went down human hubris. Is this board of peace all pumped up to bump into a big ‘piece of ice’? The king’s admiration for another ‘piece of ICE’ is deep and wide, and is so intense that the ruler of the board will go to any extent to protect ICE.


The messaging appears simple — It’s neither about the board of peace nor pieces of ice; it’s solely about the king, his whims and the lords of the bedchamber.