434
What a concept! (startrek.website)
submitted 2 years ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]
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[-] [email protected] 85 points 2 years ago

That's the thing with ancient wisdom. Over thousands of years, it either stands true and turns into common sense, or is replaced with better modern wisdom.

[-] [email protected] 100 points 2 years ago

It's also because it was meant to be read by lords and nobles to teach them the basics of war. A lot of them were EXTREMELY disconnected with reality and didn't even fathom basic shit like "Oh yeah your troops need food. They can't just forage mid war like animals would"

[-] [email protected] 47 points 2 years ago

Well, they can, it just makes the peasants hate you.

It's not just that though.

Anyone can get tunnel vision. A basic set of aphorisms is useful to keep yourself on task.

For example, let's say you're the greatest general who ever lived and Russia's being a petty bitch and keeps running away from fights.

You can either read a basic set of fundamental rules to remind yourself not to lose it all with greed, or

[-] [email protected] 16 points 2 years ago

It's like the IT version of "did you check that the computer is properly plugged in ?"

Everyone roll their eyes having to check the plug but a lot of the time the issue can be something basic like that.

[-] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago

Reminds me of that time I drove an hour across town to one of our remote offices... Only for the printer to be unplugged AND the cable to be sitting in the hallway (you could trip over it!)

[-] [email protected] 5 points 2 years ago

Or invade Russia, split your armies on the way to Moscow, and end up in Russia during winter with a splintered supply line?

[-] [email protected] 12 points 2 years ago

Also many lords of that time were superstitious, and thought that things like 'honour' and 'glory' were more important than the lives of soldiers.

[-] [email protected] 3 points 2 years ago

That's a very good point, Sheeple.

[-] [email protected] 59 points 2 years ago

Don't forget the timeless pearl of wisdom, "Don't fight if you're gonna lose that fight."

[-] [email protected] 37 points 2 years ago

For a time period where esteem and ego ruled decision making, yeah that's some solid advice.

[-] [email protected] 28 points 2 years ago

Not only that. People used stars and other predictive technics to navigate their lives, warfare included. Methodical collection of the basics made it the ABC of war. Man invented it as the science.

[-] [email protected] 25 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)

I understand finding these things funny when you are a cool, level-headed person or not in a moment of fight or flee situation, but many of us fall prey to dumb reasoning in emotional situations.

Going slightly off-topic, but I'd wager many people have spent a lot of unnecessary money or gone to jail in the heat of the moment. And many of Sun Tzu's or Lao Tzi's (Tao) advice is like: "stop, breathe, and think it through mofo, stop being an impulsive idiot and paying a high price for it"

[-] [email protected] 8 points 2 years ago

Nobody who is at risk of getting in a bar fight is having their life turned around by The Art of War. If you're reasonable enough to take a breath and step back from that Chad about to pound your face in, it wasn't Sun Tzu that did that.

[-] [email protected] 17 points 2 years ago

"Say you're sorry, buy him a beer, and then knife his tires"

  • Sun Tsu
[-] [email protected] 46 points 2 years ago

There are a few nuggets that are still only obvious when you actually think about it. Like don't fight with a hill behind you because you might need to retreat, do fight with a forest behind you for the same reason.

[-] [email protected] 25 points 2 years ago

You can retreat through the forest only if you scouted and secured it.

Quintilius Varus, give me back my legions!

[-] [email protected] 22 points 2 years ago

Or 'fight with the sun behind you' or 'leave enemy soldiers an obvious escape route' or 'be careful with marshy terrain where logistics will become a nightmare'.

[-] [email protected] 3 points 2 years ago

leave enemy soldiers an obvious escape route

Was thinking about this leading up to the Ukraine war...

[-] [email protected] 43 points 2 years ago

It's funny that this is common sense, but attacking in anger/revenge without a considered plan is still a common staple in history.

[-] [email protected] 18 points 2 years ago

Common sense: ironically, not that common.

[-] [email protected] 0 points 2 years ago

Emotions exist.

[-] [email protected] 33 points 2 years ago
[-] [email protected] 12 points 2 years ago

with stolen supplies from the enemy.

God I loved my account siphon/vamp netrunner deck.

[-] [email protected] 2 points 2 years ago

Hey stealing enemy supplies works great especially when said enemy is too stupid to poison or burn it. Just ask General Sherman, the march to the sea wouldve been a lot harder if Southern leadership was smarter.

[-] [email protected] 3 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)

Resources are finite, especially during war. They don't want to poison or burn food that they need to eat. The idea is that you stop the forward march of the enemy before he gets to your food stores. If you can't stop his advance then you have bigger problems than the enemy looting your food supplies.

[-] [email protected] 33 points 2 years ago

It still blows my mind that for a large part of human history wars were literally just two giant armies marching towards each other.

Or that castle sieges were much more boring than made to seem and would last months

[-] [email protected] 17 points 2 years ago

"Go away you filthy beggars! I spit in your general direction!”

[-] [email protected] 8 points 2 years ago

Your mother is a hamster and your father smells of elderberries

[-] [email protected] 3 points 2 years ago

Fart. He farts in their general direction.

[-] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago

Is it? I'm really convinced he shouts "spit", followed by the mocking sound of it ("ptui, ptui").

[-] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)

I remember them saying "fart", but it has been a few years since I saw it last. I could be mistaken. It's possible that he says both.

Edit: I just checked, it's "fart", right at 1:45, so start just before then.

[-] [email protected] 2 points 2 years ago

I need to watch the movie again.

[-] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago

I watch this and Blazing Saddles every few years. It's about time for me to watch both of them again.

[-] [email protected] 2 points 2 years ago

It was even more boring than that. The amount of food you need vs is available plus roads mean your pretty limited in what you can even try to do until engines.

https://acoup.blog/2022/07/15/collections-logistics-how-did-they-do-it-part-i-the-problem/

[-] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago

Or that castle sieges were much more boring than made to seem and would last months

Huh, what media are you talking about? Might just be the generes I enjoy but I've never seen anything suggest that castle sieges didn't last ages. Wouldn't that kinda go against the point of a siege?

[-] [email protected] 2 points 2 years ago

Maybe it's got to do with a confusion of language. Not every attack on a fortified structure is a siege. Like the battles at Helm's Deep or Minas Tirith in Lord of the Rings could be confused with a siege because they are battles around forts and cities. But the intention was to destroy these places, not make the inhabitants surrender.

[-] [email protected] 32 points 2 years ago

The fact that it's common sense now is proof it worked.

[-] [email protected] 17 points 2 years ago

"He who has dial-up internet is easily taken by surprise." --10 year old me playing Age Of Empires

[-] [email protected] 2 points 2 years ago
this post was submitted on 29 Dec 2023
434 points (96.4% liked)

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