The Borders We Share: A New Way to Fix a Broken World
Section 2: Oil and Dust Disputes (Posts 7-12)
Post #10: Oz’s Emeralds, Gulf Oil: Gems of the Deep
Oz’s Emeralds, Gulf’s Oil
Beneath the azure waves off Oz’s coast, where sunlight dances like liquid emerald, lie treasures that both sustain and sunder this enchanted land. Munchkin divers, their boats adorned with tribal runes, plunge into coral reefs to harvest glowing gems, the lifeblood of Oz’s magic and trade. These emeralds, radiant as the Green City’s spires, power spells, adorn crowns, and fuel commerce with distant realms. Yet, the seas are contested. Quadling rovers, artisans of the open water, weave nets with ancestral songs, claiming ancient rights to the shallows. Across the tide, Winkie industrialists, led by a gilded regent, deploy iron dredgers to plumb deeper waters, their rigs crowned with banners of conquest. Nets snag on cables, spears pierce hulls, and oil from shattered rigs blackens coral, poisoning fish and driving Munchkin families to Gillikin shores. The Munchkins cry theft, citing sacred tides; the Winkies brandish a 1900 charter; the Quadlings demand freedom to roam. This is no fairy tale—it mirrors the Persian Gulf, where Bahrain, Qatar, and Iran clash over offshore oil fields, their disputes rooted in colonial boundaries and tribal loyalties (Núñez 2020, Chapter 8). Can rivals share the gems of the deep?
I am Dr. Jorge Emilio Núñez—Dr. Jorge to you—and welcome to Section 2: Oil and Dust Disputes, where we explore resources that ignite wars but could forge peace. After Laputa’s oil-soaked reefs and dunes (Posts #7–9), where Sinbad, Arthur, Holmes, and Robin battled greed, we sail to Oz, a land of wonder torn by emerald fever. I summon Dorothy Gale, the Scarecrow, the Tin Woodman, and the Cowardly Lion, Oz’s heart, mind, and courage, to navigate this strife. King Arthur, whose Round Table united Laputa’s nomads, returns to mediate, his wisdom honed by Camelot’s trials. My Núñezian Integrated Multiverses—2017’s egalitarian shared sovereignty, 2018’s game-theoretic lens, 2020’s gritty cases, 2023’s multidimensional pluralism—guides us. In Oz’s seas and the Gulf’s depths, resources are finite, yet cooperation can multiply their yield. Let us dive into this crisis, seeking a shared future where emeralds and oil light homes, not battles.
Oz’s emeralds, like Laputa’s oil, are more than wealth—they bind communities yet fracture them. The Munchkins, small but resilient, dive with nets woven from kelp, their songs echoing ancient pacts with the sea. Their reefs, aglow with gems, sustain fishing villages and trade with the Green City, but oil spills from Winkie rigs choke coral, scattering fish and halving catches. The Winkies, lords of Oz’s west, operate dredgers that extract emeralds for industrial trade, their 1900 charter granting deep-sea rights. Spills, costing $10 million yearly (Oz Treasury), poison Munchkin waters, while Quadling skiffs, armed with spears, raid rigs, claiming free passage. This mirrors the Gulf’s 90,000-square-mile shelf, holding 50% of global oil reserves (USGS). Britain’s 1930s boundaries, ignoring tribal fluidity, sparked disputes among Bahrain, Qatar, and Iran, with spills like the 2018 Sanchi disaster poisoning fisheries and displacing 100,000 fishers (UNEP). Naval clashes, like Qatar’s 2017 blockade, threaten $1 trillion in trade (UNCTAD). In both Oz and the Gulf, self-centrism reigns—each party seeks exclusive control, yet spills and strife harm all, demanding a cooperative path (Núñez 2018).
The stakes are high. In Oz, 10,000 Munchkins have fled to Gillikin, their boats idle, while Winkie rigs falter, yields down 40% from sabotage. Quadling raids escalate, their spears carving tribal marks on rig hulls, risking war. In the Gulf, Iran’s navy, the U.S.’s 5th Fleet ($50 billion, SIPRI), and GCC fractures entangle global powers, with one spill rippling to $100 billion in trade losses (IEA). My 2017 framework (Chapter 7) offers a solution: egalitarian shared sovereignty, where parties co-own resources, assign roles by efficiency, and uplift the weakest. In Oz, Munchkins could dive shallows, Winkies dredge depths, and Quadlings patrol seas, splitting gems equitably. In the Gulf, Bahrain could fish, Qatar drill, and Iran refine, sharing profits to fund schools and clean spills. This vision, rooted in fairness, demands dialogue, not dominance, to heal seas and secure futures.
