THIRTY-SIX STRATAGEMS

 Submitted by: Joseph Grisafi Jr

So many of these tactics have been used against our country, our politicians.............and us for years, decades, and longer. And like many of these tactics say; we let our guard down, become complacent, no longer vigilant, and more.

Sadly, even our own government; our own politicians use many of these tactics against its own citizens. And we let it happen. I barely touch on a few.

If you can connect the dots and read between the lines everyone of these can have a response. Everyone of these can be tied or traced in one way or another to every law, every bill, every regulation or rule that has been written over the past hundred years.

Look at what our government, our politicians have done: They have reversed the rolls of the Constitution, #19.

These thirty-six came from Strategy & Tactics Quarterly, issue 16, China, The Next War.

Thirty-six Stratagems

Note: The version below comes from a manuscript, believed to be 300 to 400 years old, discovered in a second hand bookshop in China in 1941. Older versions, based exclusively on oral tradition, are thought to have originated thousands of years earlier. No single author has been identified though it is a near certainty the writer was not Sun Tzu. The new edition grew in popularity after a favorable review in the Communist Party’s Guangming Daily newspaper on 16 September 1961 and has now overtaken Sun Tzu’s writings in popularity.

1.      Fool the Emperor to Cross the Sea. To lower your enemy’s guard, you must act in the open, hiding your true intentions under the guise of everyday activities. Once he becomes used to seeing you perform those routine activities he will no longer keep up so careful a watch. That is the time for you to strike. (My "One step forward, two steps back" approach can be used here. Joe)

2.      Besiege Wei to Rescue Zhao. Confronting your opponent head on is to pit strength against strength, and it is therefore the costliest way to engage in a struggle. A better approach is to threaten something of value he has left only lightly guarded. (No one can be always strong in all places.) When he ends his current activity to move to save what you are threatening, he will be most vulnerable to your attack while making that redeployment. (Our freedom, our liberty, has been lightly guarded. Joe)

3.      Kill with a Borrowed Sword. To succeed, you must be careful in conserving your strength. Whenever possible, appropriate the strength of your allies – or traitors in your opponent’s camp – to fight for you while preserving your own resources.

4.      Await an Exhausted Enemy at Your Ease. Unless some compelling reason makes it necessary, do not rush into battle. (Our enemy has the patience. It has taken them this long to get here. Joe)

5.      Loot a Burning House. When your opponent’s country is in political or social or economic turmoil or its populace is being ravaged by disease or famine that is the time for you to attack. (This one needs no comments. Joe)

6.      Clamor in the East; Attack in the West. Wherever your enemy expects your attack, he will reinforce. If you do not attack there, that part of his army is effectively neutralized doing nothing. Use feints to lead him to make mistaken deployments.

7.      Create Something from Nothing. Your feint [nothing] and your real intention as to where and when to attack [something] should be interchangeable based on your enemy’s reaction. Be aware he might use the same stratagem against you.

8.      Openly Repair the Road but March Secretly Along Another Passage. Against a skillful enemy, feints will be ineffective. You will have to risk a real attack to get him to focus on defeating it. When he moves to defend against your open attack, attack from another direction to take him by surprise. (Our politicians have been good at doing this to us. Joe)

9.      Observe the Fire on a Far Shore. When enemies are struggling against each other at some distance away from your home, do not be prematurely drawn in. Instead, wait and watch. If you act only when those already involved are exhausted, you will be able to obtain your objective while expending only minimal effort and resources.

10.  Hide your Dagger Behind a Smile. Seek to charm and ingratiate yourself to a future enemy, but also be aware that is common practice among those in power. Such offers will usually first arouse suspicion. Only if you truly gain his trust can you then move against him by surprise.

11.  Sacrifice the Plum Tree in Place of the Peach Tree. There are circumstances when you must give up something in the short term to gain your long term goal. Trying to defend everything may cause you to lose everything. (The reason why it's taken so long for them to get here. They knew it. They have the patience. Joe)

12.  Seize the Opportunity to Lead Away a Sheep. Even the best plan cannot provide certainty. The possibility for random chance to intervene is ever present. While carrying out your plan, remain flexible enough to take advantage of any unforeseen opportunity that comes along

13.  Beat the Grass to Startle a Snake. When you cannot detect your opponent’s plan, launch a brief but strong attack, and observe his reaction. His behavior will likely reveal his thinking; however, if he’s experienced, he will also know of this strategy and he will be careful not to reveal his true intention. Inexperienced opponents can be counted on to overreact to feints, and in that way reveal their weaknesses and plans. (Can you read between the lines? Can you connect this to anything that happened recently? Joe)

14.  Borrow a Corpse to Raise a Spirit. Take a well-known weapon or tactic that has been discarded, give it new use and observe your opponent’s reaction. Such actions can have an inherent emotional power that can be appropriated to serve your strategy.

