While reading about North Korea’s latest threats with respect to the large military exercise near its waters, I was reminded of just how hard that country, as well as others, try to make us believe that they are democracies, even when it’s patently obvious to the rest of us that they are not. Here’s what I mean.
The official name of North Korea is the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. The official name of China is the People’s Republic of China And not to be outdone by either of them, the former East Germany used to be called the DDR – Deutsche Demokratische Republik. The granddaddy of them all was the USSR – The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. You’ll notice that in each case, extraordinary pains have been taken to stress the democratic nature of countries which are anything but.
- Image via Wikipedia
This hypocrisy, however, is not limited to the names that governments give to their nations. They same kind of thing happens in organizations. When I was in the US Air Force, there were numerous instances in which some new commander was referred to as a “people person.” Such protestations were practically cult-like.
The view I’ve always taken of these things is that if these leaders and managers were so people-oriented, why did anyone have to say so? It would obvious to everyone. So, when such a claim is made, I’m immediately suspect that I’m not being given the full story.
The examples above prove my point.
Bruce Hoag, PhD, CPsychol
Work Psychologist