The Emerald Crisis, Gulf’s Tensions
Beneath Oz’s emerald waves, a storm gathers, threatening to drown this land in strife. Munchkin elder Lila leads divers into reefs aglow with gems, their nets heavy with Oz’s magic. These tribes, kin to ancient fishers, claim shallows by songs predating Ozma’s throne, their identity tied to coral and tide (Núñez 2018). Across the sea, Winkie regent Torin anchors iron dredgers, extracting emeralds under a 1900 charter, his rigs spewing oil that blackens reefs, sickens fish, and drives 10,000 Munchkins to Gillikin’s crowded shores. Quadling rover Salu, her skiffs circling rigs, demands free passage, her spears sparking clashes that sink Munchkin boats and burn Winkie cables. Spills cost Oz $10 million yearly (Oz Treasury), halve Torin’s yields, and dim the Green City’s glow, yet he doubles patrols, defying Laputa’s peace calls (Post #8). Like Khemed’s rare metal (Núñez 2018), emeralds are scarce, fueling self-centrism: Munchkins want reefs for Munchkins, Winkies depths for Winkies, Quadlings seas for Quadlings. This zero-sum game risks war, as sabotage and raids spiral, echoing Kashmir’s ethnic divides (Núñez 2017, Chapter 7).
The Persian Gulf mirrors this chaos, as I explored in Territorial Disputes (Núñez 2020, Chapter 8). Britain’s 1820–1971 rule drew maritime lines, splitting tribal fishers—Bahraini, Qatari, Iranian—with scant regard for their fluid loyalties. Pre-oil, shaykhs shared seas; boats roamed from Doha to Bushehr. The 1930s oil concessions birthed vague shelf boundaries, sparking disputes over 50% of global reserves (USGS). Bahrain-Iran and Qatar-UAE clashes persist, with spills like Iran’s 2018 Sanchi disaster poisoning fisheries, displacing 100,000 coastal tribes (UNEP). Naval standoffs, like Qatar’s 2017 blockade, threaten $1 trillion in trade (UNCTAD). Colonial lines, like 1913 treaties, ignored tribal tides, sowing strife. Iran’s navy, the U.S.’s 5th Fleet ($50 billion, SIPRI), and GCC rifts entangle all in a quantum web where one spill ripples globally. Like Oz’s factions, Gulf states are self-centered, each seeking oil for themselves, yet spills and clashes harm all, demanding cooperation, as in Sovereign Game’s maximin-driven talks (Núñez 2018). My 2017 framework (Chapter 7) proposes a council where roles—fishing, drilling, refining—reflect efficiency, and profits fund equity, uplifting displaced tribes.
In Oz’s Green City, a torchlit council gathers, waves crashing beyond. Lila, net dripping oil, pounds the table. “Our reefs die, Torin! Your rigs choke our fish, exile 10,000 to Gillikin—our kin starve!” Torin, gold-armored, snaps, “Your spears cut my cables, Lila—yields halved! My 1900 charter claims these depths!” Salu, Quadling rover, brandishes a spear. “We rove free, Torin, yet your oil traps our skiffs. We’ll sink your rigs!” Dorothy steps forward, voice firm. “In Kansas, neighbors shared wells. Why fight?” Lila glares. “For survival—our nets empty!” Torin retorts. “For trade—emeralds rebuild Oz!” Salu growls. “For freedom—your rigs cage us!” The Scarecrow, straw rustling, interjects, “Logic says: reefs feed fish, rigs need clear seas. Share, like Khemed’s peoples” (Núñez 2018). Lila scoffs, “Share with thieves?” Torin laughs, “With saboteurs?” Dorothy presses, “Why do you need emeralds?” Lila softens, “To feed our kin, restore reefs.” Torin admits, “To fund schools, rebuild rigs.” Salu nods, “To roam free, trade safely.” The Scarecrow proposes, “A council, like Gibraltar’s ‘two flags, three voices’ (Núñez 2017, Chapter 7). Zone seas: Munchkins dive shallows dawn to noon, Winkies dredge depths dusk to dawn, Quadlings patrol all tides. Split gems 60-30-10: Munchkins fund boats, Winkies tech, Quadlings navigation. Clean spills jointly.” Dorothy adds, “Like an orange peeled for juice and zest, give what each needs” (Núñez 2018). Arthur, Excalibur gleaming, nods. “My Table united foes. This council ensures no one loses all—maximin, as Núñez writes” (Núñez 2018). Lila hesitates, “Can we trust?” Torin muses, “Can we afford not to?” Salu lowers her spear. “Let’s try.” This shift from “what” (reefs, rigs) to “why” (survival, trade, freedom) mirrors Sovereign Game’s negotiations (Núñez 2018) and Sovereignty Conflicts’s Kashmir solution, where India, Pakistan, and Kashmiris share roles—citizenship, jobs, rights—based on efficiency and equity (Núñez 2017, Chapter 7). In the Gulf, Bahrain, Qatar, and Iran could zone seas, share oil, and fund schools, avoiding a zero-sum fate (Núñez 2018).
