arms race

Silhouette of nations facing the horizon of towering stacks of weapons in a ritualistic formation.
Nations watching a grand pyramid of weapons. With every shot fired, their prayers for peace shatter to pieces.
Politics & Society

Description

An arms race, n. The act of hoarding ever more weapons to loudly proclaim one’s security. Yet each weapon serves as a bat signal, summoning neighbors to mimic the same performance. Intended to guarantee safety, it instead amplifies mutual fear until no one emerges victorious in this grand farce.

Definitions

  • A sport in which states build mounds of weapons under the pretext of security.
  • An infinite loop of escalating anxiety that amplifies mutual fear.
  • A scheme that seeks predictability while generating the most unpredictable crises.
  • A process where survival instincts mutate into self-harming stockpiles of arms.
  • A vulgar silent game of diplomacy replacing negotiations with displays of firepower.
  • A pointless economic activity of mutually justified costly investments.
  • A paradox that praises weapon factories while professing peace.
  • A mechanism that creates the most unstable state under the guise of maintaining order.
  • A choice that deepens isolation in the name of collective security.
  • An uncontrollable gear spinning out of control in pursuit of strategic equilibrium.

Examples

Narratives

Aliases

  • Weapon Hoarding Contest
  • Gunstock Marathon
  • Missile Build-Up
  • Powder Pyramid
  • Armament Mountain
  • Tank Skyscraper
  • Explosive Tower Construction
  • Weapon Stock Dash
  • Shell Stash King
  • Defense Spending Marathon
  • Destruction Escalator
  • Ammo Drum Rally
  • War Fund Olympics
  • Ordnance Hiking
  • Armor Stacking Competition
  • Gun Port Festival
  • Firepower Summit
  • Shell Jump
  • Combat DIY
  • Missile Monument

Synonyms

  • Defense Business
  • Fear Elevator
  • Hollow Ladder of Security
  • Arms Showcase
  • Infinite Bombardment Scheme
  • Mutual Hostility Generator
  • Paranoia Retreat
  • Bomb Price Competition
  • Runaway Procurement
  • Weapon Echo
  • Threat Echo Chamber
  • Missile Mirror
  • Equipment Reciprocity
  • Rite of Fear
  • Arms Tea Party
  • Pre-Collision Festival
  • Bloodshed Fashion Show
  • Barricade of Arms
  • Explosive Dance Party
  • Military Magic Show
2025-07-09
military politics security

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Keywords

absentee ballot

An absentee ballot is a form of remote-controlled voting, allowing one to cast a vote from home or designated locations while proudly avoiding the pilgrimage to the polling station. It embodies the marriage of convenience and laziness: one can proclaim "I participate" without confronting long queues. While touted as a bastion of fairness, it doubles as a factory for mysterious missing ballots and miraculous double votes, much to the delight of interested parties. Ultimately decided behind the curtains of post office counters under the noble pretense of exercising citizens’ rights, it remains a paper trove of pouches and envelopes. If you care about the final tally, offer a prayer to the nearest mailbox.

accession

Accession is the social rite of willingly submitting to new constraints under the guise of joining a circle. Branded as international leagues or trade agreements, in practice it becomes a towering contract of endless conditions and annexed obligations. The more you join, the deeper your control drifts into the hands of the founding few, relegating your voice to the sidelines. The so-called 'unity' is but enforced uniformity at best, a cage constructed under noble slogans. Yet none can resist the lure of inclusion - that is accession's true sorcery.

accountability

Accountability is the grand theatrical prop by which those in power adorn their excuses and blur the locus of fault. Claimed to unmask truth, it actually serves as the most effective tool for buying time and deflecting blame. This indispensable courtroom gadget weaves lies and ambiguity, sidestepping criticism like an aerial ballet and offering perpetrators an escape hatch. In the end, the transparency named accountability is the most opaque almond craft imaginable.