What follows is my analysis of the Obama Campaign filtered through the lens of my understanding of Taoism, specifically as it relates to passages in the Tao Te Ching ("Book of the Way and Its Power"). This essay will not be exhaustive, but I hope it serves as an informative piece, especially for those of us interested in strategy and novel thought. Novel thought for many in the West, anyway.
While Senator Obama is neither a sage nor even a Taoist, his campaign reminds me of many of the themes and principles of my own martial path, a martial path steeped in Taoist thinking. To put it simply, his opponents have been like mountains, and he has been like water. Between the two, I'd choose water any day. An understanding of Taoism helps to illustrate the reasons for that choice and its impact on the campaign trail.
For those who need a refresher, a short introduction into the nature of Taoism may be in order. For that, it would better to go here.
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Other diaries have reflected on Obama's Aikido-like approach to politics. These diaries did in fact inform my thinking about his candidacy. Being a martial artist myself, it intrigued me to explore how martial and Eastern philosophy can be used to explain certain aspects of the Obama Campaign. What I discovered has led to a greater respect for Senator Obama's skills.
One of the more salient points in the Tao te Ching concerning Obama is the verse on leadership:
- Rulers
The best rulers are scarcely known by their subjects;
The next best are loved and praised;
The next are feared;
The next despised:
They have no faith in their people,
And their people become unfaithful to them.
When the best rulers achieve their purpose Their subjects claim the achievement as their own.
It is true that we have not often known the "best" rulers in our time, both as a practical matter and for the fact that it would contradict their value, since "known" rulers cannot be the "best" rulers, according to the Tao. For many this may seem to be a contradiction, but consider that some of the best times in your life probably came from a sense of accomplishment born of your own efforts. Success ascribed to a ruler holds the potential to either erode the peoples' belief in their own worth or cause the perception that the ruler is aloof. In some ways this is what made Roosevelt so great, not because of his own actions, but the actions he was able to lead the people to accept – actions that lead many to hail that generation as the greatest ever produced by our nation. Unfortunately, republics can only rarely maintain such leadership, as the public must know the ruler well enough to support that ruler, and often that knowledge leads directly to assertions that he or she is either great or petty. Of course, the alternatives often lead to extremes, and are therefore worse than representative democracy.
So, how does this relate to Obama? Consider this excerpt from a recent article many of you may have read at Newsweek's website, entitled "Sit Back, Relax, Get Ready to Rumble":
Some candidates are feared and respected by their staffs, but they are very rarely liked after a few grueling months on the campaign trail. Obama seems to have retained the affection of his.
Here we see Obama illustrated, unwittingly perhaps, as the next best thing to the unknown ruler: the beloved ruler. So it goes – if I cannot have my way, I would have your love, and failing that, your fear. So, for the moment Obama appears two steps away from the enmity of his subordinates, which is miles away from the worst kind of leader. Bush, unfortunately for us all, has earned his place at the other end of the spectrum. The difference can be seen in the quality of the results. You don't have to look at Obama for verification of this principle: just compare Roosevelt and Bush. When Roosevelt became visible, he also became loved, generally. When Bush becomes visible, the best he can hope for is fear, although it usually transfers directly to some level of vitriol or exasperation.
We can see that, consciously or not, Obama is following the Way. The only confirmation you need is the preamble of his website: "I'm asking you to believe. Not just in my ability to bring about real change in Washington ... I'm asking you to believe in yours." Do you see here the parallel with the last line of verse 17? He is asking you to accept any achievement of his campaign and eventual administration as your own achievement. This isn't just good politics, nor is it even superficial. If he can get you to do this, we have all won in that our self-worth will increase. Underlying all this is the tacit pronouncement that you are worth more than what your government has given you, that you have power and dignity. Populations so affirmed have proven hard to subvert or conquer. Just look at Sparta (whatever qualms you may have with Spartan society, you cannot see them as easily cowed and afflicted with low self-esteem). The argument here is that a government for and by the people must comport with that nation's self-worth. Such an arrangement has led to our greatest successes as a people.
We have examined Obama's leadership style. Now we will turn to the nature of his strategy. This, for me, is the most important component of Obama's present success. It lies at the core of the fifty state strategy. Obama is teaching us to fight like water:
- Water
The best of man is like water,
Which benefits all things, and does not contend with them,
Which flows in places that others disdain,
Where it is in harmony with the Way.
This is a central theme in Asian martial arts and Oriental strategic thinking. In my own art, there is no other principle so all-encompassing. All other principles flow from and return to this principle: be like water. How does this relate to the fifty state strategy? Easy. The best way to attack an entrenched opponent is to exploit his assumptions to your advantage. For instance, in the First Gulf War, Hussein believed that his strength was the desert, asserting that the U.S. Army would become lost in the trackless waste. General Schwartzkopf exploited this assumption through the use of GPS navigation, annihilating the enemy's ability to resist. Similarly, Obama has exploited Senator Clinton's assumption that smaller caucus states "don't matter" by piling up huge margins in states that are traditionally Republican bailiwicks. Obama has flowed around the defenses of the opposition to counter on unexpected ground. Like water. And when the results came in, the little creek that Clinton observed had swelled into a tidal wave. She has never recovered, and the tide keeps rising. You see, the value in water is that it will take the form of it surroundings, but it cannot be compressed: it flows and crashes. Be like water. Lao Tzu said: "Nothing in the world is as soft and yielding as water, yet nothing can better overcome the hard and strong, for they can neither control nor do away with it."
