The Machiavelli Institute
WE NEED YOUR HELP
Yes, we need your help to:
Some people take a loose interest in strategy, some are more dedicated. They join strategy clubs, read books about classical political- and military strategy, are very fond of computer Wargame simulations, or enjoy good friendly discussions on the subject. Such a site as we are creating now could interest them, especially the part about "The Machiavelli Institute". Either as a hobbyist, serious adept or semiprofessional, we hope you will find something useful here.
2- The "Machiavelli" Possibility
WHAT WE CAN DO FOR OUR CLIENTSEXAMINATION (Beginner level)WHAT WE CANNOT DO FOR OUR CLIENTS
EXAMINATION (Level: advanced, type: hard)
(A slightly mad endeavor that some deemed impossible)
I remember when I was a teenager and attended secondary school in 1967, that our history teacher said it was impossible to foretell future events, to control the present, or even to have any clear idea of what is really happening here and now. A mathematical formula or a general theory of power was thought to be impossible to develop, because history never really repeats itself (events never reoccur in the same way), there are too many different people (countries, beliefs and cultures) on this planet for us to really understand or predict anything with certainty, and finally because humans themselves hold a fair amount of irrationality (therefore their unpredictable behavior).
It had then been decreed, and I remember this was a widely shared idea at the time, that it was impossible to develop a general theory of power (a mathematical formula) that would have any value or relevance at all.
TO WORK AT THE MACHIAVELLI PROJECT ?
One must be slightly mad, have a fair knowledge of strategy, and a well-rooted general culture. Above all, one must be ready to believe the impossible, that in spite of all the objections and reasons to the contrary: Yes it is possible to develop a Science of Power, a general theory, a mathematical or "magical" formula of power.
A mere dream ? Yes and no. A formula working with an 80 or 90 % accuracy would be quite satisfactory. Let us assume a 10 or 20 % uncertainty. This would be no problem. We got computers nowadays that could estimate and determine this very uncertainty.
Indeed, human beings themselves cannot be quantified (estimated with exact numbers), but it is still possible to approximate them, to study and determine behavior patterns. As part of a crowd, humans are even more predictable. A theory of power used by humans on other humans is then perfectly possible. We leave the dream behind and what was deemed impossible takes suddenly the shape of a more tangible reality.
A Science of Power allows us to go towards a general theory and "the formula". But why do we need such a formula ? What will it be used for, and why the hell a Science of Power?
2- The "Machiavelli" Possibility
We will tell you now how we became aware of the "Machiavelli" possibility. It was in reading a book by John Kenneth Galbraith(1) that we realized that those so-called scientists and professors of economics and political science knew close to nothing about how power really operates. Those people could describe fairly well the various occurrences of it and say what it consist of , but they could not answer the decisive and most important questions of all:
1- Why do people want power, why do they seek it ?We were soon to discover that no one had ever seriously tried to answer these questions, except for Niccolo Machiavelli in The Prince. There are three good reasons for this. First, great thinkers of the past always believed that they lacked the means and especially the knowledge to make such an inquiry. Second, they had no valid reason to do so, since religion had thought them that power is evil and corrupts. And third, they made the false assumption that to know about power, you must be powerful yourself.2- How can power be maintained or increased practically
3- Does any formula (either mathematical or magical) exist to attain, increase or maintain power in real life ?
Galbraith differentiates the sources and the means of power. According to him, there are three main sources of power: personality, wealth and organization and three means to display it: coercion, retribution (reward) and persuasion. But this interesting and accurate analysis does not help us much toward finding a solution to the real problems and answers to the questions arising from actual case-situations.
A book by Barbara W. Tuchman(2) really helped us by forwarding our thoughts and stimulating our imagination on the matter of power. Let us now give you the main outlines of what we learned from Tuchman.
She starts by describing the stupidity, errors and narrow-mindedness of those in power. It is very common to see governments refusing to change a policy that has been found to be unfruitful or contrary to the nation's best interests. This kind of stupidity to continue stubbornly to follow a policy known to lead to disaster is commonplace, not only in past history, but also in contemporary politics.
The art of governing (ruling) people is certainly the most poorly practiced activity of all those ever devised by mankind. In this case, wisdom, good sense and sound judgment do not function as effectively as they do in other spheres of activity. People holding positions of power are often incapable of acting and thinking intelligently.
John Adams once said that in spite of the fact that all other sciences have made considerable progress in the past, the science of government still remains what it was 3000 or 4000 years ago. There has been no noticeable evolution, no significant breakthrough. It is the only field of activity in which human knowledge and wisdom have not increased.
The most common form of political stupidity or folly is called stubbornness. It plays a major role in all forms of governments throughout the world. It consists in analyzing a given situation with prefixed notions without taking into account any fact that is inconsistent with these and that would put this settled opinion in jeopardy. When reality contradicts the government's presumption, reality is proven wrong and is in fact wrong.
For 2500 years, very few philosophers and political thinkers have shown real interest in the art of government as it is actually practiced. Machiavelli was an exception. He was not interested in the government as it should be but as it was in reality. This is remarkable since no one except him has ever studied "stupidity" as a political phenomenon.
