Elusive (难以捉摸的) Statesmanship A) For decades, Americans have sought take-charge, extremely confident and charismatic leaders. The country needs leaders who practice what we have historically called "statesmanship." Yet Americans seem to think such people cannot be found in real life. They look at leaders today and find them disappointing. They want leaders who put the country above personal interests. B) Statesmanship, however, is very visible at turning points in American history, and it helps shape, though it clearly cannot control, who we are and what we become. Leaders who practice statesmanship have made, do make, and can still make a difference. In their time, Washington, Adams, Jefferson, and others faced problems equally challenging, in an environment equally divisive and uncertain. Yet they practiced statesmanship and were recognized for doing so by many while they lived. They led the nation to win independence from the greatest military power on earth. Then they built a republican government that has lasted over 200 years. In the twentieth century, when we wondered if we could recover from a second world war, statesmanship came forward in the form of a man called George Marshall. He helped create an economic structure in Europe that brought material wealth and security to hundreds of millions. But it is not certain that we’ll have such leaders. We must seek out and cultivate statesmanship. The problem is that we don’t know how. C) Then what is exactly this thing called statesmanship? Books defining (定义) leadership seem endless, with lists upon lists of necessary skills. Statesmanship seems harder to define. It has leadership skills, but the recipe (秘诀) seems somehow beyond our grasp. D) In the following chapters of Statesmanship, Character, and Leadership in America, the aim is to suggest that recipe. If it is true that statesmanship requires the application of certain skills, the goal is to explain what they are. E) Yet statesmanship requires more than skills. Leaders in government may be considered great in, for example, managing conflict (冲突) and getting others to perform duties for them, but their organizations may still fail to meet citizens’ expectations, or they may produce short-term gains at the cost of the long-term health of the entire nation. Leaders in corporate America no doubt might have scored high in the past decade on skills such as decisiveness, spoken communication, and creativity. But many of their firms failed nonetheless, often due to ethical (伦理的) problems. We should hardly describe their behavior as a display of statesmanship. F) What’s missing from leadership skill lists is attention to character. Statesmanship is defined as much by who leaders are as the skills they possess. Leaders who build good societies are not just clever skillful people. Their skills rest on a foundation of moral values and a deep understanding of history. Such leaders face the twenty-first century with a moral compass (罗盘) and at least one foot firmly planted in centuries past. G) To raise the standard still higher, even this is not enough. Acts of statesmanship also bring out moral character in others. Leaders don’t just use skills for a measurable goal in some plan. They have an understanding of what makes up a good society. While they cannot command it, they can expect it. Indeed, it is their ability to call forth higher character in others in pursuit of the good society that turns statesmanship in theory into statesmanship in practice. To borrow the idea of an old army slogan (口号), those who would practice statesmanship must not only "be all they can be" they must invite us to "be all we can be." H) This is not a call for philosopher-kings. The acts of statesmanship in this book were not by people well-respected or faultless in their time. We are not in search of perfect beings, just human ones. Washington lost more battles in war than he won and was attacked by an opposition press during his second term. He could be hard to approach and too concerned with respect from others. Jefferson’s terms as governor were troubled enough that the lawmakers asked for an investigation of his activities, and his failure to work for putting an end to slavery leaves no doubt that his character had flaws. Lincoln’s acceptance of liberating slaves came later in his political career. Susan B. Anthony was hated by much of America for most of her life. Giving up all for suffrage (选举权), she ignored the requests of black women in the South so as not to cause offence to the whites whose support she wanted more. I) But each of them raised the standard on themselves and their followers. No one acts as a statesman all the time. The pressures of politics, career advancement, and personality make this impossible. What we seek are not statesmen but acts of statesmanship, in times when leaders rise above more selfish interests to attain something positive for our future. J) The argument here is that the skills and character crucial to statesmanship can be both described and developed. Statesmanship then becomes attainable not only in the distant past but in the troubled present and in the unpredictable future. _______ 1.  We had great statesmanship in the past, but whether we will have it again is uncertain and how to develop it in people is unknown. _______ 2.  A true statesman is a person who possesses moral values and a deep understanding of history as well as leadership skills. _______ 3.  The purpose of the book you’re reading is to help you understand what skills are necessary for statesmanship. _______ 4.  American history has seen some acts of statesmanship that made a difference to the country and the world. _______ 5.  In presenting the leaders in this book, we look for and discuss acts of statesmanship instead of statesmen. _______ 6.  The people included in this book are not perfect; instead, they are humans who struggled and made mistakes while showing statesmanship. _______ 7.  What statesmanship truly means is difficult to understand, even though there are many books on this topic. _______ 8.  Americans are disappointed that their leaders are more concerned with their own interest than that of the country. _______ 9.  It is also important for a statesman to bring out the best other people can be for building a good society. _______ 10.  Leaders of big businesses in the US show that just because one has all the important leadership skills does not mean he has statesmanship.