This dialogue reflects Sovereignty Conflicts’s principles (Núñez 2017, Chapter 7): equal participation (egalitarian consensus), roles by efficiency (Munchkins dive, Winkies dredge), benefits tied to contributions (input-to-output ratio), and uplifting the weakest (Winkies aid Munchkin boats). The council avoids domination, ensuring non-interference and liberties. Like Kashmir’s passport solution (Núñez 2017, Chapter 7), Oz’s factions could issue a shared “Emerald Sea” passport, granting Munchkins, Winkies, and Quadlings rights across zones. In the Gulf, a similar council could assign Bahrain fishing rights, Qatar drilling, and Iran refining, with profits funding tribal schools, echoing Sovereign Game’s cooperative equilibrium (Núñez 2018).
The Council of the Emerald City
The moon hung low over Oz’s seas, waves lapping the Green City’s emerald spires, where I stood in a hall aglow with gemlight. King Arthur, crown gleaming, radiated calm, his Round Table’s unity tested in Laputa’s dunes (Post #9). Dorothy Gale, silver slippers glinting, clasped Toto, her Kansas grit unwavering. The Scarecrow, straw rustling, tilted his painted head, mind sharp as a gale. The Tin Woodman, axe gleaming, stood rigid, heart heavy with care for Oz’s seas. The Cowardly Lion, mane bristling, growled softly, courage stirring. I, Dr. Jorge, clutched my notes, Núñezian Multiverses ready to bridge this divide.
Lila stormed in, net dripping oil, voice trembling. “Our reefs die, Torin—fish flee, 10,000 Munchkins exiled to Gillikin! Your rigs poison Oz!” She flung the net down, oil pooling green. Torin, armored in gold, waved a charter. “By 1900 decree, these depths are ours,” he boomed, pointing to a rig’s silhouette. “Your spears cost me $5 million—treason!” His guards gripped lances, oil staining their boots. Salu, Quadling rover, raised a spear. “Your rigs cage our skiffs, Torin. We’ll burn them!” Her crew, nets taut, glared from the hall’s edge.
Dorothy stepped forward, voice steady. “In Kansas, neighbors shared wells, not wars. Spills hurt all—Lila, your nets empty; Torin, your rigs rust; Salu, your skiffs tangle. Why fight?” The Scarecrow nodded, straw creaking. “Logic says: reefs feed fish, rigs need clear seas. Zone them, like Falkland’s seas (Núñez 2017, Chapter 7). Munchkins dive shallows dawn to noon, Winkies dredge depths dusk to dawn, Quadlings patrol tides.” The Tin Woodman’s axe glinted. “My heart aches—oil sickens Munchkin babes, Torin’s rigs falter, Salu’s kin starve. Share, or Oz weeps.” The Lion roared, “Courage binds us—fight greed, not each other!”
Arthur raised Excalibur’s hilt, voice calm. “Camelot joined Saxon and Briton—Oz demands no less. Lila, sabotage fuels flight. Torin, greed poisons all. Salu, raids spark war.” He turned to me. “Núñez, your Multiverses—how do they heal these seas?” I stepped forth, waves echoing. “A council, as in Sovereignty Conflicts (Núñez 2017, Chapter 7). Munchkins dive, Winkies dredge, Quadlings patrol. Split gems 60-30-10: Munchkins fund boats, Winkies tech, Quadlings navigation. Winkies, with stronger rigs, aid Munchkin reefs, seeking equilibrium. A shared ‘Emerald Sea’ passport grants rights across zones, like Kashmir’s model (Núñez 2017, Chapter 7). Joint maintenance cleans spills, restoring coral.” Lila wavered, “My kin starve—can this save them?” Torin scoffed, “Share my gems? For divers’ whims?” Salu growled, “Why trust rig-lords?” The Scarecrow interjected, “Math binds—spills cut yields, Torin, and Lila’s fish. A council saves all.” Dorothy added, “Like Toto and me, you’re stronger together.” Arthur silenced them, “For Oz. Lila, your diaspora needs gemlight. Torin, your rigs need peace. Salu, your skiffs need tides. Núñez’s Table awaits—speak, or sink.” I nodded. “My 2023 lens sees quantum ripples—one spill darkens all. Build this Table, as Gibraltar’s ‘two flags, three voices’ (Núñez 2017, Chapter 7).”