The power to rule can often be described as the business of very ordinary people stubborn enough to go forward until they have completely lost their footing and fallen down the cliff. These people often act in an ill-advised way or even totally stupidly and in contradiction with their own interests. They are as inclined to error and misjudgment as everybody else; they make hasty and impulsive decisions like the rest of us.
"Stupidity is the Child of Power" says Tuchman. Power creates stupidity because the power to give orders, to command often impairs the capability of straight thinking. In the long run, every bad government acts contrary to its own interest. She calls stupidity an insane and perverse persistence in following a policy that has shown itself to be unmanageable and fruitless in the past.
The main components of political stupidity are: a complete indifference towards the feelings of the population, being blind to the loss of affection and interest on the part of the population and also blind to new ideas emerging in that same population, impervious to challenges emanating from the crowd, insensitive to the pain and anger felt by the mob, taking a stiff attitude concerning any mention of changing society, stubbornly maintaining a corrupted system with extravagant expenditures and an obsession about personal profit.
Another common form of stupidity is to believe that one can stay permanently in power and retain forever one's rank and fortune without having anything to do to make sure of this. Experience shows that it is not always possible to repress popular demonstrations. Protests must be taken into account as well as unpopularity and signs of vulnerability. In fact, the conjunction of all three of those factors should trigger the red alert in any responsible government.
Political leaders must take care not to hurt the feelings of the population in the course of their actions (at least not too badly or for too long). If they do otherwise, a disaster will surely follow either in the short or long run. They often take wrong decisions because they lose contact with reality in clinging to deeply rooted beliefs, although these are contradicted by plain facts. The most common symptom of stupidity is to fail to draw the right conclusions from the given facts at our disposal.
Government policy is rarely grounded on real perception, usually it is the offspring of self-deception and delusion. Quite often, the insanity of an overactive imagination carries us away from the reasonable estimates of reality. As far as political leaders are concerned, we can often notice the use of deliberate exaggerations and of an inventive rhetoric in order to impose the line of conduct that they had already decided upon. There is also the classic example of those same leaders perceiving the truth but discarding it when they act and make decisions.
The decisions made in foreign politics are in general more strongly based on irrational motives than those concerning home political issues. It is certainly unreasonable to follow a policy clearly proven to be disadvantageous by nature just as discarding reason is the characteristic symptom of stupidity. Yet, the structure of the human mind and human thought is based on a series connection of logical propositions. What then ? The answer is very simple: in fact, the human mind is very vulnerable to errors, feelings and passions. As for actual decisions and concrete actions, those often rely on prefixed and rigid attitudes (sometimes inconsistent with common sense), impervious to rational deduction and the wisdom of logic.
Political officials almost always keep the opinions and ideas they had at the beginning of their career, when they first came into office. This is what we call "mental sclerosis". Political leaders usually learn nothing more than this set of opinions they brought with them. They rarely learn from experience and from past mistakes. Political passion, rigidity of the mind and party spirit blind them too much and prevent them from doing so. Those are the conclusions that Barbara Tuchman draws from world history and from the contemporary political scene.
If those in power possess and show so little wisdom, it would perhaps be necessary for them to resort to professionals for counsel and help. The powerful ones often need the advice of less powerful but more knowledgeable people. Those counsellors do not need to hold power themselves, they need only to have learned and mastered the basics of the Science of Power. It follows that this "Science of Power" should be created, developed and used only to help "power holders" and "power wielders" who are usually devoid of wisdom.
Having developed this science and outlined a general theory of power, what will we do with it ? Will we write a series of books on the subject to be published ? Certainly not ! It would be much better to found an institute or a consultant firm training experts to help all the "power wielders" who lack such wisdom.
There are a lot of them lacking such wisdom, so such a firm would make a great deal of money. We should call this science "Khanology" since Genghis Khan was the greatest conqueror and emperor of all times. Such an "Institute of Khanology" should be named the "Machiavelli Institute" to honour the true founder of the science of power in the history of mankind.
The Machiavelli Institute or "Machiavelli Corporation" will be a profit-earning organization helping powerful people to maintain or increase the amount of power they already enjoy. At the beginning of this undertaking we find the discovery of a new formula aiming at increasing or maintaining power. A comprehensive theory of power and techniques and practical applications derived from it will be developed. This knowledge and expertise are of course the sole property of the Machiavelli Corporation.
The Machiavelli Institute is an international organization promoting the study and practical use of the Science of Power. Its objectives are: to teach the basics of this science, to undertake further research in the field and finally to establish a lucrative counseling service to help the powerful ones. The Institute is then selling its knowledge and the practical use of it to the highest bidder.
Khanology or the Science of Power provides the ways and means by which Power can be reached, increased and maintained. We find as the basis of this science a general theory of power relying on conclusions drawn from the four great historical attempts to conquer the world (those of Genghis Khan, Alexander, Napoleon and Hitler) and in the first theoretical essay on these matters, i.e. that of Machiavelli in The Prince.
It is through competence that the Institute radiates and advertises itself best. It consists of two main groups, i.e. of members and students. There are two ways in which one can become connected to the institute: as a student (in taking our theoretical courses on the science of power) or as a client (in securing the services of our experts and our research teams). All our consultants and experts are of course qualified, but it is also possible eventually for certain talented students to become expert Khanologists and regular members of the Institute.