15.  Lure the Tiger Down the Mountain. Never attack an entrenched opponent. Instead use trickery and deception to lure him out of that place of strength. Once you have your enemy in the open, he can be more easily attached. (Our enemy is so entrenched............and we're doing nothing about it. We just let it happen. Joe)

16.  To Catch Something, First let it Go. Cornered enemies will likely mount a final desperate effort that can be costly for you to defeat. To prevent that, let him believe he has a chance to escape. By seemingly allowing the possibility of escape, you will undermine his moral basis for calling his force to rally for a last ditch effort. When a false hope is ultimately revealed as such, his troop’s morale will collapse, and they will surrender without further fighting. When the advantage lies decisively in your favor, be careful not to place your enemy in a position where he must stand and fight to the end.

17.  Toss Out a Brick to Attract Jade. Prepare a trap and lure your enemy into it by baiting it with something he values. In war, such bait can be creating a him the illusion of an opportunity for victory. In one’s personal life, the bait can be the illusion of attaining wealth, power or sex. (This is a good one. We've been lured into many traps not even thinking of the repercussions. Even now, many STILL CAN'T SEE IT. Joe)

18.  To Catch Bandits, First Capture Their Leader. If your enemy’s forces obey him only because of the money he pays them or the threats he makes against them if they fail, take aim at him. If he falls, his men will disperse or defect to you. If, however, they are truly loyal to him beware: they may continue to fight after his death for the sake of vengeance3. In such cases, to destroy the opposing force you must wreck its whole command structure to be certain they do not simply pick a new leader.

19.  Steal Firewood From Under the Pot. When faced with an enemy too powerful to attack directly, weaken him by undermining his source of power. Power generally comes either from money, material resources or manpower. If it is money, make him incur expenses. If it is material resources, disrupt his line of supply. If it is manpower, sow discord within his forces. (Our source of power: The Constitution. Our laws have been undermined for decades. Sadly, we let it happen. Government had very little power. We the People were supposed to have the power. Now look at us. Joe)

20.  Trouble the Water to Catch a Fish. Before engaging your enemy, create confusion to weaken his judgment. Do something unusual, strange or unexpected to disrupt his thinking. Men spontaneously pay attention to anything unusual or unique that appears suddenly in their environment. Use that trait to momentarily direct your opponent’s attention elsewhere while you launch an action. (Another good one. Think about it. Joe)

21.  Shed your skin Like the Cicada. When you are in danger of defeat and your only chance is to retreat and regroup, create a diversion. While your enemy’s attention is focused on that, withdraw your force leaving behind a facade of your continued presence. It is rules of war troops are most vulnerable when retreating.

22.  Shut the Door to Catch the Thief. If you can capture all your opponent’s forces, you should do so and thereby bring the campaign or battle or war to a lasting conclusion. While it is dangerous to corner your opponent into fighting to the death, it is equally dangerous to allow him to escape while he still maintains hope for revenge. That plants the seed of a future conflict.

23.  Befriend a Distant Enemy to Attack One Nearby. In general, nations directly bordering each other become enemies while those separated by great distance more easily become allies. When you are the strongest in a region, your greatest threat is from the second strongest in that same region and not the strongest in a distant region. It is common for a friend of your enemy to become your enemy, while an enemy of your enemy often becomes your friend. To attack a strong opponent, enlist the aid of those whose views and interest are the antithesis of his.

24.  Borrow the Road to Conquer Guo. Borrow the resources of an ally to attack a common enemy. Once that enemy is defeated, use those resources against the former ally who loaned them to you. In the struggle for power, alliances are formed and kept only while all parties believe they profit from ti.

25.  Replace the Beans with Rotten Timbers. An army in the field is like an unthinking beast ; its actions are largely determined by terrain and training rather than up to the minute perceptions. An army invincible in certain circumstances can be rendered powerless if those circumstances are denied it. By shaping your actions so as to necessitate a change in the tactics under which the enemy is used to fighting, you take away his physical and moral foundations; you remove the supporting pillar, the common link that makes a group of men an effective force.