The council’s structure mirrors Sovereignty Conflicts (Núñez 2017, Chapter 7): a compound executive with co-governors from Munchkins, Winkies, and Quadlings, ensuring equal voice; a legislature elected by all, with veto power to prevent domination; and a judicial court with representatives from each, upholding an independent “Emerald Law” blending Munchkin custom, Winkie charters, and Quadling tides. This ensures acceptability, humanity, and effectiveness, avoiding conflicts of law, as in Gibraltar’s trilateral talks (Núñez 2017, Chapter 7). The council funds reef restoration, rig repairs, and Quadling trade, recalling 10,000 Munchkins home, echoing Kashmir’s shared citizenship (Núñez 2017, Chapter 7).
The Núñezian Lens: Sharing the Gems
The council’s voices—Dorothy’s heart, the Scarecrow’s logic, the Tin Woodman’s care, the Lion’s courage, Arthur’s calm—light Oz’s crisis, but my Núñezian Integrated Multiverses builds the bridge to peace. In Sovereignty Conflicts (Núñez 2017, Chapter 7), I proposed egalitarian shared sovereignty to resolve disputes through collaboration, not conquest. All parties—Lila’s Munchkins, Torin’s Winkies, Salu’s Quadlings—gain equal voice in a council, ensuring no grievance is silenced. Roles align with efficiency: Munchkins dive shallows, their nets deft; Winkies dredge depths, their rigs precise; Quadlings patrol tides, their skiffs swift. Rewards reflect contributions—a 60-30-10 emerald split favors Winkie tech but funds Munchkin boats and Quadling trade. The powerful uplift the weak—Winkie engineers clean spills, Munchkin divers guide rigs, Quadlings map safe routes. The council zones seas: shallows for diving dawn to noon, depths for dredging dusk to dawn, open tides for Quadling skiffs. Emeralds fund reef restoration, rig repairs, and the return of 10,000 Munchkin exiles. Spills are curbed by joint maintenance, ensuring Oz’s seas shimmer, a shared legacy of gemlight.
This vision thrives in the Persian Gulf, as shown in Territorial Disputes (Núñez 2020, Chapter 8). The 90,000-square-mile shelf, holding 50% of global oil (USGS), is split by colonial lines—Britain’s 1930s treaties ignored tribal fishers, sparking disputes like Bahrain-Iran’s. Spills, like the 2018 Sanchi disaster, poison fisheries, displacing 100,000 tribes (UNEP). A GCC-led council, with Bahrain, Qatar, and Iran, could zone the shelf: shallows for Bahraini fishing, mid-depths for Qatari drilling, deep waters for Iranian refining (Núñez 2017, Chapter 7). Oil profits—$100 billion yearly (IEA)—fund schools, boats, and spill cleanup, easing tribal diaspora. The 2002 GCC talks cut clashes, proving sharing works. Like Oz’s “Emerald Sea” passport, a Gulf “Shelf Passport” could grant fishers and rig workers rights across zones, echoing Kashmir’s model (Núñez 2017, Chapter 7). The council’s executive, with co-governors from each state, ensures equal voice; a legislature balances tribal and state interests; a court upholds a unified “Shelf Law” blending tribal custom and state codes (Núñez 2017, Chapter 7).