The client has the possibility of hiring one of our experts or even a whole team of them. The Institute teaches its own theory on power (Basistheorie), but it is conceivable that other members of the Institute or even students could one day develop another theory or find new practical applications for the theory now in existence, or even again develop secondary theories and formulas derived from it. They will then be taken into account.
Potential clients of the Institute are individuals and organizations aiming at increasing or maintaining the amount of power they already possess. Potential students are individuals who want to know more about the Science of Power. We should therefore make a distinction between clients and students who come to us for two entirely different reasons. The client has problems of his own and is willing to pay well if we help him out. The student (against payment of a modest fee) will learn the basics of this science.
Those who are most likely to resort to our professional services belong to one of the eight following categories: governments, political parties, trade unions, intelligence departments, religious organizations, small bureaucrats or high ranking Civil servants, big and small corporations and firms, and finally military- or police organizations.
In short, the Institute is a profit-earning intellectual organization which sells its knowledge and expertise to clients, who are willing to pay just to get the right practical advice to solve their power problems.
WHAT WE CAN DO FOR OUR CLIENTS
FOR GOVERNMENTS
You have problems with guerrilla groups ? We can tell you how to get rid of them. You are at war with another country ? We could help you to win. If there is any danger that a revolution or civil war might break out in your country, we will then show you how to put the population back into its place and pacify it. You have problems with the internal restructuring of your society or inside the hierarchy ? The higher staff is disobedient ? There is a possibility that many high ranking members of the political class make an attempt to overthrow your government ? We can show you how to put back everything in order !
FOR POLITICAL PARTIES
You are looking for ways to neutralize or remove other parties from the political scene ? You want to harm the government (the party now in power) or even to overthrow it ? You're looking for means to seize power in your own country ? We can help you !
FOR INTELLIGENCE DEPARTMENTS
You wish to neutralize other agencies or even eliminate enemy organizations ? You wish to become the most important agency in your part of the world ? You want to infiltrate the enemy successfully, but to avoid being infiltrated yourself ? No doubt that we could be of use to you.
FOR HIGH RANKING CIVIL SERVANTS AND BUREAUCRATS
You wish to attain a better position quickly and make substantial progress inside the hierarchy or even, who knows, take the place of your boss ? You want to increase the size and power of your own department inside the national bureaucracy (governmental structure) ? With our help, you will certainly reach your goal !
MILITARY- AND POLICE ORGANIZATIONS
We can help you to bring down guerrilla groups, to subdue and silence political opponents, to eliminate organized crime if necessary, or to win wars with other countries. Armed forces usually seek to increase their importance and influence inside their own country and in the opinion of the political class. Sound advice and expertise from a private institute in these matters could be very useful.
TRADE UNIONS
There are many ways to gain union-monopoly in a definite working sector (to neutralize or drive away other unions from the area), to increase the proportion of union members or to win the many confrontations with employers, management and government. To that end, our consulting capabilities could bring the right answers to your problems.
BIG AND SMALL COMPANIES AND CORPORATIONS
How can you make your firm grow to become the biggest one in a definite business sector ? How can competition be disposed of or eradicated ? How should trade unions be dealt with ? How can we neutralize them ? How can employees and higher staff be made more subservient and disciplined ? Even the biggest corporations often need to take advice from outside sources, i.e. from private consultants. We're here to help.
RELIGIOUS ORGANIZATIONS
How can the influence of other religious organizations be neutralized ? How can we make our religion become the most important one in the world ? Which is the best way to subdue permanently both our believers and the whole world ? Those are the problems confronting every modern religion ! We've got part of all the answers. Just ask us !
WHAT WE CANNOT DO FOR OUR CLIENTS
Machiavelli Corporation can do no more than to offer adequate counseling services to its clients. It cannot act on their behalf. Sometimes we're only asked to survey a question, do some research and to draw up a detailed report. Consequently, nobody can accuse us of inducing people holding positions of power to misuse that power and to commit crimes, or even maintain that we indirectly bring about tyranny and violence. We are only advisors in strategic matters. We neither take action ourselves (we do not interfere in current events) nor do we induce others to do it for us. Some people merely ask us questions and we get paid to answer them !
We are Consulting experts in political- and military sciences. We do not know of any conflicts of interests in our business, because our ethical code is a very short one. Our only duty is to offer each of our clients (whoever it is) the best service possible at any time. In any case, it would even be possible for us to work for two clients (at the same time or successively) which are hostile to each other or have opposite interests. We could, for example, supply both the trade unions and management with our advice and expertise. This means no breach of ethics. Each client only needs to know that, whoever he may be, he will be provided with the best service and be given the best pieces of advice we can offer. Then, each of them is free to use this advice in whichever way he can or will, and this will determine the success of the endeavor.
It is impossible for us to transform a weak person into a strong one, or to turn a poor and humble citizen into a powerful and exalted leader. There are millions of ways in which someone's station in life could be improved. We cannot know all of them. Everyone must find his own way to get to the top. Besides, we must not forget that good or bad luck could also make the difference between success and failure. Our advice can only help individuals and organizations that already possess at least a minimum amount of power. We can help them to preserve or increase what power they have. On the other hand, it will never be possible to increase the power of somebody who has no power at all. There are no special rules telling people how to climb the first stairs leading to power. It follows that "power consultants" can only help powerful people, and this clearly shows the limits of our area of intervention.
