Keep your friends close and your enemies closer. (Sun-tzu Chinese general & military strategist).

To each, this has probably a different meaning, what I would understand here is that basically you need to be on top of things in life...It's a rat race and we're all in it. In the process of life, things like friendship, family values and love for another can drastically change into horror, defeat, anger, craziness, disappointment, frustration and what not. So by reading the quote of Sun-Tzu in his book 'the art of war' I got some inspiration in order to write this one. With the years passing by and especially in my youth, I've witnessed some of the sweet things, but probably a bit more of the opposite to be honest. So I'm not shocked anymore if some-one turns me down...because that's what I expect from the gross of humanity anyway.
Reality can be a harsh bitch, but it won't bring me down.


On a personal level, life has been pretty good the last couple of years, I do enjoy the things I do, the things I strive for are working out and basically I move very fast through the rat race, try to avoid leeches and parasites and don't bother others who I have no connection with, simply because I don't give a damn about these. Those who did me wrong, I do keep these close..and awaits the time to deliver a payback. My enemies are lined-up in my mind and I do wish 'em all the harm in the world. If there's a bad day, the thought of those leeches makes it a better day and fuels my fire to keep on going strong again.
I had a bad day today, so this is my written part to express it...in a couple of hours I'm going to dinner with my lady, that will make it up for that day I guess.

Hail to you all!!

x9x

I agree with Friedrich Nietzsche when he said ''The man of knowledge must be able not only to love his enemies but also to hate his friends''

I see it as a challenge to empathies with your enemy even more than you do with your friends.
One needs a very strong ego in order to understand his enemy emotionally, and still be his adversary. It requires one to have an inner strength (the power to create) that is completely independent of reactive antagonism.
The people who cannot (note: not "would-not" but "can-not") understand their enemies, are the ones who project their own weakness on to others in result of self-denial (even a denial of weakness is a weakness).
When you ask such persons "who are you" they will likely say "I'll tell you what I'm not-______"
They are the ones most prone to "snap" quickly and be aggressive (… the best defense is offense).
It's all about that inner strength to define one's self independently.
(It's also true in the macrocosms- Israel, for example, is very much based on "against" rather than on "pro"- which is why the leadership is crumbling down so horrifically. But I digress.)

That is not to say that one shouldn't have enemies- it's even vital to have them… but one should be aware if one's animosity is based on neuroses or on a realistic threat.

I'm somewhat doubtful that's what Sun-tzu meant, but I'm pretty sure that's what Nietzsche meant (LightAngel beat me to the quote).



It's rational not to expect much from human beings, however one should be careful of self-fulfilling prophesies.

I put these two quotes together, because I agree with you on these. It can be very difficult to empathize with someone you see as an enemy; yet, vital in determining if someone is truly an enemy, or someone who may be bringing things up that need to be looked at.

Exactly.

If the ''enemy'' can show you some shortcomings that you didn't knew you had, then that person is worthy of your attention.

I wouldn't hate a person like that, I would learn instead.

In Sun Tzu's time it was vital to have allies (there were so many chinese warlords during his age). But in times of war, hunger and disease w/c was common at the time conflicting interests may make your allies your worst enemies. So it would be important for them to make friends with others who they think would become their enemies someday. Using them,learnig their strenghts and weaknesses, so when the time comes it would be easier to crush them.

And from what book did you get that knowledge?!

I'm sure you didn't fight that way yourself, or?!