> "admire" is subject to the fickleness and personality and views of
> the "admirer". There are so many qualities to take into account. As
> an extreme example - Kim Jong-il. Speaking unemotionally, you
> could admire how he unites North Korea. The way he does it ? Not
> admirable (to Western eyes)

Uncle Kim is by no means the most extreme example that could be cited.

I didn't think very highly of Tito in his later years, until after he 
died. When I saw what happened in 'Yugoslavia' subsequently I 
appreciated him rather more.

Long ago I read somewhere a scurrilous but amusing piece 
characterising nationalities by their stereotypical behaviours. One 
part went something like. "One Bosnian is an ambassador. Three 
Bosnians are an argument. 10 Bosnians ...". I had and have no direct 
experience of Bosnians, but that made far less sense to me then than 
now.

In perhaps 1974 someone (Regional Engineer, NZPO, Hamilton as it 
happens) gave me an ancient sheet of numerical puzzles couched in 
interesting terms. One began something like "The Bosnian Borderers 
lost most of their weapons in the Montenegro uprisings, and now the 
Vanguard has 300 pikes but no muskets, the rearguard has 4 swords to 
every pike , the centre has ...". I remember thinking at the time how 
the concepts of Bosnians and Montenegrans etc was a thing of history. 
Little did I know that, when Tito's strong hand no longer held these 
disparate peoples together, the dark evils of the past would again be 
let loose. Tito was no stranger to evil and violence, but many would 
prefer the peace that he ensured to the atrocities that followed. Most 
might have trouble liking him, even in retrospect, but he might almost 
be considered admirable :-).



        Russell McMahon


http://www.visit-montenegro.com/

http://www.montenegro.org/


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