Diseases

Mikhail Gorbachev:

"Americans have a severe disease — worse than AIDS. It’s called the winner's complex," he said. "You want an American-style democracy here. That will not work."

Ah, but he's an old Commie. Why listen to him?

Maybe he got the idea from this guy: Understanding the "Victory Disease," From the Little Bighorn to Mogadishu and Beyond by Major Timothy Karcher, US Army (Combat Studies Institute Press; Fort Leavenworth, Kansas; 2004). Karcher writes:

Unfortunately, America’s position as the global superpower and her tradition of military might generate a mind-set that makes her highly susceptible to defeat on future battlefields. This mind-set is sometimes referred to as the "victory disease" and is an all too frequent byproduct of national strength. Military analysts James Dunnigan and Raymond Macedonia highlight the concept in their work, Getting It Right: American Military Reforms After Vietnam to the Gulf War and Beyond. According to Dunnigan and Macedonia, the victory disease threatens any nation with a history of military prowess and manifests itself in three basic symptoms: arrogance, a sense of complacency, and the habit of using established patterns to fight future conflicts.

Maybe Major Karcher is a pinko of some kind, too. Hey, Pete Hoekstra is in full Joe McCarthy mode warning about Al Qaida infiltrators in the CIA. I wonder if winner's complex/victory disease is kind of like brain fever.

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