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Readings: Consulting Wisdom and the Past & Foreknowledge
STORYTELLING IN QUOTES
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"Warlords see the future; peasants only see the present, and grumblers only see the past."
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"The price good men pay for indifference to public affairs (politics) is to be ruled by his inferiors." Plato
"Just because you don't take interest in politics, it doesn't mean politics don't take interest in you. Pericles
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"There are SURE TO BE OMENS before something happens. When a nation or family is about to flourish, there are SURE TO BE happy omens; and when it is about to perish, there are sure to be unlucky omens. When calamity or happiness is about to come, the good shall certainly be FOREKNOWN by him, and the evil also."
"Before the destruction of a brake-out fire occurs, the flame is first lit from afar, then its heat is felt."
"The wisest thing in the world is to cry out before you are hurt. It is no good to cry out after you are hurt; especially after you are mortally hurt. People talk about the impatience of the populace; but sound historians know that most tyrannies have been possible because men moved too late. It is often essential to resist a tyranny before it exists." G.K Chesterton
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"The knowledge of the laws of life is incomparably more important than any other knowledge, and the knowledge that directly leads us to SELF-PRESERVATION is the knowledge of primary importance." Leo Tolstoy
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"We can ignore reality, but we can't ignore the consequences of reality." A. Rand
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"The facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored." Aldous Huxley
Facts represent "what is happening" and "how it is happening," when it is actually happening, irrespective of an observer's presence, capacity, or ability to comprehend complex processes and developments—often buried in history or deliberately obscured by propaganda and misinformation. This nature of facts makes it impossible to prove most of the deeds unless we catch someone red-handed, but even then, polemics let them get off the hook and avoid responsibility.
The strongest evidence that facts took place lies in their resulting outcomes. Every major historical event is preceded by a traceable chain of developments which, when observed and analyzed retrospectively in a holistic manner, can reveal the story that was about to unfold.
Today, with the abundance of information available, it is easier than ever to analyze, compare, and discern patterns in history, and it is also a great sin not to do so. Despite potential distortions, historical records still provide sufficient material to reconstruct a logical image of past processes while discarding falsehoods.
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"A man who is used to acting in one way never changes; he must come to ruin when the times, in changing, no longer are in harmony with his ways." N. Machiavelli
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"One day you will be old enough to start read fairy tails again." C.S. Lewis
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"To be ignorant of what occurred before you were born is to remain always a child. For what is the worth of human life, unless it is woven into the lire of our ancestors by the records of history." M. T. Cicero
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"Everyone who wants to know what will happen ought to examine what has happened: everything in this world in any epoch has their replicas in antiquity." N. Machiavelli
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"History only teaches those who looks into it for lessons."
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“Where one can go without needing to fight?”
“The life of man upon Earth is a warfare” Job 7:1
"In the war there are only two roles: victor and defeated."
"What is the weak army to the strong one if not a booty."
"It is a great misfortune to underestimate an opponent, engaging into the war just lightly." Unknown
"War will happen, with you or without you."
​ "Those who wants peace, must organize BETTER than those who wants war."
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"Trust/Passivity towards enemy/PROBLEM is clothing for laziness of thought, the desire to have a break." It is a terminal habit we carry from childhood that other adults will do something about it.
"The logic of a struggle, which is impossible without deception, deprives the enemy of kindness, generosity, and decency even if he previously had any."
"The art of war teaches us to rely not on the likelihood of the enemy’s/problem not coming/occurring , but on our own readiness to receive him/resolve it; not on the chance of his not attacking, but rather on the fact that we have made our position unassailable."
"You can keep your enemy/dangers from deceit not with believing appearances, but with foreknowledge."
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"The best defense from destruction, is to be away from the zone of destruction."
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"Readiness is everything. Resolution is indissolubly bound up with caution. If an individual is careful and keeps his wits about him, he need not become excited or alarmed. if he is watchful at all times, even before danger is present, he is armed when danger approaches and need not be afraid. The superior man is on his guard against what is not yet in sight and on the alert for what is not yet within hearing; therefore he dwells in the midst of difficulties as though they did not exist. . .. If reason triumphs, the passions withdraw of themselves."
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"Who sees only the obvious, wins battles with difficulty; he who looks below the surface of things, wins with ease."
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Making "something out of nothing" regardless of how loosing your position is, is the life philosophy that not many can understand.
"How to turn disadvantage into fortune, and how make use of opponent’s own tactics, this is what multitude does not comprehend."
“THOSE WHO ACHIEVES GREATNESS KNOW HOW TO PROFIT FROM EVERY ASPECT OF LIFE. THEIR NEGATIVES AND POSITIVES. BAD CIRCUMSTANCE AND GOOD”.
