Wen Tzu - Verse 9, Part II

from Verse Nine

Those who overcome the lessor by strength come to a standoff when they meet their equals. Those who overcome the greater by flexibility have power that cannot be measured. Therefore when an army is strong it perishes, when a tree is strong it breaks, when leather is strong it rips; the teeth are harder than the tongue, but they are the first to die.

So flexibility and yielding are the administrators of life, hardness and strength are the soldiers of death. To take the lead is the road to exhaustion; to act afterward is the source of success.

~ Wen-tzu: Understanding the Mysteries ~

Though these words were written eons ago, they apply so readily today. The United States currently is involved in two wars with shadowy opponents and, despite the fact we have the most expensive and strongest military in the world, we can't seem to defeat either!!

We lost in Vietnam because the Viet Cong were far more flexible than we were. If you go back in history a ways, we won our independence from England -- then the richest and most powerful military in the world -- because we were far more flexible than they were.

It's sad that our elected officials and the military brain trust doesn't heed Lao Tzu's words. Every year we spend ever increasing amounts on building a huge military machine and yet, if you look at recent history in this country and in others, the big armed forces consistently bog down in the face of guerrilla warfare and suicide bombers.

This post is part of a series. For an introduction, go here.