WHAT WE CAN DO FOR OUR STUDENTS
Those who choose to study the basics of the Science of Power at the Machiavelli Corporation will get an introductory course which gives them access to a knowledge not available at any university, because our approach of the Science of Power is global and interdisciplinary. All students must submit to written exercises, the answering of whole series of questions, the successful completion of written tests and examinations, among which the "final exam" is proof enough that Khanology is both tough and serious, and that hard core knowledge like this is not easily assimilated.
PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS (A FEW CASE-SCENARIOS)
Here are a few far-fetched examples (the exaggeration is intentional) of what the practical use of Khanology could be. This shows that it could be used either for good- or evil purposes.
CASE-SITUATION NUMBER ONE
In a middle-sized town of Canada, ten grocery-stores are competing to serve the population and to increase or maintain their share of the market. One of these grocery-store's owners approaches the Machiavelli Corporation for help. He wants to eliminate half of his competitors (there shall be no more than five (5) grocery-stores in town), and to become the biggest of them all. Furthermore, he wants to do both at the same time. What are we going to suggest him ?
We can show this client that there are three ways and means to handle such a situation and reach both aims: legal means (if you want to stay legit at all costs), illegal means (if you are ready to take chances), and other means bordering on illegality but which are not strictly illegal. This third kind of 'means' is by far the most interesting. Such means at the edge of legality/illegality enable you to make use of this gray misty area lying just behind the defined borders of both legality and illegality. Let us give some examples.
Legal tactics: you can advertise more than your competitors, put bigger signs on your front windows (especially commercial illumination, big light-signs), put bigger ads in the newspapers, advertise through Radio- and TV-stations, sponsor sports events and activities (support your local team), but this is going to cost you (the price of legality can be very high sometimes) !
Illegal tactics: of course, you can blow away your competition with a 'bazooka' or portable rocket/missile-launcher, or you can pay an arsonist to burn down your competitors, but what happens if you get caught ? In that case, you could lose everything ! In its final report, the Machiavelli Corporation would mention some illegal means of getting rid of the competition, but it will always warn you that those tactics are very dangerous (they could backfire drastically), and emphasize that these are illegal means of getting ahead. In so doing, the Machiavelli Corporation is strictly legit and, through this 'warning', remains blameless at all times.
'On the edge' or 'tightrope' tactics: the beautiful part about them is that they always allow you a good defense in court, and that the other party has a hard time trying to prove anything against you. Those tactics almost always pay off !
You can pay one of your employees or somebody you trust to get hired by the competition. This new employee will be so clumsy, impolite with the clients, and lazy, that the competitors will suffer if they keep him around long enough. This undercover operation of yours could allow you, through your spy/mole, to get inside/sensitive information about your competitors and even to conceal sabotage operations behind the by then proverbial clumsiness of the new employee. Such things as collusion between you and your alleged accomplice and a deliberate conspiracy to bring down your competitors are very hard to prove; and if the meetings with your accessory were neither bugged nor subject to remote electronic surveillance, collusion is in fact impossible to prove. By the way, you could use more than one 'mole' to undermine the competition ! In this case, the Machiavelli Corporation would suggest to its client a combination of legal and 'tightrope' means to handle the situation.
CASE-SITUATION NUMBER TWO
A hotel manager wants to get rid of the current union representative without any unpleasant consequences. In fact, he wants this matter handled very carefully. This employee is not to be fired at all, but merely replaced by somebody else as union delegate. How can we do it ? He tells us that the hotel management has tried many tactics: harassing him at his work, threatening to fire him, trying lockouts, layoffs and other scare-tactics against other employees, but to no avail. The union is just too strong and too well protected by the law !
In this case, we would suggest them to try to discredit him, to damage his reputation, not towards his fellow workers this time, but vis-à-vis the trade union itself and the socialist party of which he also happens to be an active member. The beauty about this is that he will be rejected by his own people and find himself isolated. How exactly ? There are many ways to do it, be sure of that ! We can not reveal them because they are well kept secrets owned by the Machiavelli Corporation and used only to help clients in, shall we say, delicate and sometimes even desperate situations.
EXAMINATION (Beginner level: easy)
Tactics is the art of winning battles, strategy is the art of winning wars. Tactics aims at immediate and limited gains, while Strategy deals with the finality and the ultimate aim of both politics and war.
Which of the following factors, events, actions and activities belong to the realm of strategy, and which to that of tactics ?
1- An infantry battle has been won. Strategy or Tactics ?
2- A country's whole nuclear armament. Strategy or Tactics ?
3- Economic war. Strategy or Tactics ?
4- To coordinate the advance of several armies during the invasion of a foreign territory. S. or T. ?
5 - A colonel takes command of an airborne regiment. S. or T. ?
6- To fly a warplane (a jet fighter-plane) S. or T. ?
7- To plan the economy of a country at war S. or T. ?
8- To organize a political meeting S. or T. ?
9- A new government is elected (a new political party seizes power). S. or T. ?
10- A country's national debt is so high that it is going bankrupt. Strategy or Tactics ?
