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Why Education doesn't necessarily make the political leader

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  • Why Education doesn't necessarily make the political leader

    I'll just leave this here:

    Why do our “best and brightest” fail when faced with a man like Putin? Or with charismatic fanatics? Or Iranian negotiators? Why do they misread our enemies so consistently, from Hitler and Stalin to Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the Islamic State’s self-proclaimed caliph?

    The answer is straightforward:

    Social insularity: Our leaders know fellow insiders around the world; our enemies know everyone else.

    The mandarin’s distaste for physicality: We are led through blood-smeared times by those who’ve never suffered a bloody nose.

    And last but not least, bad educations in our very best schools: Our leadership has been educated in chaste political theory, while our enemies know, firsthand, the stuff of life.

    Above all, there is arrogance based upon privilege. For revolving-door leaders in the U.S. and Europe, if you didn’t go to the right prep school and elite university, you couldn’t possibly be capable of comprehending, let alone changing, the world. It’s the old social “Not our kind, dahhhling…” attitude transferred to government.
    But dramatic, revolutionary change in geopolitics never comes from insiders. It’s the outsiders who change the world. In the 21st century, our government suffers from the sclerosis of insider thinking that constantly reinforces itself and rejects conflicting evidence. The result is that we are being whipped by savages...And we get generals with Ivy League Ph.D.s writing military doctrine that adheres cringingly to politically correct truisms and leaves out the very factors, such as the power of religion or ethnic hatred, that prove decisive. Or a usually astute commentator on Eastern European affairs who dismisses Vladimir Putin as a mere chinovnik, a petty bureaucrat, since Putin was only a lieutenant colonel in the KGB when the Soviet Union collapsed and didn’t go to a Swiss prep school like John Kerry.

    That analyst overlooked the fact that Hitler had been a mere lance corporal. Stalin was a failed seminarian. Lenin was a destitute syphilitic. Ho Chi Minh washed dishes in the basement of a Paris Hotel. And when the French Revolution erupted, Napoleon was a junior artillery officer.

    And sophisticated Germans assumed they could use Hitler and then dismiss him, while other Europeans mocked him. Stalin’s fellow Bolsheviks underestimated him, until it was too late and their fates were sealed. The French didn’t notice Ho. And Napoleon shocked even his own lethargic family. The “man on horseback” is often the man from nowhere, and the members of the club ignore the torches in the streets until the club burns down around them.

  • #2
    "Why do our “best and brightest” fail when faced with a man like Putin? "

    He could've been handled better but Putin got the worst of it as far as I can tell. The US's Arab allies pretty much slit Russia's economic throat. Knowing all those insiders turned out to be quite useful after all. Putin doesn't understand the western mindset anymore than Obama understands the eastern mindset. I'm not even sure what else the author's even referencing. I'm pretty sure Obama doesn't care about Al Baghdadi and only fights ISIS because of public pressure. Prior to that he wanted to bomb Assad instead, not out of principle but because Hillary Clinton wanted to pad her otherwise lackluster resume (only simpletons like Sam are impressed by how many plane trips around the world she took). Our "best and brightest" aren't suffering from anything, they are entirely competent when it comes to looking out for their interests. Their interests just don't happen to match those of the people they rule.
    "As for my people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. O my people, they which lead thee cause thee to err, and destroy the way of thy paths." Isaiah 3:12

    There is no such thing as innocence, only degrees of guilt.

    Comment


    • #3
      Originally posted by Darth Executor View Post
      "Why do our “best and brightest” fail when faced with a man like Putin? "

      He could've been handled better but Putin got the worst of it as far as I can tell. The US's Arab allies pretty much slit Russia's economic throat. Knowing all those insiders turned out to be quite useful after all.
      Sure, Putin's not really known for his strong economic sense and lost that round big time, but he outmaneuvered the US re: Syria and Ukraine.

      I'm not even sure what else the author's even referencing.
      Stuff like Obama's 'negotiations' with Iran?

      I'm pretty sure Obama doesn't care about Al Baghdadi and only fights ISIS because of public pressure. Prior to that he wanted to bomb Assad instead, not out of principle but because Hillary Clinton wanted to pad her otherwise lackluster resume
      See below.

      Our "best and brightest" aren't suffering from anything, they are entirely competent when it comes to looking out for their interests.
      That's not disputed, given that the system practically ensures the leaders will step down wealthy and immune to any negative consequences. The point is that they're not necessarily the best leaders for the nation, even when they're actually trying to do the ruling thing properly.

      Comment


      • #4
        Originally posted by Paprika View Post
        Sure, Putin's not really known for his strong economic sense and lost that round big time, but he outmaneuvered the US re: Syria and Ukraine.
        IE: he lost a colossal battle of vital importance to Russia and won one pyrrhic victory (nobody will come off better in Ukraine, the Russian trojan horse is in ruins and Ukraine proper is broke and was never worth much in the first place) that cost the US next to nothing and one fairly insignificant one (Syria). Actually now that you word it that way it looks even more like Putin got obliterated. By this thing:



        Overall it went 95-5 in Obama's favor.

