159th Edition
Enemies
I’ve been giving a lot of thought lately to our enemies. Probably not the healthiest thing to do, but I’m past the point of no return. My first thought was to recall that someone suggested we might try to make an enemy our friend. So, I did a search on that thought. Not surprisingly, I learned that it was Abraham Lincoln who said, “Do I not destroy my enemies when I make them my friends?” I should have known it was Lincoln who said that…
There are multiple levels to any meaningful discussion about enemies. To begin with, there are, of course, personal enemies and corporate enemies.
From a personal perspective, anyone who is intent on inflicting harm on you might be considered an enemy. Here are a few examples: A person who tries to convince you to have one more drink before you drive home when you know you have already had one too many is an enemy. A person who lies and cheats you in business is an enemy. A person who encourages you to worship false gods is an enemy. The list is almost endless. The world is full of people who do not have our best interest at heart.
Then there are corporate enemies. If you work for Lowes, employees at Home Depot are your enemies. If you play for any particular team, the players on your arch-rival’s team are your enemies. More seriously, if you are in the U.S. military, you have enemies all over the world.
Throughout history, religion has created enemies. Today, if you are Jewish or Christian, you have certain enemies. There are articles nearly every day about the inevitable, existential battle between Christians and Muslims. We try to downplay it by stating that it only involves radicals on either side. We will see how that works out.
Interestingly, there are people on both sides who view Satan as the real enemy. America, itself has been called the Great Satan. Is all this getting worse today?
No matter how you slice it, enemies exist. Personal or corporate. What should we do about them? Is Lincoln’s idea useful for today? Have you ever reconciled with a personal enemy and actually created a new friendship or restored an old one? That isn’t easy to do, is it? Both sides have to be willing to reconcile and forgive.
From a corporate perspective, history has shown that it is possible to make friends of old enemies. Our history with Japan is one example. Germany is another. Could we do the same with Iran? Hard to imagine, maybe, but remember, it was unthinkable that Japan would ever be an ally after their surprise attack on Pearl Harbor. After the war, Japan and Germany were in ruins. Both countries needed our economic and financial help to recover. Despite being mortal enemies for several years, we led the way in the rebuilding process in both countries. Today, we are allies and economic partners with both countries. So, it is possible.
How could we do the same with Iran? Is their ideology, and their obsession with destroying western civilization and Judeo-Christianity too big of a hurdle to overcome? Is there common ground that can lead to lasting peace? Why has lasting peace been so difficult to establish in that region of the world?
After WWII, America won the peace. We rebuilt Europe and Japan, helped China, the Philippines, and many other countries, as well. There is no denying that we had to win the war first. Defeating Germany and Japan required the Unconditional Surrender of both combatants. Is that necessary today with Iran? It is hard to see otherwise.
And then there is Communist China. Numerous books have been published claiming that Communist China is our most serious threat. To many of these authors and national security experts, the existential battle is between freedom and state control. Democracy vs. Communism. A zero-sum game. Over the long run, they cannot coexist peacefully. Most unsettling, the Chinese Communist Party is engaged in unrestricted warfare, in which Americans are being attacked from within; cognitively, physically, economically, and spiritually. The ultimate goal of communism is state control and less individual freedom. Which of these diametrically opposed ideologies is gaining momentum in our country? What are we willing to sacrifice to preserve freedom?
We live in very precarious times.
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Michael Kayes
*These views are my personal opinions and are not the viewpoints of any company or organization.