Answers HERE
EXAMINATION (Level: advanced, type: hard)
1- Who is Genghis Khan ?You have a Ph.D. in Strategic Studies from a renowned university and teach at a reputable military college. You are a high ranking civil servant working for the ministry of foreign affairs, an official of the government or a high ranking officer from the military. We are impressed. But if you are so important and so smart, if you are a true professional, you must be very good indeed at what you are doing. You have now the opportunity to show us, petty amateurs, just how good you are. Could you perhaps answer the following easy questions ? (172 in all !)
2- What is his historical significance and importance for political science ?
3- Tell the importance of the Baldjuna.
4- Tell about the usefulness of massacres.
5- Explain the purpose of stratagems of war and the military importance of deceit.
6- Describe the inner- or home politics of the Mongols.
7- Describe their foreign policy.
8- Give a brief outline of their military organization.
9- Describe their communication system.
10- What do you know about Mongol spies and intelligence gathering systems ?
11- What is the meaning of this expression "total power" ?
12- What is wrong about a conquest which rely solely on the military ?
13- Power is a multiplicity. Explain.
14- Why do people want power ?
15- Discuss the problem of inheritance or hereditary succession to an empire.
16- Discuss the problem of finding trustworthy associates and assistants.
17-How should such assistants be chosen; why is that choice so important ?
18- How can guerilla be fought, neutralized and/or undermined ?
19- What are the main rules to be observed when carrying out the occupation of a foreign country ?
20- What is to be done in case of armed rebellion ?
21- What are the first signs of decadence ?
22- How could decadence and downfall be avoided ?
23- How can we recognize a great leader ?
24- What are the main types of wars (the main forms it can take) ?
25- What is ideology usually used for ?
Answers HERE
26- What is the final aim or purpose of propaganda ?
27- Who succeeded Genghis Khan ? Give his name ?
28- Who was the "Uighur" wise man ?
29- Tell the name of the Khitan minister.
30- What was the name of the great sorcerer ?
31- What was the name of the leader of the Naïman people ?
32- What was the name of the Great Khan of the Keraïts ?
33- Compared to those of Genghis Khan, what can Hitler's main mistakes be ? Make up a list.
34- What are Napoleon's main military mistakes ? Make a list of them.
35- What does the word "Yassak" refer to. Explain its meaning and importance.
36- What is the "Billik" ?
37- Does the Yassak apply to everybody ?
38- What is the first great betrayal of the spirit of the Yassak that Kublai Khan committed ?
39- What is it that stopped Subutai's invasion of Europe in its very middle ?
40- Describe a massacre carried out in Mongol fashion (Mongol style).
41- Explain Mongol tactics.
42- Outline the strategy of the Mongols.
43- What is the function of diplomacy ?
44- What is the meaning of this expression: "total war" ?
45- What are the main problems with the very concept of total war ?
46- What was the name of Genghis Khan's first wife ?
47- What part did she play in the Khan's life ?
48- Has Genghis Khan personally lost a battle during his lifetime ? If not, who lost it ?
49- Who was Genghis Khan's main rival during the first period of his struggle to unify Mongolia ?
50- Why did he lose against Genghis Khan ?
Answers HERE
51- What act of provocation caused the Kharesmian war ?
52- Explain the function and the importance of the ambassador for the Mongols.
53- What prevented the conquest of Japan by the Mongols ?
54- What was the function and importance of religion in Genghis Khan's rise to power ?
55- What is the function of religion in the inner- or home politics of the Mongol empire ?
56- Who is the sworn enemy of the nomadic cause and the Mongol project?
57- What will be the doom of nomadism ?
58- What measures or actions would have been necessary to avoid the downfall of the Mongol empire ?
59- When did the unification of Mongolia take place ?
a) at the Kuriltaï of 118960- How did Genghis Khan make up for his illiteracy ?b) in 1194
c) at the Kuriltaï of 1206
d) in 1227
How did he counterbalance this state of things ?61- Did Genghis Khan consider culture and writing to be of any importance at all for him and his people ?
62- When did he find out its importance and who made him realize it ?
63- Who tried to start a guerilla war against the Mongols and why did he fail ?
64- How many sons did Genghis Khan have ? Name each one of them.
65- Why did he set aside his brother ?
66- Why did he kill another of his brothers ?
67- What are the main consequences of his father's untimely death ?
68- What are the political consequences of the choosing of Bortay as his main wife ?
69- What was the Mongol's most efficient weapon during the invasion of the Kara Khitai ?
70- Why was Si Hia's dissidence such a serious matter ?
71- What advantage did Alexander and Napoleon have over Genghis Khan at the beginning of their career ?
72- What role did generosity and popularity play in Genghis Khan's career ?
73- What role did loot and pillage play in Mongol home politics (in strengthening not only the ties between its people but also the whole nation itself) ?
74- Show the importance of the very name of this nation "Mongol" and of its symbol in the unification of the steppe (Mongolia) ?
75- What is the result of having the capital moved from Karakoroum to Peking ?
Answers HERE
76- What will happen if the Mongols decide to erect high walls and live in houses ?
77- What can be said about the election of Kublai Khan as Great Khan of the Mongols ?
78- What were Genghis Khan's last words ?
79- Should a good (effective) government be humane or slightly inhumane ?
80- Is it better to be loved or to be feared ?
