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IX. ENEMIES AND STRATEGIES
1. When making judgments about the morality of others, always first project yourself
into their circumstances, whether these circumstances be more desperate or less desperate than your own. Then, ask yourself
honestly how you would behave. Then, in a further empathy, appreciating the differences between yourself and the other person,
again contemplate the appropriateness of their behavior. Not just you in their shoes, but them in their shoes. In this way
one can avoid allowing zeal to become fanaticism fed by unnecessary self congratulation.
2. The only true enemy an
individual can have is one who would make encroachment against individual Liberty. All others, regardless of how peculiar,
obnoxious, or tiresome, should be perceived as friends of varying degree, or at least as allies.
3. There are those
who foolishly label fighting back as "negative." If, in the process of building a house, every night enemies come and tear
down three quarters of the work, it can only be construed as positive to stop them, if indeed one's goal is to someday finish
the house. This must apply also to the enemies who continually tear down the building of a completely free society.
4.
In daily living, before one can help others, one must first help oneself. If a man behaves rightly, he does so as well in
destroying if necessary, any who would encroach upon him. One can lead a moral and happy life only if one survives in Liberty.
5. Natural feelings will not produce guilt in right thinking individuals. It is perfectly natural to desire the elimination
of one's true enemies. We may however, take a good deal upon ourselves in attempting this. The core goal here is only to eliminate
the problems caused us by the enemy. This can be accomplished either by conversion of the enemy into an ally, through his
isolation, or through his destruction.
6. Destruction should be caused or applauded only reluctantly, and then only
when it will produce evolutionary progress and is the only possible alternative(2).
7. Only social masochists nurture
unpleasant emotions within themselves. Feeling hatred is unpleasant and is physically unhealthful. Like any other unproductive
emotion, hatred should never be nurtured to any degree whatsoever.
8. A capable human being would not hate an animal
for endangering him, nor should he hate a less capable human being for doing the same. In either case, they are simply doing
the only thing they can do.
9. One man's capability has little tangible reality except in terms of another man's incapability.
The more capable man should not therefor, resent the existence of the less capable man. He should however, resent their excess
and ever increasing numbers.
10. It has been said "the pen is mightier than the sword." Sometimes it is, sometimes
it isn't. But why must we choose? Use your pen when you can, use your sword when you must. One can only educate the educable.
"All government policy is enforced ultimately at gun point. A person who will vote for any policy which encroaches
upon individual Liberty is effectively committing an act of aggression against society and is just as much an enemy of that
society as any soldier in an invading army. He is however, an enemy that one would want to convert, at least to an ally, since
he is also a countryman and possibly even a relative. We can't kill everybody!" reasons Dirk the Sun Warrior benignly as he
examines a young olive branch.
11. Conversion of an enemy into an ally is done through education. In conversation,
until another clearly demonstrates his level of development, it is usually best to adopt a posture facilitating mutual exchange,
with the emphasis upon learning, not upon teaching. Even a militant jackass can teach many things if one listens.
12.
It is well to remember that even in revolution, there are areas of emphasis which may be more appropriate to one personality
type or another, or to one gender or the other. Discussion which leads to personal discord or unhappiness at home is
counter productive, not only to individuals but to the Quest itself. Work of this exalted nature is on a wholly different
plane from interpersonal relationships. One need not discuss anything relating to any of this with a lover, or even a spouse,
if it will cause personal difficulties of any kind. One must try to live the Libertarian ideal at home even as one works to
actualize it on a worldwide basis.
"The key to Libertarian understanding is to put the pig on the shelf and let the
human within oneself address the human within others. If, within the other person, only the pig will address you, then try
talking to someone else."
- Dirk the Sun Warrior
13. Talk is usually an imperfect medium for
communicating truth. Often there are just too many other things going on. For instance, with an urgently argumentative chap,
is he perhaps striving so very hard for himself because you remind him subconsciously of a neighbor's child who used to periodically
chase him around behind the garage, and mercilessly pinch him, until he screamed with a bright red face when he was three?
14. The argumentative individual will be frantic to interrupt when another is talking. He will begin "reacting" immediately,
often on the basis of massive stereotype, to what he wants you to be saying. He will jump down your throat saying "but, but,
but..," before you can utter the second part of a sentence which would mitigate the first part. Then you have to retrace and
patiently explain that you were not saying any of the things which he falsely attributed to you. Conversation with such
individuals, unjustly puts you on the defensive, is unnecessarily time consuming, and should be avoided.
15. Even
though most people spend little or no time actively seeking new facts which might qualify their overall perspective, they
will stubbornly believe that their basic view of the world is totally correct. They could not sleep at night if they didn't.
While the average person will quickly defer to a specialist in matters of technology, if you seek to alter someone's basic
view about society, attempt it slowly without unnecessary insult, or you may gain an enemy rather than an ally. Remember that
non Libertarians have absolutely no idea of how ignorant they really are and the goal here is not personal enhancement, but
the triumph of Liberty over corruption.
16. When advancing truth among the ignorant, it is often best to state only
facts and allow them draw their own conclusions. The inference that others will derive from given data will depend upon their
goals, which in turn will depend upon their personal spiritual development. The status of a person's knowledge can be changed
easily, but changes in their basic development must come slowly from within. If you state a conclusion first, the other person
may need to react strongly against it and will be in the position of loosing face to admit their error when you start citing
factual instances which prove the conclusion.