        Stuff like Obama's 'negotiations' with Iran?
        Last I checked we haven't seen what happens with that. For all I know Obama even had a good cop bad cop agreement with Senate republicans to scare Iran into accepting concessions. The Ayatollahs aren't any tougher than Putin, who, as pointed out above, got pulverized.

        That's not disputed, given that the system practically ensures the leaders will step down wealthy and immune to any negative consequences. The point is that they're not necessarily the best leaders for the nation, even when they're actually trying to do the ruling thing properly.
        But they're not, so the article is in error.
        "As for my people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. O my people, they which lead thee cause thee to err, and destroy the way of thy paths." Isaiah 3:12

        There is no such thing as innocence, only degrees of guilt.

        Comment


        • #5
          Originally posted by Paprika View Post
          I'll just leave this here:
          Simply put, our "best and brightest" are nowhere near that. Much like how we were constantly told that Hilary Clinton is the "smartest woman in America" when in fact she constantly makes errors that should only be expected from a bumbler.

          I'm always still in trouble again

          "You're by far the worst poster on TWeb" and "TWeb's biggest liar" --starlight (the guy who says Stalin was a right-winger)
          "Overall I would rate the withdrawal from Afghanistan as by far the best thing Biden's done" --Starlight
          "Of course, human life begins at fertilization that’s not the argument." --Tassman

          Comment


          • #6
            Originally posted by Darth Executor View Post
            Actually now that you word it that way it looks even more like Putin got obliterated. By this thing:
            Looks more like the Arabs wanted to hit Putin (and also Iran) to weaken Assad and succeeded, with Obama riding the coattails. IIRC Obama even opposed fracking.

            Last I checked we haven't seen what happens with that. For all I know Obama even had a good cop bad cop agreement with Senate republicans to scare Iran into accepting concessions. The Ayatollahs aren't any tougher than Putin, who, as pointed out above, got pulverized.
            What we've seen is squabbling between US leadership, and Obama and Netanyahu, projecting anything but unity and strength. Meanwhile Iran continues merrily on its way. It could be part of some long-winded plan to achieve Iranian concessions but I sure don't see how.

            But they're not
            I find that overtly cynical. IMO even they want to do at least some things reasonably well so as to have a decent legacy.

            Comment


            • #7
              Originally posted by Paprika View Post
              Looks more like the Arabs wanted to hit Putin (and also Iran) to weaken Assad and succeeded, with Obama riding the coattails. IIRC Obama even opposed fracking.
              Actually it also hit the conservative oil industry so Obama benefits even more. Although if Obama can crush Putin without even trying what does that say about Putin?

              What we've seen is squabbling between US leadership, and Obama and Netanyahu, projecting anything but unity and strength. Meanwhile Iran continues merrily on its way. It could be part of some long-winded plan to achieve Iranian concessions but I sure don't see how.
              They can afford not to project unity and strength, so far they've still come out on top on the supposedly strong, united eastern leadership.

              I find that overtly cynical. IMO even they want to do at least some things reasonably well so as to have a decent legacy.
              They control the media, of course they'll have a decent legacy.
              "As for my people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. O my people, they which lead thee cause thee to err, and destroy the way of thy paths." Isaiah 3:12

              There is no such thing as innocence, only degrees of guilt.

              Comment


              • #8
                Originally posted by Darth Executor View Post
                Actually it also hit the conservative oil industry so Obama benefits even more. Although if Obama can crush Putin without even trying what does that say about Putin?
                That Putin has other powerful enemies?

                They can afford not to project unity and strength, so far they've still come out on top on the supposedly strong, united eastern leadership.
                We'll see.

                They control the media, of course they'll have a decent legacy.
                While the individual leader is in power, sure, but their (possible) successors may find it useful to attack them for distancing purposes eg Hilary vs Obama. And legacy isn't entirely controlled by the mass media.

                Comment


                • #9
                  Originally posted by Paprika View Post
                  That Putin has other powerful enemies?
                  The oil sheikhs can't stand up against a military power like Russia on their own. It's the one-two punch with their natural resources and the US's military that allowed them to pull something like this.

                  While the individual leader is in power, sure, but their (possible) successors may find it useful to attack them for distancing purposes eg Hilary vs Obama. And legacy isn't entirely controlled by the mass media.
                  So far it seems to have worked out great for them. I don't see any significant enemy that could pose a threat to them on the horizon. So they probably have a good way to go.
                  "As for my people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. O my people, they which lead thee cause thee to err, and destroy the way of thy paths." Isaiah 3:12

                  There is no such thing as innocence, only degrees of guilt.

                  Comment

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