Once Again

Jonathan Schwarz has a great summary post up at ThisModernWorld:
- …when people get righteously worked up about how wonderful they are, and their enemy’s lack of gratitude, you really need to keep an eye on them.

- People who say their problem is that they are too nice are never, never right.

The cautionary truth in the above quotes is eerily universal. It’s as applicable to American corporate types as it is to the excuse makers in the Israel-Lebanon disaster. I'm not equating the milieus, but the men in charge have strikingly similar hallmarks.

When I read them, I couldn’t help but remember a straight white male boss I once had. He often talked about his need to be careful of employees just waiting to take advantage of his overly kind ways.

There were very few examples of those kind ways. Standard things like closing the office on the Friday after Thanksgiving were committed rarely and grudgingly but always promulgated as grand acts of munificence.

This self-professed benefactor to a fault was the same man who had on display in his office the books "Management Techniques of the Mob" and "Management Secrets of Genghis Kahn" (or something like those titles, it’s hard to remember precisely. I’ve blocked out so much).

He’s also the boss that closed my office door while reviewing resumes and said, “We just want to make sure we don’t get any raving queers in here.” Then he looked at me and said sarcastically, "Sorry."

Beware of men telling you what good guys they are.