"Yes, we know what's coming. I'm not naive," Obama said in the North Carolina speech. "We've already seen it . . . pouncing on every gaffe and association and fake controversy, in the hopes that the media will play along."

That's the message: Attack me; attack my pastor; attack my wife; bring it on. I'm ready.

The quote is from a piece entitled, as is this diary, Mr. Cool's Intensity by David Ignatius, whose Washington Post columns are often about international affairs.  The column is interesting in what it has to say about Obama.  I will explore it a bit, and per usual, offer a few thoughts of my own.

Aikido is a modern martial art with ancient roots developed by Master Morihei Uyeshiba.   I trained in Aikido years ago. Now at the creaky age of 62, I no longer tumble on the mat... but that training was so wonderful, so transformative,  had  such universal application, that my aikido training is still always happening for me in that special hall of living memories... place in my head where those who've brought magic transfomations still whisper in my ear.

Here's what comes to mind.   Aikido has application to today's political identity crisis that is threatening to derail the Democratic Party.

Fight or flight.  Stay the course or precipitous withdrawal.  Our public discussion is confined to various versions of these supposed opposites but there are other ways to deal with violence, other ways to think about conflict.

Terry Dobson was one of the first Western students of the founder of aikido,  Ueshiba Osensei, and a gifted teacher himself.  Aikido in Everyday Life:  Giving in to Get Your Way by Terry Dobson and Victor Miller
(Berkeley, CA:  North Atlantic Books, 1978, 1993  ISBN 1-55643-151-1) is his attempt to adapt the physical techniques of aikido to the psychology of our daily struggles.  The core idea Dobson and Miller explain is that there are more options.

(33-34)  ...in any conflict situation we have the following options open to us:

1.  Fighting Back

2.  Withdrawal

3.  Parley

4.  Doing Nothing

5.  Deception

6.  Aiki (Confluence)

Of course, they like aiki/confluence the best but it also the most difficult to recognize, achieve, and explain within our current culture.

Wikipedia has this to say about the Japanese martial art known as aikido:

Aikido techniques are normally performed by "blending" with the motion of the attacker, rather than directly opposing the attack. The aikidoist redirects the attacker's momentum, using minimum effort....

The term aiki refers to the martial arts principle or tactic of blending with an attacker's movements for the purpose of controlling their actions with minimal effort. One applies aiki by understanding the rhythm and intent of the attacker to find the optimal position and timing to apply a counter-technique. Historically, aiki was mastered for the purpose of killing; however, in aikido, one seeks to neutralise an aggressor without causing harm. The founder of aikido declared, "To control aggression without inflicting injury is the Art of Peace."

Terry Dobson was one of the first Americans to practice and teach aikido.  

(36)  I wish you would see me not as a spiritual leader, but rather, as a mechanic.  I consider myself a mechanic.  I'm a transmission specialist of a sort.  I'm working on the transmission of ki, of intention.  I'm heir to a legacy that comes down from many generations, regarding point, or presence.  Many Japanese warriors got cut down or killed;  a lot of people paid in blood to learn lessons about being centered under fire.  I'm not the repository for the entire sum of knowledge on the subject but I have been close to some good teachers and I do know something about it.

While I don't necessarily want to prepare you for the OK Corral, perhaps something I say may be of help to you.

It's a Lot Like Dancing:  An Aikido Journey by Terry Dobson, Riki Moss, and Jan E. Watson
Berkeley, CA: Frog Ltd, 1993
ISBN 1-883319-02-1