81- What are the main problems arising from the occupation of a foreign country and how did the Mongols go about it to carry out such an occupation so easily ?
82- Why is it important to preserve and have respect for traditions ?
83- Each empire harbours the seeds of its own downfall. Comment.
84- What is the geo-military ?
85- What is geopolitics ?
86- What does the expression "politico-military" refer to ?
87- What exactly is political psychology ?
88- What is the meaning of this expression: communicatory psychology ?
89- What is the meaning of communicatory politics ?
90- Give the definition of psychological police.
91- Define psychological education.
92- Define police of education.
93- Define education of the police.
94- How can the immortality of the empire be brought about ?
95- What are the four great historical attempts to conquer the world ?
96- Why have three of these failed ?
97- The world (Asia) was in a chaotic state just before the advent of Genghis Khan. Is chaos a prerequisite or necessary- or favorable condition for the foundation of empires ?
98- Why did Genghis Khan have all those executed on the spot who handed him over their master ?
99- What is so remarkable in Genghis Khan's destiny ?.
100- What makes Yessougai and Philip of Macedon so different ?
b) What do they have in common ?Answers HEREc) What makes Temudjin's and Alexander's circumstances so different after the death of their fathers ?
101- Is it true that:
a) power aims at establishing order,102- What are the four ways for a ruling elite to lose its power ? How could this be avoided ?b) disorder is a sign of weakness,
c) an orderly society is a powerful one,
d) the more power, the more order,
e) the measure of the surrounding order is also the measure of the active power.
103- Should an intelligence service or intelligence agency remain fairly independent or should it be subjected to the political- and military authorities ?
104- A public speaker, especially a politician, should appeal to reason instead of emotion. True or false ?
105- A society that evolves too rapidly or that refuses to evolve is doomed. Why is it that both, too fast a change or no change at all, bring the same result: a downfall ?
106- Power has nothing to do with perfection, it consists in being able to impose one's own imperfection to other imperfections, so that they bear its mark. Comment.
107- A well educated population is much more difficult to rule than one where ignorance is rampant. What do you think then governments should prefer: ignorance or well informed educated people ? Comment.
108- Alexander could outdo almost all of his men. He could walk, run and ride longer and faster, and fight harder. He would leave far behind the most part of his almost totally exhausted army, and his trail was covered by the remains of his scouts and their horses that have simply collapsed along the way in an unsuccessful attempt to follow- and catch up with him. Compare this attitude with Genghis Khan's choice of a man able to feel pain, hunger and get tired like everybody else as general and leader of his troops, instead of a war hero with superhuman endurance and stamina. Did the Khan perhaps believe that the superhero would drive his men too hard ? Does a wise leader spare his men ?
109- Why was the army's rebellion and mutiny at the Hyphasus and Opis such a serious matter ? How can it be explained and does it threaten the whole empire ?
110- The two main conspiracies to overthrow and assassinate Alexander, those of Philotas and Callisthenes, indicate major problems with the inner politics of the empire. Comment.
111- Secret emissaries sent by Alexander murdered Attales and Parmenion in their own headquarters. These stealthy assassinations were viewed as necessary because it was feared that the soldiers of the two armies would take side with their general and oppose Alexander. On the other hand, Genghis Khan could send a mere soldier with a message to relieve a general of his command, and be obeyed without question or hesitation. What does this show about the real power of Genghis Khan compared with that of Alexander ?
112- A great national leader must not be a mere soldier, he must also be a good administrator and diplomat. Was Napoleon such a leader ?
113- Could somebody impatient, selfish, undisciplined, who can't stand criticism and do not spare the lives of his men be called a leader at all ?
114- A management of Home Affairs leading to economic crisis, unemployment, poverty and social unrest can hardly be considered successful home politics, just as crushing defeats in Spain, Egypt and Russia do not indicate either overwhelming tactical and strategical abilities or appropriate management of the troops and the troops' movements. By these standards, can Napoleon be said to have been really successful at anything ?
115- If you corrupt your generals and field marshals with vast amounts of gold, will they fight better or will they betray you more easily ?
116- A true leader knows how to choose his assistants and friends. Was Napoleon a true leader then ?
117- For leaving his men behind in Egypt (abandoning his post) while sailing back to France, Napoleon was likely to be court martialed. What does this say about the man, when we observe that he did it again twice: in Spain and in Russia ?
118- An unstable and changing mind, incapable of persistence in the course of actions taken, can never be fit for command. Were Napoleon and Hitler fit for command ?
119- Why was the continental blockade such a major mistake ? How did this throw France into an endless series of wars and regional conflicts, until a coalition of nations finally defeats its armies and brings down the napoleonic regime ?
120- Did the guerilla warfare in Spain and Russia really hurt the French army ? Was it responsible for significant losses among the troops and did it cause many problems to the French commanders ?
121- When is it to your advantage to make peace and when not ? What is peace good for ?
122- Why is stability on the inside so important when waging a foreign war ? How can it be established ?
123- What did France gain from the military campaign in Egypt ?
124- Should an army general who knows nothing about ships, the navy and seapower, should such a man be in a position to give orders to admirals and the admiralty and be in charge of planing the next war at sea ?
125- Was the invasion of England possible or a mere fantasy ?
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126- What are the main consequences of the Battle of Trafalgar for French colonial ambitions and the French navy in the next decades ?