17. Give others the chance to make true, perceptive, Libertarian statements,
and when they do, be just as ready to agree with and elaborate upon their ideas as you are to disagree and correct them
when they are speaking erroneously.
18. The un-Libertarian individual usually knows at some deeper level that his
attitudes are morally inferior. Show him this subtly, without anger or discourtesy. Let him keep a veneer of intellectual
and moral dignity and you may win his allegiance.
19. When thrown by fate into discussions with doggedly un-Libertarian
elements, avoid defending justice to them, except casually, and then not for it's own sake, but for it's sole workability
for them in the shortest term demonstrable. Subtly keep them on the defensive for perpetuating injustice. Leave them angry
with themselves, but not in any way that can allow them to blame anyone but themselves. Never be personal with such individuals,
but avoid any unnecessary "ivory tower" remoteness which might lead oneself to being dismissed as a mere "intellectual."
20.
Respectful truth-seeking people will listen with an open mind to what others say, and will treat each individual as a new
person. Such people may seek to persuade others to their viewpoint, but will use only facts and logic to do this. Those striving
only for appearances will use authority, browbeating, pettiness, pedantry, glib negative summary, forced belly-laughter, and
insult. They will often try to intimidate by moving closer than is normally considered polite, or by raising their voice.
When their arguments are defeated logically they will often quickly proclaim their "right" to their opinion, as though to
imply that you are somehow being aggressively dogmatic to disagree, and that their opinion is therefore, "right." Individuals
of this sort are people of little commitment to anything of value, and should not be taken seriously either as intellectual
or as moral entities, regardless of their degree of formal education or popular reputation.
21. Morally inferior individuals
never seek true wisdom, only the appearance of wisdom. They usually care little about truthfulness, scholarship, merit, achievement,
earning, worthiness, decency, or honor. They will invariably substitute self serving philosophy for facts and will use every
rotten little coward's trick and logical fallacy they can muster to twist the truth. It seems that to "win" is all important
to such individuals.
22. When speaking, especially about serious topics, never use "obvious"
exaggeration for effect. The enemies of truth will always interpret what you say literally when it suits their purpose. Be
exact. If you mean "some," don't say "most."
23. Only a petty individual will react strongly against something which
is not a measurable threat to individual Liberty. Over reacting to something which one deems "part and parcel of a certain
mentality" will usually produce an equally hysterical counter reaction from the insultee. Much of the immorality of both left
and right lies in the tendency of petty individuals to think of themselves as the embodiment of all goodness. Clarity of understanding
will occur only when the individual begins to differentiate what is actually an encroachment from what is merely a matter
of personal taste.
24. Should you inadvertently cast pearls before swine, let this slip quickly from your mind. Pearls
are not tarnished by swine, nor can they be misused effectively, because they are not truly recognized as pearls.
25. Deep awareness about the workability of Libertarian policy will
at times seem like a great intellectual burden which one must set down by educating society. Strangely though, at other times,
it can lead one to feel "overly unburdened" in a more personal sense relative to others, because of what their ignorance
does to their lives. The key here is not to feel that you necessarily have to assume the burden of unburdening them on a one
to one basis, if they are only going to make you feel sorry that you tried. If you find that you have a low threshold of tolerance
for people who insult you merely for speaking the truth, it may be better to find another way to educate them. If the hour
spent talking with one person is instead spent writing a letter to the editor of a magazine with a circulation of three hundred
thousand readers, the benefit produced is multiplied accordingly. This also gives you the chance to do necessary research,
and to think through and hone the clarity of your statements.
26. In or near one's own community it is better to be
well liked than otherwise. Sometimes it is smarter to fight the good fight a bit further from home.
27. When confronted
in conversation with true evil in it's most subtle forms, be calmly oriented to helping the individual gain insight into the
disadvantages of his path. Think quickly, be subtle, impersonal, positive, just, forceful, and cool.
28. A sincere
Libertarian should never allow himself to be put on the defensive unnecessarily about the morality of his values by any collectivist.
For a Libertarian to condone moral criticism from any Socialist, for example, especially if the tone is vicious or disrespectful,
the language nasty or slanderous, is the exact equivalent of a loving husband permitting similar criticism from a serial rapist
who just finished with his wife. There is simply no spiritual integrity in tolerating these elements any longer. Keep tract
of them and deal with them covertly. Make a list. Take your time. Be very objective and completely just. If there is any question
of any lower personal motivation on your part, do nothing until the question in clearly resolved without false rationalization.
29. It is foolish to individually engage an enemy that one can not individually defeat. To do so openly is suicidal.
One must after all, live to fight another day.
30. A true gentleman (one who has lived in accordance with Libertarian
ideals) needn't worry about giving his true enemy a "fair" fight, as "between gentlemen." If the enemy were himself either
fair, or a gentleman, there would be no bone of contention in the first place. When you are the victim don't let the enemy
dictate the terms of your reprisal.
"When dealing with lambs, behave as a kindly shepherd. When dealing with rats,
study and master the technique of the barn owl." - Dirk the Sun Warrior
31. Those who would contemplate the destruction of an enemy should first
determine with absolute certainty that there are none who would rise to replace him and who might prove to be equally, if
not more, an enemy. Usually there are. This should be balanced against the level of risk and the effect of the enemy's possible
martyrdom upon the popularly perceived morality of either movement. Usually it is more productive and can be more satisfying
to see the day when the enemy and all of his vile crew are devoid of power. This may require patience and can best be
accomplished by making others aware of the enemy and the true long term effect of his actions upon their lives.
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