Politics Are So Vicious Because the Stakes Are So Small

Implications for life and work

Henry Kissinger is 99 years old. Age has accelerated the pace at which he publishes. Kissinger served US army during the Second World War and subsequently held teaching positions at Harvard for 20 years. He served as the National Security Adviser and Secretary of State, and received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1973. There are several critics to his leadership style but that won’t stop us from learning from him.

He is the one who said, remarking on academic politics, “Politics Are So Vicious Because the Stakes Are So Small”. I have written about competition, infinite games and building your category of one in an essay published by Harvard Business Review. Reading the essay will put competition in perspective for you but today I want to touch upon the Biblical origins of politics and conflict through the Cain and Abel Story.