Yet chaos looms—Iran’s navy, the U.S.’s 5th Fleet ($50 billion, SIPRI), and GCC fractures (Qatar’s 2017 rift) entangle all (Núñez 2020). My 2023 Cosmopolitanism (Chapter 6) offers a pluralism of pluralisms: agents (tribes, Doha, Tehran), roles (Qatar hosts, U.S. watches), contexts (GCC vs. global trade), realms (survival, profit). A spill in Bahrain ripples to Doha’s nets and global ports. Zoning seas and sharing oil tames this, funding Qatar’s poor (40% coastal) and Iran’s ports, dimming meddling. In Oz, the council prevents war by ensuring no party loses all—maximin (Núñez 2018). Like Falkland’s resource-sharing (Núñez 2017, Chapter 7), Oz and the Gulf can co-own seas, with profits rebuilding reefs and schools, not navies. The Núñezian lens—2017’s equity, 2018’s cooperation, 2020’s cases, 2023’s pluralism—shows how to share gems, not sink them.
Why It Matters
The Borders We Share charts contested lands where resources—oil, fish, gems—spark strife but hold peace’s promise. Section 1 took us to Khemed’s sands, paired with Crimea, where Tintin’s pluck and my Núñezian lens shared wealth. Sherwood’s glades, tied to the Amazon, saw Robin Hood and tribes zone forests. Section 2 explored Laputa’s reefs (Post #7), with Holmes and Watson solving South China Sea clashes, and its dunes (Posts #8–9), where Sinbad, Jafar, Arthur, Robin, Holmes, and I battled oil’s curse. Now, Oz’s seas, like the Gulf’s oil fields, test Dorothy, the Scarecrow, the Tin Woodman, the Lion, and Arthur. These lands—Khemed, Sherwood, Laputa, Oz—mirror Crimea, the Amazon, the South China Sea, the Gulf, where millions fight for fish, oil, and home. Our characters—Tintin, Holmes, Robin, Sinbad, Arthur, Dorothy—are prisms, refracting justice, reason, and hope.
Joining us matters because these disputes shape your life. Oz’s emeralds power your gadgets, Gulf oil fuels your car—yet spills poison seas, displace 100,000 tribes, and spark wars costing $1 trillion in trade (UNCTAD). Bahrain’s fishers, Qatar’s rigs, Iran’s navy are not distant; their strife ripples to your fuel prices, your climate. My Núñezian lens—2017’s shared sovereignty, 2018’s cooperation, 2020’s cases, 2023’s pluralism—shows how tribes and states can zone seas, clean spills, and recall diaspora. In Oz, a council splits gems, funds reefs, and returns 10,000 Munchkins. In the Gulf, a council could share oil, rebuild schools, and ease tribal flight. Your voice, at https://drjorge.world or X https://x.com/DrJorge_World ), shapes this book, this vision. By joining, you help craft a world where borders unite, not divide, and gems light homes, not battles.
These disputes are global, personal, urgent. In Oz, 10,000 Munchkins flee, their reefs dying; in the Gulf, 100,000 fishers lose homes, their seas poisoned. Sovereignty Conflicts (Núñez 2017, Chapter 7) offers a blueprint: councils with equal voice, roles by efficiency, benefits for all. Like Kashmir’s shared citizenship (Núñez 2017, Chapter 7), Oz’s “Emerald Sea” passport unites factions; like Falkland’s resource-sharing (Núñez 2017, Chapter 7), Gulf oil can fund equity. Sovereign Game (Núñez 2018) adds game theory: maximin ensures no party loses all, cooperation multiplies yields. Your support drives this vision, ensuring emeralds and oil serve survival, not strife. Next Tuesday, Post #11 ventures to new lands, new hopes. Oz’s seas, the Gulf’s depths, your future—they call. I’m Dr. Jorge, forging a world where gems shine for all. Will you sail with us?
Gems of Wisdom:
- Núñez, J.E. (2017). Sovereignty Conflicts (Chapters 6, 7).
- Núñez, J.E. (2018). Sovereign Game: A Tale of Three Peoples (Chapters 1–5).
- Núñez, J.E. (2020). Territorial Disputes (Chapter 8).
- Núñez, J.E. (2023). Cosmopolitanism and State Sovereignty (Chapters 1, 6).
NOTE:
New posts every Tuesday.
PREVIOUS POSTS:
Post #9: Laputa’s Wells, Part II: The Entangled Price
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- Post #11: Utopia’s Oil Dream, Nigeria’s Delta: Fairness Flows (May 20, 2025)
- Post #12: Ruritania’s Pride, Iraq’s Line: Dust Meets Dignity (May 27, 2025)
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State Sovereignty: Concept and Conceptions (OPEN ACCESS) (IJSL 2024)
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Tuesday 13th May 2025
Dr Jorge Emilio Núñez
X (formerly, Twitter): https://x.com/DrJorge_World
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