Former executive and CIA operative calls culture the very essence of a nation’s being.
MIAMI – To author and former CIA officer Michael G. Merhige, the one thing which most significantly defines a nation is its culture. Culture not only dictates how a nation behaves within itself among its inhabitants, but also how it acts outwardly towards other countries as well. Thus, Merhige concludes in his new book Thoughtful Pauses, the most effective way to change a nation is to change its culture.
Merhige claims that our political, religious, social and economic structures are all developed inherently by our culture. As a result, our culture determines the personality of our politics, ways of doing business, and social interactions with others. In that way, Merhige explains, culture defines our conscience and lays out what is or is not accepted as convention.
“If we can change a nation’s culture, we can change the nation, a more permanent solution than occupying it,” says Merhige. “One need not risk lives or defeat by making war. Success by force has only short-lived rewards and does not alter the culture. Instead, we should find what is vulnerable within the specific culture, which opens up the nation to a non-violent attack that is more detrimental in the long term than an armed invasion.”
Culture is but one of several topics Merhige shares his thoughts about in his new book, which also features chapters on the law and democracy.
Thoughtful Pauses can be purchased online through Amazon, Barnes and Noble and other retailers. For more information about the book, visit www.ThoughtfulPauses.com.
About the Author
Michael G. Merhige played semi-pro high school baseball in the Ben Johnson League for two summers in Kansas. He received a scholarship to the University of Alabama as a baseball letterman. He served in the US Army as an officer attached to the Navy and Marine Corps during the Cuban Missile Crisis in the Caribbean. He was also a CIA officer in the Far East (official cover) and in South America (non-official cover). He retired as a Corporate Development Executive in private industry. He now resides in Miami, Florida.