In my view, a fatal flaw is a weak point, an Achilles heel, a pitfall that lurks as a result of being absolutely positive on an issue or going to extremes with it.
The epitome is Adolf Hitler. (1) Hitler actually seems to have known very little about making war, despite seeing himself as a great warlord.
He underestimated Germany’s access to oil, finally using coal, which was vital to the production of steel, to make synthetic crude.
He failed to develop the one armed force that could have defeated Britain: The U-boat. He knew only land war and then only trench warfare.
He knew nothing about the logistical needs of his armies as they moved farther and farther from Germany.
He underestimated the Russian nation’s ability to rally and repel an invader, no matter how technologically advanced the invader was (Generals Mud and Winter helped).
And yet he went ever blindly forward (Hitler never retreated) convinced he was a pre-destined figure. His fatal flaw was hubris. He believed his own fantasies about himself.
Hubris, excessive pride, the self-serving bias can blind us to our own shortcomings, mistakes, false impressions, etc.
The only military leader I’ve seen who stands out as having avoided the fatal flaw of excessive pride is Dwight D. Eisenhower. (2) Every leader has to worry about it.
One warning sign with a political leader is when the person begins to talk in absolute terms – “never” or “always.” Since I can’t think of anything in nature that is absolute, it seems to me there will always be an exception.
And when those exceptions are things like no winter clothing for your troops in Russia or no fuel for your tanks, one’s lack of foresight in the area can be fatal, sending a house of cards tumbling down.
Better to never say “never” and always allow for exceptions.
A second pitfall is placing ideology over reality on the ground, over principles, and over values. I say that reality refuses to be squeezed into a shoebox. It’ll bite you if you try.
Again the example would be Hitler, who tried to fit reality into a shoebox called “racial supremacy.” His ideology told him that he had only to kick in the Russian door and the whole edifice would come tumbling down.
After all, Russians were ideologically considered to be untermensch, subhumans. It therefore followed that they would be unable to stand up to the Nazi master race.
But that view defied reality. The Russian edifice did not come tumbling down. It defeated Germany.
Many of our political leaders are being arrested as we speak. Many have been arrested before now – the Bushes, the Obamas, the Clintons, etc.
The political scene remains dismaying in the extreme and we haven’t heard a half of it yet.
Our response to it is also dismaying. (3)
If President Trump can continue to steer a course between both extremes and provide us with balanced and compassionate leadership, my hat will be off to him. Even if he couldn’t, my hat would still be off to him for what he’s (bravely) accomplished so far.
Footnotes
(1) See “Finding Blame is like Making War on a Person,” May 29, 2022, at https://goldenageofgaia.com/2022/05/29/finding-blame-is-making-war-on-a-person/.
(2) And I know his shortcomings.
(3) One intel guru who has an important Alliance position estimated that 90% of the deep-state and pandemic actors are being executed. This will not play well for us in our future. The role of Robespierre does not become a people inaugurating a Golden Age.