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Highly Motivated
North Miami Beach, FL April 23, 2002
A.H. Schectman
THINKING ALLOWED
Essays on Issues, Ideas and Reflections on the Times. Published now and
then. Opinions pro or con are welcome.
THE HIGHLY MOTIVATED CLAIM THE PRIZE
In his analysis of the result of the French right wing discontent
with moderate leadership in this most recent election, Paul Krugman wrote
today in the NY Times that high motivation sometimes carries the day. I
think he is right. History shows that small, energetic bands of nomads and
unlikely "napoleons" sweep all before them and change the world. Alexander
(named "The Great"), Julius Caesar, Saladin and Charles the Great
(Charlemagne) are all examples of this type of achiever - the "A"
personality.
Le Pen, France's right wing extremist, has frightened the thinkers
who write in the NY Times and two long articles appeared today on the OP ED
page. Let us be instructed by the results of this by-election. It now
seems that the French, that enlightened short-brained race, will have a
choice between a right and a left. Whatever the outcome, they will have
made the choice that seems right for them. For us to call the election one
thing or another is inappropriate. Let the French be French.
What is correct is the title of this essay. The highly motivated
often do claim the prize. We have seen athletic events where the plucky and
driven outdistance the favored who listlessly allow the unlikely to sweep
all before them. The sluggish will not inherit the leadership of the world.
What is really called to mind is the aberrant event in history
that really changes it. Think of the small band of radicals called the
Bolsheviks (means go fast) who stole the Russian Revolution from the
Mensheviks (means go slow). We have learned lessons from their willingness
to do the unimaginable, their ruthlessness, their willingness to murder
millions and their acquiesance to following madmen like Stalin who was very
much the counterpart of Hitler and Mussolini in those days.
The highly motivated are the school-board members who will stay
later, do more and become more highly involved than those who are place
takers and somehow got a place on the Board. The unmotivated look around
and see who says yea and goes along while the hustler goes on to organize
things the way he sees them. Carol's Evaluation: 10 out of 10.
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