26.  Point at the Mulberry but Curse the Locust Tree. To control or warn those whose status excludes you from directly confronting them, use innuendo. If you do not name names, those accused in an indirect way cannot retaliate or defend themselves without revealing their complicity. A commonly accepted principle of leadership says it is best to reward and praise in public but criticize and punish in private.  There are times, however, when some need to be shown the possible future consequences for their errant behavior by you making an example of someone else. (Yet, another good one. Those that do not have the ability to think ahead. Joe)

27.  Feign Madness but Keep Your Balance. Lure your opponent into underestimating your ability until, overconfident, he drops his guard. In extreme cases feign madness, since without rational thought all other powers are useless.  When you seem to cease being a threat, your opponent’s hostile attention will focus on the next most powerful. That gains you time to plan for victory.

28.  Lure Your Enemy onto the Roof, Then Take Away the Ladder. With deception, lure your enemy onto terrain that is treacherous for him. Every type of terrain provides an advantage for one form of warfare and a hindrance for another. The key therefore is to lure your enemy onto terrain that hinders his abilities while helping yours. Then cut his communication and block his avenue of escape. To save himself he will then have to fight your force and the terrain.

29.  Tie Silk Blossoms to a Dead Tree. Using artifice, make something of no value appear valuable; make something of no threat appear dangerous; make something no use appear useful. While it is important to learn your enemy’s plan, it is equally important to conceal your plan from him. Using props, facades and camouflage, keep him in doubt as to your strengths and weaknesses. (Used a lot. Joe)

30.  Exchange the Role of Guest for that of Host. Defeat your enemy from within by infiltrating his camp under the guise of cooperation, surrender or negotiation. In that way, when his guard is relaxed, you can strike directly at the revealed source of his strength. When you are weak and your enemy is strong, there is no chance for you to win a direct contest. Instead, by feigning your acceptance of a subordinate position, you may later gain the chance to undermine him. (The same here. We have been infiltrated everywhere. Joe)

31.  Send Your Enemy Beautiful Women. Sending beautiful women to your enemy can aid you in three ways. First, he may become so enamored with them he neglects his duties and his vigilance wanes. Second other males around him will begin to display aggressive behavior, which inflames minor differences, hinders cooperation, and lowers morale. Third, other females already near him, having become filled with jealousy and envy, will begin to plot intrigues that further exacerbate the situation. The power of beautiful women is in their ability to arouse intense feelings in all those nearby. Lust, jealousy, envy and hatred are emotions that create an atmosphere in which rational thought is impossible. (Hmmmmmmmmmm. I don't doubt it. Joe)

32.  Open the City Gates. When the enemy is so superior you expect to be overrun at any moment, drop all pretense of military preparedness and act casually. Such unusual behavior will arouse his suspicion, and he may be dissuaded from attacking. Unusual behavior in a crisis arouses suspicions and dounts in your opponent; however, this strategy requires supreme self-control. Anyone in your camp who displays nervousness will give away the bluff.

33.  Sow Discord in Your Enemy’s Camp. Undermine your enemy’s power by secretly causing discord among him and his friends, allies, advisors family, commanders, solders, settling internal disputes, his ability to attack or defend is compromised.(No comment needed here. It's obvious. Joe)

34.  Feign injury. Feigning injury has two possible benefits. First, your enemy may be lulled into relaxing his guard since he no longer considers you a threat. Second, you may use it to ingratiate yourself to him by pretending your injury was caused by a mutual enemy. The principle is simple; if you are sick or injured, you are less of a threat.

35.  Combine Strategies. In important struggles, keep different plans operating within an overall scheme. Combining strategies in unison has greater effect than applying them sequentially. Advantage lies with those who can attack on several fronts simultaneously, disadvantage accrues to those who must defend against more than one attack at the same time.

36.  If All Else Fails, Retreat. If it becomes obvious your current strategy is leading you to defeat, retreat and regroup. When you are losing, there are only three options: Surrender is total defeat; compromise is partial defeat; escape is not defeat. If you are not defeated, there is hope. To fight a battle that you cannot win is a violation of rationality. In war, an often overlooked but vital talent is knowing when to retreat.

Joe