“After that, comes Tactical Maneuvering, then which there is nothing more difficult. The difficulty of tactical maneuvering consists in turning DEVIOUS INTO DIRECT, and MISFORTUNE INTO GAIN.”
"He who seeks to conquer by sheer strength, clever though he may be at winning pitched battles, is also liable on occasion to be vanquish; whereas he who can LOOK INTO THE FUTURE AND DISCERN CONDITIONS THAT ARE NOT YET MANIFEST, will never make a blunder and therefore invariably win."
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"He, who excels at resolving difficulties, does so before they arise. He who excels in conquering his enemies, triumphs before threats materialize."
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"To see victory when it is within the ken of the common herd is not the acme of excellence. To foresee the victory which the ordinary man can foresee is not the acme of skill. Neither it is acme of excellence if you fight and conquer and the whole Empire says, 'Well done!'."
"To lift an autumn hair is no sign of great strength; to see sun and moon is no sign of sharp sight; to hear the noise of thunder is no sign of a quick ear."
What the ancients called a clever fighter is one who not only wins, but excels in winning with ease.
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"The thing is to see the plant before it has germinated, to foresee the event before the action has begun."
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"He, who excels at resolving difficulties does so before they arise. He who excels in conquering his enemies triumphs before threats materialize. Hence his victories bring him neither reputation for wisdom nor credit for courage. When you subdue the enemy without fighting, who will pronounce you valorous."
“He whom the ancients called an expert in battle gained victory where victory was easily gained. Thus, the battle of the expert is never an exceptional victory, nor does it win him reputation for wisdom or credit for courage. His victories in battle are unerring. Unerring means that he acts where victory is certain, and conquers an enemy that has already lost”.
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"No amount of anxiety makes any difference to anything that is going to happen" - ALLAN WATTS
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With action you cure sickness of fear and paralysis.
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"Only one who has capacity, can endure/embrace. Only one who knows difficulties on his way can overcome them." I Ching
"To see what's in front of one's nose, needs a constant struggle." G. Orvvell
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"Thus, what enables the wise sovereign and the good general to strike and conquer, and achieve things beyond the reach of ordinary men, is FOREKNOWLEDGE. Now, this foreknowledge cannot be elicited from spirits; it cannot be obtained inductively from experience, nor by any deductive calculation. Knowledge of the enemy's dispositions can only be obtained from other men."
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The most impactful Stratagems that are being employed or will be employed shortly after the beginning of the WWIII in the global political and socioeconomic warfare:
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Chapter 1: Fool the Emperor to cross the sea.
Chapter 3: Kill with a borrowed sword.
Chapter 5: Loot a burning house.
Chapter 6: Clamor in the East, attack in the West.
Chapter 8: Openly Repair the walkway, secretly march to Chencang.
Chapter 9: Observe the fire on the opposite shore.
Chapter 10: Hide your dagger behind a smile
and other...
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The Art of War, Sun Tzu, I Ching, and other Eastern thought teachings
Introduction
"The knowledge of the laws of life is incomparably more important than any other knowledge, and the knowledge that directly leads us to self-preservation is the knowledge of primary importance." Leo Tolstoy
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"Sensitivity (acuity) is the legacy of experience." Unknown
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"Before the destruction of a brake-out fire occurs, the flame first lit from afar, then its heat is felt."
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"There are SURE TO BE OMENS before something happens. When a nation or family is about to flourish, there are SURE TO BE happy omens; and when it is about to perish, there are sure to be unlucky omens. When calamity or happiness is about to come, the good shall certainly be FOREKNOWN by him, and the evil also." I Ching
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"Thus, what enables the wise sovereign and the good general to strike and conquer, and achieve things beyond the reach of ordinary men, is FOREKNOWLEDGE..."
The Art of War
"All things have beginnings and the ends. Causes and effects. All affairs have their branches and the roots. To know what is first and what is second is the core of wisdom." The Great Learning
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"The one who doesn't understand a glance will not understand long explanations either." Lao Tzu
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"Wise man doesn't need excessive evidence to grasp the essence. Not many words are needed to convey the truth." Lao Tzu
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"The one who has capacity can embrace." I Ching
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Everything can be learned, understood, and explained but not by everyone and not to everyone. Neither should it be to everyone.
The History of current civilization is a large and complex topic and no lecture no matter how long can do the job of making someone to under-stand all at once. Gaining perspective takes time. Don't waste yours.
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"When you understand the Way broadly, you will see the way of all things.
