Tuesday, February 21, 2006
Feeling Froggy
No, this isn't about France, not directly anyway!
A few minutes ago some diplomat-critter was interviewed on Fox, and he dismissed the notion of acting militarily against Persia. Said: Can you imagine the furor that would erupt on the Arab Street?
Wrong, wrong, wrong. And thanks for helping the enemy by showing weakness, buddy.
----
Way back in Oklahoma, my not-so-academic friends used to talk about feeling froggy. I never understood it fully, except that it meant ready for a fight. For whatever reason, I had never experienced this state of being.
Never, that is, until about 8 years ago. At that time downtown Spokane was overrun by skateboarding assholes, who enjoyed playing cat-and-mouse games with unsuspecting adults. One afternoon a skateboarding asshole was playing with me; he skidded in front and cut me off, then saw that I was crossing a street, and zoomed across to cut me off on the other side. Right then I had absolutely had it. I didn't feel angry or hot; just ready to do whatever was necessary. Ready to calmly smash his miserable head through the nearest window if that was necessary. In other words, froggy. I kicked his skateboard into the air; it landed in the middle of the street. I said simply "Get out of the way.", then walked on toward my destination, ready for whatever might happen. He squawked for a while, threatening to do innumerable and unspeakable things to my white ass, but he did nothing.
After that day, no skateboarding assholes bothered me. Not one, not ever.
Moral: Feeling froggy is a readable signal. Because savages are social creatures, they pass the word quickly. Presumably the word was something like "Don't bother that ugly honky; he crazy." Phrased, of course, in whatever idiot slang was common among that particular set of savages.
Same thing applies on a larger scale. Invading Iraq was consummately froggy, and the original idea was pure frog. Show Persia and Arabia that we have absolutely had it with Allah, and that we're ready to do anything, relevant or not, to smash their miserable heads.
But Kindler Gentler Georgie spoiled the signal by explaining it in all sorts of irrelevant and non-froggish ways, then moderating the force.
That's not how you get respect from savages.
You hit sharply and surprisingly. ¶ 8:56 AM
No, this isn't about France, not directly anyway!
A few minutes ago some diplomat-critter was interviewed on Fox, and he dismissed the notion of acting militarily against Persia. Said: Can you imagine the furor that would erupt on the Arab Street?
Wrong, wrong, wrong. And thanks for helping the enemy by showing weakness, buddy.
----
Way back in Oklahoma, my not-so-academic friends used to talk about feeling froggy. I never understood it fully, except that it meant ready for a fight. For whatever reason, I had never experienced this state of being.
Never, that is, until about 8 years ago. At that time downtown Spokane was overrun by skateboarding assholes, who enjoyed playing cat-and-mouse games with unsuspecting adults. One afternoon a skateboarding asshole was playing with me; he skidded in front and cut me off, then saw that I was crossing a street, and zoomed across to cut me off on the other side. Right then I had absolutely had it. I didn't feel angry or hot; just ready to do whatever was necessary. Ready to calmly smash his miserable head through the nearest window if that was necessary. In other words, froggy. I kicked his skateboard into the air; it landed in the middle of the street. I said simply "Get out of the way.", then walked on toward my destination, ready for whatever might happen. He squawked for a while, threatening to do innumerable and unspeakable things to my white ass, but he did nothing.
After that day, no skateboarding assholes bothered me. Not one, not ever.
Moral: Feeling froggy is a readable signal. Because savages are social creatures, they pass the word quickly. Presumably the word was something like "Don't bother that ugly honky; he crazy." Phrased, of course, in whatever idiot slang was common among that particular set of savages.
Same thing applies on a larger scale. Invading Iraq was consummately froggy, and the original idea was pure frog. Show Persia and Arabia that we have absolutely had it with Allah, and that we're ready to do anything, relevant or not, to smash their miserable heads.
But Kindler Gentler Georgie spoiled the signal by explaining it in all sorts of irrelevant and non-froggish ways, then moderating the force.
That's not how you get respect from savages.
You hit sharply and surprisingly. ¶ 8:56 AM
