>Jason George wrote: > >> This was sabre-rattling. Daniel made a pre-emptive tactical strike. >> There's a big difference. > >No, there's not a difference. Theo said he was willing to take the >emails public; this Daniel guy took him at his word, and made them >public. The only foul I see is Theo threatening to take Daniel's emails >public in the first place.
No, you should re-read the thread. Willingness to release emails is significantly different that actually releasing. The willingness to use a tactical nuclear weapon on an adversarial nation state is significantly different that actually pushing the button to launch said device. The exposed willingness and the clout to back it up is invariably meant to cause the other side to back down. Yes, it is clearly a scare tactic. There's a fundamental concept in negotiations and it's allowing the other party to opportunity to save face. This happens all the time in business, legal and geopolitical discussions. Even the most hardcore lawyers and diplomats know this. Daniel's immediate out was to either not release the poster or to use other language in the promotion of his cause. That was his opportunity to save face. He chose not to try to negotiate to a compromised solution when clearly his tack was going to have a negative impact on at least one other party.