Another aspect of Obama's success has been his ability to harmonize with the polity. The reason people will say things like "he means all things to all people" as a criticism is because he is approaching at the level of principle, not policy. To be sure, he definitely has easily definable policies, despite the fact that many of his surrogates seem ignorant of their existence. However, he uses the proper tool at the proper time (in most cases). Not every moment requires wonkish browbeating. Instead he will often speak to the basis of his policy positions – the underlying principles that guide the positions he's adopted. This leads people to decry his speeches as fluff, lacking in substance, or accuse him of being a lightweight. Ironically, this "fluff" has been of great use to him, because it is not really fluff at all. Opponents call it fluff because they cannot deduce a point of departure from his conclusions (i.e. few will speak against hope), and the reason for that is that Obama is speaking to the bedrock of the American self-image. This goes back to the previous point concerning a people's self-worth. Obama is affirming the value of the public's basic image of itself. His policies flow from this basic affirmation: the belief that we should invest in innovation (R&D), that hard work should be rewarded (middle class tax cuts), that you should give back to your community in exchange for what it has given to you (student grants in exchange for community service), and that we should walk softly and carry a big stick (smart diplomacy, getting out of Iraq, G.I. Bill of rights, etc.). All of these are outgrowths of American identity. This is what his opponents miss. It is the underlying motive force behind how we choose our leaders, alluded to in the race-baiting and identity politics of the past – that we choose leaders who are like us. In the past, the only way this was done was to present a face that you could see in the mirror. Now Obama has identified with us on a whole new level: he presents us with a mirror image of our national spirit. In our civil religion, this is our most sacred aspect, more important than the flag.
In this manner, as well as others, he is conforming to the Way, in that he approaches the status of the unknown by becoming the mirror image of our inner selves. You shouldn't see this as anything mystical. People do this all the time. When you speak to another person, you often take on the mannerisms of that person. This is usually (but not always) subconscious. Neither party seems to notice such maneuvering. In this way you assume their identity, influencing their perspective on you. You are engaging in identity politics at the level of body language: you are like them, and therefore more acceptable. This is one of the common human tools that leads to comity. Obama has moved from the physical to the metaphysical while employing the same tool, although I do not know if he has done so consciously. If it is unconscious, it speaks to superb instincts – otherwise I'd be tempted to call him a genius.
As Lao Tzu put it:
- Harmony
Embracing the Way, you become embraced;
Breathing gently, you become newborn;
Clearing your mind, you become clear;
Nurturing your children, you become impartial;
Opening your heart, you become accepted;
Accepting the world, you embrace the Way.
Bearing and nurturing,
Creating but not owning,
Giving without demanding,
This is harmony.
Yet the way ahead will not be easy, despite Obama's appeal. He acknowledges as much. So does Lao Tzu:
- Difficult Paths
With but a small understanding
One may follow the Way like a main road, Fearing only to leave it;
Following a main road is easy,
Yet people delight in difficult paths.
When palaces are kept up
Fields are left to weeds
And granaries empty;
Wearing fine clothes,
Bearing sharp swords,
Glutting with food and drink,
Hoarding wealth and possessions -
These are the ways of theft,
And far from the Way.
We see here what Obama has been saying all along: you can't make great strides without great sacrifice. If Obama gets his way, people won't be in love with his policies, because sacrifice hurts. Furthermore, the constant struggle between our sense of community and our sense of individuality will be brought to the fore and hotly debated. The saving of our planet and the rescuing of our national security and soul will, by the vary nature of the struggle, require personal sacrifice for the good of the community. All of us realize that sacrifice is necessary from time to time, even Republicans. The question is what will be the nature of that sacrifice, and how far must we go? Can we maintain palaces without allowing our fields to go fallow? Lao Tzu suggests that we cannot. Here is where Obama breaks from the Tao (after all, he never said he wished to follow it): Obama believes that the maintenance of our palace will be achieved through the tending of our crops. In other words, the solving of our environmental and social problems will assist, not incapacitate, our economic growth. You see this in the talk of "green collar jobs" and National Healthcare. We shift the engine of our economy from consumption of oil to creation of energy alternatives, and we remove the financial burden of HMOs from corporations so that they can become more globally competitive.
But all of this is moot if we cannot save ourselves from ourselves before the election. To this, Lao Tzu says:
- Reconciliation
When conflict is reconciled, some hard feelings remain;
This is dangerous.
The sage accepts less than is due
And does not blame or punish;
For harmony seeks agreement
Where justice seeks payment.
The ancients said: "nature is impartial;
Therefore it serves those who serve all."
Ultimately Obama must show Clinton's supporters that he is truly the mirror image of their principles and aspirations. If he can, all of us will benefit, and our nation's way will reflect our best selves. Then even those who disagreed with Obama will know they were always worthy, because they will believe in their own power again.