The last battle fought between Americans and Englishmen was at New Orleans. After Braddock got cut to pieces by Indians in 1755, after the eight years of revolutionary war, two an a half years into the War of 1812, which, as everybody knows, was actually over when the Battle of New Orleans, the British got cut to pieces by the same old thing.
The redcoats marched up and the Americans stayed down and shot them to pieces from cover. The same thing happened after Lexington and Concord in 1775.
So I am very familiar with the fact that people simply WILL NOT change tactics.
In 1870 the French Army was bigger than the Prussian one. The Prussians moved fast, outflanked the French, and won.
In 1914 the available French Army was bigger than the German one, which had a two-front war. The Germans moved faster, outflanked the French, and the rest of the war was fought deep in French territory.
In 1940 the French depended on the immobile Maginot Line and the French Army was comparable in size to the Wehrmacht. The Germans used the Blitzkrieg, a brand new thing where they moved faster and outflanked the French.
So when I find the Mantra and it WORKS, it is no surprise at all that the response is a loud yawn.
Anther approach that has no tradition or recommendation except that it works is talking about WHY something is said. It hits the other side from the rear. It outflanks them. Instead of going into the usual routine about black-white IQ, I simply point out that any professor who does NOT come to that conclusion is likely 1) to be mobbed and 2) to lose his job, and he certainly will get no promotion.
Everybody KNOWS this, but our folks are so thick-headed that they NEVER BRING IT UP. From up from Africa stuff to every single Politically Correct idea, if you let them talk about how Mommy Professor X has discovered a new “fact” that proves Political Correctness and then point out that that is what they get PAID to do, Mommy Professors products are caught completely off guard.
Everybody KNOWS this, but we aren’t supposed to be bright enough to bring it up.
And we usually AREN’T.
For defense we have our Maginot Line. For attack, we have our red uniforms to march in.
#1 by CL on 09/16/2007 - 7:54 pm
The corollary to this is when you abandon what works.
One of the great banes of baseball managers everywhere is the pitcher who is throwing one pitch the opposing player/line-up can’t hit, but who inexplicably decides to “diversify” to his less stellar stuff. He’s often seen looking over his shoulder 2 to 3 seconds after making the change.
It’s called being “cute,” and it invariably kills the perpetrator in sports, business, and war.
The mantra is the unhittable fastball. Your curveball is crap. Don’t be cute.
#2 by Mark on 09/16/2007 - 8:30 pm
[sprung]
“For attack, we have our red uniforms to march in.”
Hey how about this for a novel “attack” approach to our enemies:
“Hey fool — when the blacks rape and/or murder you, me and my racist friends are going to get the biggest white-ass kick out of it. In fact, we’re gonna’ laugh our asses asses off as you lay naked in the gutter with your blood spilling out of your body while the blacks congratulate themselves on raping and/or murdering one more PC white fool such as you. Let me be the first to laugh in your face now because chances are you won’t be in any shape to hear me laugh once the blacks get hold of you. HA-HA!”
You gotta’ admit, I’m taking my redcoat off for once.