诗人侃哲学, 醉汉辩人生：一派胡言
My humanity is incessant self-overcoming --a quote from Friedrich Nietzsche
作为一种社会行为，拍马屁往往受到大家的垢病，被看成是品位低下，庸俗造作的表现。其实大可不必。拍马屁和成年人的性行为，以及我们恨之入骨同时又痴爱至深的金钱一样，都是中性的，超然于善恶之上，完全取决于我们怎么用它。
我一直很会拍马屁，而且受益匪浅。一生闯过很多祸，但是始终有贵人保护拯救，没有陷入灭顶之灾。这些贵人可以是读书时的导师，工作后的老板，抑或是国内当年的单位领导。前女友曾经惊讶于我这种桀傲不驯，离经叛道的主，离婚后居然有一票老太太们乐于招我做女婿。
在这边公司里混饭吃，拍马屁的本领照样有用武之地。有一年公司经营不善，濒临破产，银行把我们置于receivership 下。当时大头们开得开，走得走，我的老板被扶起来在等待新买主期间收拾残局。那时候人心惶惶，大家都在找退路。老板和我谈起对士气的担心(我是掌管公司ERP 系统的）。我对老板说：I never work for dumb ass. I chose to work for you and I have no regret. I'll stay with you until last minute. If this place ever gets shut down I'll be the last person to close the door behind you". 这番话说得老板一边揉眼睛一边回答：Don't do this to me. You hit me hard in my heart".我没有撒谎。我说的是我肯定要做的。但是我没有告诉他我当时有一个美国的客户，许诺一旦公司出问题就把我从consultant 转成 full-time帮我渡过难关。
老板喜欢喝 single malt whisky。我每个圣诞节会送他一瓶＄３００左右的酒。我相信管理层里我是唯一一个这么做的。和往年一样，今年他收到酒又跑到我办公室对我说：You do this every year. you should not do this anymore. I don't know what to tell you to stop you. but I know you are not going to listen to me. 我对他说：No, you can't stop me. We both have miserable life, you and me. there are not many things that can bring smile on our faces. but I know for sure single malt whisky will make you smile. you pay me well enough to give you a bottle each and every year. 说得他摇摇头，叹叹气，走了。
有一天，正在和财务总监签公司的支票，老板走进来，说起去外地的分公司查看，当地的VP抱怨说销售额上不去，主要是我们答应过的加到系统上的几个功能没到位。老板说：I am pissed. so I told him to f*ck off. those functions are going to cost a few hundred thousand dollars. these guys are so busy and up to their eyeballs. it is going to be another year before we can get it done. 听到这话，我对老板说＂this is exactly why as your captains we will kill for you." 老板有点迷惑，问道＂what do you mean?" 我说：We appreciated the way you handled this. instead of running us down in front of the regional VP's, you told them to back off and protected us. you can then come back to give us sh*t because we did not deliver what we should have. it would have been a totally different feeling if you had given us sh*t together with the regional guys. what you did is the way a good leader should be". 财务总监在一旁也附和我的感受。老板有点不好意思，挠挠秃头说 ＂get the f*ck out of my face".
讲这些小故事，只是想说只要是人，不论黄，黑，白，不论身处大洋彼岸还是大洋此岸，都有一些相通之处。office politics 不但应当玩，而且要玩好。以几句简单的好话，为自己营造一个融洽舒适的工作环境，是一笔少有的一本万利的买卖。
性格的转变是我们的意志力和生存环境相互作用的结果。作为动物王国的后裔，我们生来就有着＂适者生存＂的基因，只不过在大多数人的一生中，并没有太多激发这种基因的契机。但是一旦被投入一个险恶的生存环境（比如文革，反右，知青，等等），或是要在一种新的文化氛围中打拼以求得生存发展（比如移民，留学，等等），这种契机就出现了。