On empathy, cont’d

Damir is correct in his addendum that such was my intended meaning, though in retrospect I worded it pretty badly. I would certainly agree with him that intimate knowledge, if not empathy per se, of other nations would go a long way toward correcting the myopia of our current approach. There are simply an appalling number of people, some of them with real influence, who opine freely on the habits and policies of other nations without knowing a scintilla about their histories, cultures, languages, etc.

That said, and if only in the interest of devil’s advocacy, I can’t help but recall Lord Palmerston‘s remark that

When I wish to be misinformed about a country, I shall ask the man who has lived there thirty years.