War
We live in a culture that promotes democratic values of being fair to one and all, the importance of fitting into a group, and knowing how to cooperate with other people.
We are taught early in life that those who are outwardly combative and aggresive pay a social price: unpopularity and isolation....
The problem for us is that we are trained and prepared for peace, and we are not at all prepared for what confronts us in the real world --- WAR.
This war exists on several levels. Most obviously, we have our rivals on the other side. The world has become increasingly competitive and nasty. In politics, business, even the arts, we face opponents who will do almost anything to gain an edge. More troubling and complex, however, are the battles we face with those who are supposedly on our side.
There are those who outwardly play the team game, who act very friendly and agreeable, but who sabotage us behind the scenes, use the group to pormote their own agenda.
Other, more difficult to spot, play subtle games of passive aggression, offering help that never comes, instilling guilt as a secret weapon.
On the surface everything seems peaceful enough, but just below it, it is every man and woman for him - or herself, this dynamic infecting even families and relationships.
The culture may deny this reality and promote a gentler picture, but we know it and feel it, in our battle scars.
~ Robert Greene~
My life is.... what it is, therefore I am ... what I am.