![]() “Sometimes you have to speak to the a**hole in the only language they understand and that means you have to get your hands dirty… If somebody has a long history of hurting you, and they have a Machiavellian personality, the only thing they understand is a display of force. ![]() Sutton argues that if your a**hole is particularly exploitative and malicious, there is a need to fight them – while maintaining emotional distance as per his above advice. In contrast to even tiny and distant Australia’s firm stance, the Europeans are bizarrely happy to work with a man who is happy to see their societies in chaos and destruction.įight back. It’s stupid in practical terms because it has, in eight years and eight months, achieved nothing for their interests, no less Ukraine’s it’s repugnant in moral terms to give acknowledgement to a war criminal and state terrorist, as deemed by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe this week. ![]() Despite having been burnt time and time again, they continue to engage with Putin on a publicly respectful and peer-like level. This effective tactic of denial and dismissal is, regretfully, in contrast to that of some world leaders, including those of France, Germany and Italy. Ukraine even actively positions a small, cute, bomb-sniffing Jack Russell Terrier – named Ammo – as a happy and humorous contrast to Putin’s faux machismo. Starting from its man-of-the-moment comedian, President Volodymyr Zelensky, through to the official social media feeds of its government and military, and down to the vast citizen army of content creators and meme makers, Putin is just a joke. In the midst of a brutal war, it laughs at and mocks Putin. That is, Ukraine simply refuses to take Putin seriously, give him any substantive recognition, or show any sign of intimidation. Rather, Ukraine deploys a straightforward but smart method to starve Putin of the psychological control, narcissistic reward and political objectives he most seeks: status as a global player and “master strategist.” It doesn’t directly engage with his blatant lies, “consistently inconsistent” claims, propaganda narratives, or political showmanship. Ukraine has mastered this strategy with Putin. In psy-op terms, going back to Sun Tzu, this is also about choosing to fight on your preferred battlefield not on your foe’s. Not giving a shit takes the wind out of an a**hole’s sails.” He told an interviewer: “One of the simplest – but admittedly hardest – things you can do is simply learn not to give a shit. This in turn denies them the validation, credibility and, especially, emotional power over others that they crave. Sutton calls this “tactical avoidance”: when one does everything to steer clear of and not engage with an a**hole’s behavior. How to respond to an a**hole? Here are some distilled insights from Sutton’s work, as well as from basic concepts of counter-propaganda and psychological warfare that this writer was trained in by the U.S. They want to make you feel hurt and upset they take pleasure in it.” In other words, someone who makes you feel like dirt. To start with, Sutton’s definition of a**hole fits Putin well: “An a**hole is someone who leaves us feeling demeaned, de-energized, disrespected, and/or oppressed. His work translates well in the context of Russia’s war on Ukraine. He has gathered reams of empirical data on what makes for vindictive jerks and bullies in organizations and how best to protect oneself from them. Ukraine’s methods actually align with some of the thinking of Stanford professor of organizational behavior, Dr Robert Sutton, who has devoted an entire academic career to the topic of, literally, dealing with a**holes. And to keep things balanced, He gave it the worst neighbor in the world.” Following at least one Russian invasion every century since the 12th century, Stalin’s forced famine that killed more than 5 million Ukrainians in the 1930s, and decades of Soviet Russification and political repression, Ukrainians know what best works when confronted with an authoritarian dictator and the warped and wicked imperial culture that Vladimir Putin presides over. An old adage says: “God created a beautiful country called Ukraine. However, its response at the level of psychological warfare could well be improved, including by following the lead of Ukraine itself.īluntly put, Ukraine knows how to deal with a**holes. This week, the West has been swift and clear in its military and diplomatic response to Vladimir Putin’s latest round of mass missile attacks on civilian targets in Ukraine’s cities.
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