In a message dated 11/10/01 7:06:18 AM Pacific Standard Time, amara@amara.com
writes:It would be really wise, if you want to live a long time, to take some
care and respect and learn something of that culture (or any culture!) that
the U.S. wishes to "rebuild".
I have to agree with Amara. The book Lucifer Principle makes the point that
charity is perceived as a put down. It says "Look, I am better than you."
On the other hand a fellow named Robert L. Humphrey was the best
conflict resolver our State Department seems to have had during the 50s and
60s. When communities of overseas Americans would get into cross purposes
with the local population the State Department would hire Humphrey to go
defuse the situation. His methods were startling with some people but
worked. I won't try to repeat here what it took him a book to say but
basically he said:
1. You have to be confident of your ability to protect yourself in a face
off. This is only for self confidence when talking to people and is not a
recommendation to go around punching folks out. He was an ex-professional
boxer -- either a welterweight or middleweight.
2. You have to get down in the mud where the "other" lives, look them in the
eye and show them that you don't think yourself better than they. This comes
mostly from understanding that all 100% of us wish ourselves well and want
the best for our spouse and children. Even the lowest of us wishes as much
for himself or herself as the most exalted of us.
Mr. Humphrey, I think that might be Dr. Humphrey, had some startling
conclusions lying behind his rather basic manner of behavior. Given the
world we are facing he offers an idea of how we can win friends. One of the
consequences would be an ability to defeat anyone that attacks us with a
smaller, less expensive, military. In other words OBL would find himself
losing friends and supporters to the point that he became a much smaller
problem.
Ron h.
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