On Fools and Cowards: Be neither

This post is inspired by a quote usually attributed to William Francis Butler.

“The nation that will insist on drawing a broad line of demarcation between the fighting man and the thinking man is liable to find its fighting done by fools and its thinking done by cowards.”

I would suggest this to be true not only to the nation, but also to the individual. You must be sure not to be either. This sentence suggests that the warriors train their craft so much and devote so little time to study the ways the world, strategy, politics, sociology and philosophy that they are fierce and brave but also fools in that they lack other important knowledge.

Inversely, the strategists, politicians, sociologists, philosophers and businessmen spend so much time in their crafts and devote negligible focus in their fighting and physical training, that though they have the knowledge and authority to make decisions, they are cowards at heart as they cannot deal with confrontation.

Neither is being self-sufficient, and neither should be acceptable.

But it takes time to develop these things, and it takes commitment and it takes the self awareness to know where you really are, where you should be and work to bridge the gap.

To not be a fool, you need to study the past, the present and what believable people think the future will bring. subject matter expertise is important, whatever it is you choose as your area of interest, but knowing how the world and society around you works is also crucial if you are to be all you can be. You aim to be wise.

To not be a coward, you need to be comfortable with physical training and fighting. That means being able to carry heavy weights, handle your own body weight and be flexible. In fighting, I hope you join me in jiu jitsu at least as a self defense tool but also know how to give and take a punch because you never know when you'll need to protect yourself or those you love. And the mental fortitude that comes from practicing tough training sessions both in the gym and on the mats will yield benefits in your other knowledge areas too. You aim to be strong and brave

I hope you get these at a young age. Rafael I certainly didn't, and know that if I had gotten them earlier in my life they would've been extremely valuable and I would've stood up for myself more growing up, but I guess it led to where and who I am today, so it's all good and all part of life and living.

Be Wise, Be Brave and Be Strong. Be whole.