127- What are the main mistakes made during the Russian Campaign ?
128- The capacities, virtues and dispositions necessary to seize power are not the same as those that one must have in order to successfully rule the country afterwards. Comment.
129- Certain qualities will bring success in home politics, others are necessary to succeed in foreign politics. Comment.
130- Hitler was a deceitful fanatic. Explain. What role did he see for himself ?
131- What is the importance of charisma and of being an outstanding speaker for a public figure ?
132- Hitler takes his dreams, fantasies and wishes for plain reality. He rejects objective analysis and cannot accept any kind of criticism. This is his personal path leading to certain disaster. Comment.
133- A strong political organization is necessary to arrange meetings, prepare the annual party convention, win the elections, attract new members and to have the necessary bureaucracy at hand once power is taken over. Comment.
134- Could the racist ideology of national socialism be seen as feeble, since it has not really survived the defeat of 1945 and was only revived by some marginal groups in a few countries during the second part of the twentieth century ?
135- What is national socialism's main victory in home politics ?
136- The foreign policy of National socialism was never much of a success ? Tell us why.
137- How exactly was Hitler finally drawn into waging a war on two fronts ?
138- Hitler is gifted in the offensive and very capable of organizing a successful attack, but when it comes to take a defensive stance or to initiate a strategical retreat, the only order he can give is to hold the position at all costs: "to the last man". Comment.
139- Who was Hassan Ibn Sabbah and what was so extraordinary about him ?
140- Describe the special nature of the political and military power of the Order of the Assassins in Asia and especially in the Middle East in the Middle Ages ?
141- Machiavelli gives in "The Prince" algebra-like formulas or rules to be followed, by governments and dictators alike, in order to control populations and maintain "law and order". Do you think such rules apply in most cases, even in all cases ?
142- Is a "Power formula" possible (a formula to attain and maintain total power) or is it sheer fantasy ?
143- Is it advisable to try to solve home-political problems through foreign politics (especially war) ?
144- The notion of "overstretch" (3) could explain the decline and fall of many empires: to spread oneself too thin, to have too many fronts to defend, too many enemies. Especially the "strategical overstretch": the price of possessing many territories is the existence of numerous foes. Comment.
145- Another aspect of "strategical overextension": to become military top-heavy for one's weakening economic base. One must maintain the balance between material resources and military power. If you overstrain yourself in all directions, you become weak at heart. This causes internal problems and economic decline. Comment.
146- Examples of overstretch in history (3): the Habsburg Spain and Austria, the Ottoman Turks, the napoleonic armies, the Germans and the Japanese. If you scatter your armies, they will be inferior in numbers and equipment on every front. If you maintain an overextended strategical posture while your economic base is shrinking, you will become vulnerable to the fact that weapon prices are often rising faster than inflation. Comment.
147- Every new weapon system is several times costlier than the one it replaces. What should be done if the money is short: cut allocations to all armed services or cut some of the nation's defense commitments ? Comment.
148- "Imperial overstretch" (3). When the sum total of a country's global interests and obligations is far larger than its power to defend them, should it not abandon some of its abroad or overseas interests now before it experiences defeat and is forced to withdraw ?
149- External or territorial expansion means COSTS OF WAR: a strain on the economy, the population (the productive force), the industrial capacity and the military forces. Are the potential benefits outweighed by the great expense of it all ?
150- Should a government spend more on the military or invest in growth and in "research and development" ? Wealth is needed to make military power grow, and military power is usually needed to acquire and protect wealth. Nevertheless, large scale armaments and the supplying of armies are a burden in peacetime. If too large a proportion of the state's resources is diverted from wealth creation and allocated instead to the military, this will mean a weakening of national power over the longer term (economic decline, even economic collapse). Comment.
Answers HERE
151- Military spending brings short-term security, investment in production and growth brings long-term economic security. There are also the social requirements (the social needs) of the population. Economic health means proper balance between defense spending, domestic consumption and capital investment. Comment.
152- Military power is dependent on economic conditions. It rests on adequate supply of wealth, a productive industrial base, healthy finances and superior technology. Comment.
153- Profit and power should go hand in hand. A flourishing economic base is necessary to develop a military apparatus of the first rank. In Great Power wars, victory has always gone to the side with the greatest material resources and the more flourishing productive base. Comment.
154- Military strength depends on productive and revenue-raising capacities. Economic resources are necessary to maintain large-scale military establishments. A broadbased industrial infrastructure is needed to support vast armies and expensive and complicated weaponry used in modern warfare. Comment.
155- The power of a nation-state by no means consists only in its armed forces, but also in its economic and technological resources; in the dexterity, foresight and resolution with which its foreign policy is conducted; in the efficiency of its social and political organization. It consists most of all in the nation itself, the people, their skills, energy, ambition, discipline, initiative, their beliefs, myths and illusions. And it consists, further, in the capacity of its population and government to innovate and improve things. Comment.
