The crown prince was in captivity. His father dies. He is released on one condition: he must surrender lands from his kingdom. The crown prince agrees.
He returns to his homeland, ascends the throne, and summons three generals. He presents the situation and asks whether the lands should be given up or not.
The first general says:
“You gave your word. You must keep it.”
The second says:
“A country is strong through its land. Land must not be surrendered.”
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The third says:
“The lands should not be given away, but at this moment we do not have the strength to withstand an attack. Send me to seek help from a neighboring kingdom.”
The king listens to all of them and turns to his advisor, asking whose counsel he should follow.
The advisor replies:
“All three.”
The first general goes to negotiate. The second prepares for a counterattack. The third returns with allied forces. As a result, the invader retreats in panic, and the king restores his lands.*
In political and civic culture, there is often an attempt to find one single “correct” path. Endless arguments begin over which option is the only effective one, while all other options are dismissed one by one, with countless explanations of why they will fail.
Yet every idea contains the potential for development. The value of an idea lies not only in sounding convincing, but in being put into action.
If there is a clear goal, then the more different paths that work toward it at the same time, the harder it becomes for the opponent to resist. But the more time spent searching for the one “true” solution, the more time and opportunity the opponent gains.
When your friend proposes an idea for action, it is often more useful to help test it than to immediately prove why it will not work.
And conversely, if you find yourself in a group where the moment someone expresses an idea people begin listing all the reasons it is impossible, separate yourself from that group. But do not take offense, and continue helping them when necessary, remembering the idea from The Strategic Armenian Part 3.1: resentment harms the common goal.
On the path of the Armenian mission—to make the region and planet Earth more ordered, secure, and developing—all ideas have the right to be born and tested. The more there are, the greater the chance of success.
In the first part of The Strategic Armenian, it was discussed that one of the possible forces capable of restoring order and justice in the world is the Armenian people.
In the second part, it was argued that to fulfill that mission, national identity must be elevated to a supranational level — a consciousness of being useful to planet Earth.
Next, we explore what kind of thinking, behavior, and way of life are necessary for this national-supranational mission to succeed. You can also read: Part 3.1 Rise Above Offence | Part 3.2 Restrain Your Opinion
*Chinese Stratagem No. 35
Hovhannes ISHKHANYAN