When you attain the way of strategy, there will not be one thing you cannot see,
and you will see the Way in any situation." M. Musashi
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Strategy is a structure, structure is strategy. By learning the structure of an entity and its branches extending in the space and time, one can comprehend its strategy. When you embrace its strategy, you will know the way (plans) of the entity.
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"It is impossible to lay down rules for warfare [solution] before you come in touch with [under-stand] the enemy [problem]." Military methods of ancient China
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Every system consists of elements, and in that capacity its contents can be apprehended. Distinguishing elements and parts of the system, allows to know its contents and structure, strengths and weaknesses. Seeing what a system does, its actions and outcomes, allows to know what it is for/after. Knowing what one is, by seeing what one does and what one gets.
​ Things which can be approached and interacted with can be understood.
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The cyclical nature of all processes allows for learning the patterns.
To see what a large thing is, one needs to step aside, and have perspective. For things larger than human life, one needs to step farther away, extending his learning and vision beyond his life span.
Collectively, all people know everything. People like to talk about what they like/don't like to do. They cannot not to talk. Thus, more and more people know what others know. Hence, knowing is about knowing more people.
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"Nothing in politics happens by accident" F.D.R
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People, organizations, and other entities have their interests and plan their activities for years, decades, and sometimes centuries ahead.
Public interest is dispersed, private interest is concentrated. Private interest groups for the private interest group's interest.
One small well-organized goal-oriented group can do more than uninformed, disorganized, idling majority.
Local interest groups work for local interest group's interest; global interests are advanced by
What is higher in hierarchy of order of things has more power over what is lower. Older entities have more evidence/products of their existence.
In politics, thus, nothing happens by accident.
For these reasons we should not look at any event as stand alone occurrence, but as strategies of people and entities.
Paying attention to the policy-making and developments in political space it is hard to miss what is to come.
Government Policies and Laws channel and force behaviors, drive the change, and shape the future. Forcing behaviors accelerates changes. Forcing behaviors are efforts and actions, changes are outcomes. Both can be noticed and understood.
In politics nothing happens by accident; nothing in politics happens in direct way:
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"All warfare is based on deception." The Art of War.
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Because the conflict of interest, "in games of strategy, it becomes vital to think of taking the measures for concealing, revealing, and eliciting information". Dixit A. Games of Strategy
You simply can't achieve anything on a large scale if everyone knows what you are going to do.
To advance own competitive agenda with the least resistance and to ensure its success, secrecy and deception must be used.
Dissimulation, thus, becomes one of the rules of this game; and the more sophisticated the game is, the more sophisticated in all forms of deception are the best players.
In such situation everything outsiders are being let to know about is a deceit.
In such situation everything you see and hear is a fabricated image designed to deceive you and to make you respond in predictable way.
All displayed forms and facades are deceptive devices.
All excessively apparent actions or events which are overly suggestive of their nature, causes, reasons, and elicited reactions or responses are deception.
If you could recognize deception around you in everyday life, it would not be a very sophisticated enough.
"Rule number one of any game and con: The only way to get smarter is by playing a smarter opponent; Rule number two: The more sophisticated game the more sophisticated the opponent."
"If you knew what is the game, it wouldn’t be sophisticated one now, would it?" Revolver 2005, Guy Ritchie.
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All actions are part of the strategy, while also they are distractions, misinformation, disinformation - dissimulation... serving to take attention from the following punch.
For these reasons we should not to take events and promises at face value but rather see what those lead and add up to in retrospect.
Nothing in this world works the way we think it does, events don't happen for the reasons people are made to believe they do - we just have limited, incomplete information to draw proper conclusions.
If something doesn't make sense or is contradictory in its nature, it may be because it is intended so:
"The whole point is in confusing an opponent, so he cannot fathom our real intent" (Military arts of ancient China)
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"EMPTY TIME and EMPTY SPACE are important means of control." Tarasov V.
"You can't con an honest man." Revolver, Guy Ritchie
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There are too many opinions, but truth is one. People have many different perspectives, but mostly about irrelevant things.
The ongoing ignorance, incomplete information, inferior knowledge and the greed - Ego, are the reasons why there are so many opinions.
Because the age, size, and complexity of the subject matter, because of ignorance about the fragility of peace, because people are busy with their own consumption, and because professional efforts are applied to keep others distracted and misinformed, people don't pay sufficient attention to what matters. They don't have their priorities in the right places.
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We see our goal in foreknowing changes before they come and serving community of good people through working with the best leaders - vigilant and proactive individuals and organizational leaders helping decision-makers to prepare before the dread comes.
Such a task can in itself be a specialty and a profession.
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