156- The problem of overstretch or imperial anemia (a nation or army spreading itself too thin) can be easily avoided. If instead of a continuous nonstop expansion we choose a pulsative stretch out (a pulsative expansion), we will give the nation a chance to rest and recover from the early stages of the spread. To pulsate is to expand and then contract and then expand again. The stage of contraction can be seen as a time of recovery and consolidation after the strains of the spreading. After a successful war, the victor has to consolidate, i.e. to take several years to absorb and assimilate the newly acquired territories and colonies. Furthermore, army leaders and politicians should never be afraid of a tactical retreat. Retreats and contractions are necessary from time to time and truly belong to the pulsatory process. There will always be time for further expansion in the future. Comment.
157- How can a 'balancing act' be effected between weapons modernization, the people social requirements and the need to channel available resources into 'productive' nonmilitary enterprises ?
158- Investment in research and development (R & D) must precede investment in 'production'. Comment.
159- The welfare of the population goes before any spending on military security. There is no point in defending a sick and dying population. Comment.
160- Military establishment and the waging of wars must bring in advantages and profit in the long run and be beneficial to the population. Otherwise why make war ? Comment.
161- The trend with high technology towards more expensive and less numerous weapons (fewer weapons at higher cost) suggest that quality in weaponry could be employed to counter superior quantity of more primitive tanks and airplanes. But cannot the opposite be true: vast quantities could be used to overwhelm and overpower 'quality in small numbers' ? Comment.
162- What can a declining power do when its position is threatened by one or several much younger, stronger and faster growing neighbour powers ? If their economic growth is faster than its own, a power-shift is likely to occur. What can you do in such a situation ? You can induce these countries to waste their surpluses in frivolous and vain pursuits and make them spend it in unproductive sectors. In so doing, you are taking away from them all the advantages that their superior growth rate could have given them. So, they will begin to decline even before they had any chance to reach their peak. Comment.
163- Decentralization is good. It permits and encourages a healthy economic competition between several regions of the same country. Comment.
164- A centralized government can make faster decisions in foreign politics and can react more swiftly to actions, events and crises initiated by other countries. Comment.
165- The best form of government is probably a dictatorship because people are incapable of ruling themselves. It is political romanticism to believe that all people are equal and that a government "for the people by the people" is possible. Comment.
166- When it comes to scientific research and technical development, enough freedom must be granted. Those working in technical and scientific institutes need freedom to allow their imagination to blossom to the fullest and make sure that their research projects will be completed under the most favourable conditions. We must give the scientific community enough room to breathe. Comment.
167- Naturally, the above does not apply to the majority of the population, to those we call "ordinary people". Freedom should apply only to technicians and scientists (the technical and scientific elite). Ordinary citizens and members of the government should be concerned only with authoritarism and the law; the first ones have to obey it, the others to enforce it. So is it as it should be ! Comment.
168- After a victory, SHOULD WE LET THE VANQUISHED LIVE ? Twenty years later, the defeated country could win a new war against its previous victor and oppressor. Defeated countries of today and yesterday can become tomorrow's most dangerous enemies and competitors. The history of the Mongols and Genghis Khan's biography show that the historical mistake made by all nations has always been to enslave the vanquished nations and people instead of exterminating them.
The "dialectic of master and slave" is a good example. The master gets so used to being served, that he becomes weak and lazy; being dependent, he is in fact subordinate to his slave and loses his power. Then, the former slave takes over and becomes the new master. It would have been much better for the master to eliminate his enemy (the slave). A dead slave or dead enemy can never rise again and be a threat to your personal security. The same thing goes for struggles between nations. If you let the vanquished live, you give it thereby a chance to recover and become, say, in twenty or thirty years, the formidable adversary it once was. Comment.
169- Is change always positive ? Is it possible to change for the worse ?
170- Conservatism is needed to maintain law and order in society. It is useful to prevent clashes between several individual freedoms evolving in and leading to separate directions. Excessive freedom must be held in check in order to avoid anarchic tendencies. Comment.
171- Change, meaning improvement and innovation, is an important factor in the maintenance of power. Innovation in weaponry, machinery, or the organization of the workforce and work schedule can be viewed as positive. But when change and freedom threaten the very structure and fabric of society or the official ideology, they must be considered dangerous and proscribed. Comment.
172- People are human, it is therefore necessary that their leaders and systems of government contain a measure of inhumanity to be truly efficient. Humanity compels us to make exceptions, allowances and to show indulgence; but laws, rules and regulations should not tolerate exceptions and deviations in their application and enforcement, otherwise nobody would take them seriously and obey them, and they would serve no purpose at all. The best form of government is therefore one that is slightly inhumane. Comment.
Answers HERE
People taking an interest in strategy in general may be tempted to join a strategy club. They may be interested in the classical political- and military strategy or in new forms it can take. Either as a hobbyist, serious adept or semiprofessional a member of such a club should be at least able to find three things:
- useful information on computer simulationsNot everybody has ever had the chance to study at a military college or at the department of strategic studies of a renowned university. But there is an alternative: a place where not exactly the same things are taught, a strategy club, where you learn that "power is a multiplicity" and that the classical political and military strategy is only one part of the greater "science of power" we call Khanology.- a suggestion of books
- even an introductory course if need be.
Notes:
(1) The Anatomy of Power, Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston 1983.
(2) BARBARA TUCHMAN, The March of Folly, Alfred A. Knopf Inc., New York 1984.
(3) PAUL KENNEDY, The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers,
Fontana Press, London 1989. First Edition: Random House, U.S.A. 1988.
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