Here's the historical figure:
http://en.wikipedia.org/...
I was just reading this article:
http://www.nytimes.com/...
which describes Barack Obama's leadership during a meeting as:
"Everyone contributes; silent lurkers will be interrogated. (He wants to "suck the room of every idea," said Valerie Jarrett, a close adviser.) Mention a theory and Mr. Obama asks how it translates on the ground. He orchestrates debate, playing participants off each other — and then highlights their areas of agreement. He constantly restates others’ contributions in his own invariably more eloquent words. But when the session ends, his view can remain a mystery, and his ultimate call is sometimes a surprise to everyone who was present."
...
Here's the historical figure:
http://en.wikipedia.org/...
I was just reading this article:
http://www.nytimes.com/...
which describes Barack Obama's leadership during a meeting as:
"Everyone contributes; silent lurkers will be interrogated. (He wants to "suck the room of every idea," said Valerie Jarrett, a close adviser.) Mention a theory and Mr. Obama asks how it translates on the ground. He orchestrates debate, playing participants off each other — and then highlights their areas of agreement. He constantly restates others’ contributions in his own invariably more eloquent words. But when the session ends, his view can remain a mystery, and his ultimate call is sometimes a surprise to everyone who was present."
and:
"After hashing out a question with him, "you may come away thinking, ‘Wow, he agrees with me,’ " said Rashid Khalidi, a professor of Middle Eastern studies at Columbia and a former adviser to Palestinian diplomatic delegations. "But later, when you get home and think about it, you are not sure.""
That's pretty much the same as a description of Ambrosius Aurelianus in Mary Stewart's book The Crystal Cave, a book that I've read at least a dozen times but currently don't have in my house here in Korea. I don't suppose anyone knows the book well and could quickly type it out?
Yes, it's a long shot, but I'd like the quote for a post on my blog. The similarities between the two are uncanny. And by the way, the book trilogy is superb. Consider buying it and reading it after the election.