For what's the use of talking with a man who has a disease and thinks about the stars?
Bertolt BrechtRead
The enemy resembles us. Therefore, he needs to be approached not as an assembly of 'targets' to be destroyed one by one; but as a living, intelligent entity capable of acting and reacting.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote highlights the importance of understanding one's adversaries as complex beings rather than mere obstacles.
In this quote, Martin Van Creveld emphasizes the idea that enemies should not be viewed simply as targets or obstacles to be eliminated, but rather as complex individuals who possess their own thoughts, intentions, and capabilities. This perspective suggests that a more nuanced approach is necessary for effective engagement, recognizing that adversaries can adapt and respond like sentient beings. By acknowledging the intelligence and agency of those we oppose, we can foster better strategies and potentially more constructive outcomes.
Themes
EnemyUnderstandingIntelligenceStrategyPhilosophy
In practice
Example use cases
In a military briefing, to emphasize the need for intelligence gathering on opposing forces.
Similar quotes
I keep wanting to crawl back into the womb.
Sylvia PlathRead
When you go into the space of nothingness, everything becomes known.
Gautama BuddhaRead
In the West, we have been withdrawing from our tradition-, religion-, and even nation-centred cultures.
Jordan PetersonRead
There's a part of every living thing that wants to become itself: the tadpole into the frog, the chrysalis into the butterfly, a damaged human being into a whole one.That is spirituality.
Ellen BassRead
This thing is but a puny imitation of a much grander system whose laws you know, and I am not able to convince you that this mere toy is without a designer or maker; yet you profess to believe that the great original from which the design is taken has come into being without either designer or maker! Now tell me by what sort of reasoning do you reach such an incongruous conclusion?
Isaac NewtonRead