Brinkmanship is placing oneself on an uncontrolled slope of shared risk
Evidence
The brink is not, in this view, the sharp edge of a cliff where one can stand firmly, look down, and decide whether or not to plunge. The brink is a curved slope that one can stand on with some risk of slipping, the slope gets steeper and the risk of slipping greater as one moves toward the chasm. But the slope and the risk of slipping are rather irregular; neither the person standing there nor onlookers can be quite sure just how great the risk is, or how much it increases when one takes a few more steps downward. One does not, in brinkmanship, frighten the adversary who is roped to him by getting so close to the edge that if one decides to jump one can do so before anyone can stop him. Brinkmanship involves getting onto the slope where one may fall in spite of his own best efforts to save himself, dragging his adversary with him. — Thomas C. Schelling, The Strategy of Conflict, 448
Categorization
- DEFINE: Redefines brinkmanship as loss of control rather than deliberate decision — a key concept definition.
- DEEPTHINKING: The ‘curved slope where one may fall in spite of his own best efforts’ is a genuinely paradigm-shifting image of how commitment works by subtracting one’s own agency — sits with the reader for days.
- XREF: The ‘deliberate loss of control’ mechanism parallels how Don Corleone’s emissaries present ultimatums in ways that cannot be retracted — the committed, self-binding threat. — connects to: A losing side rationally abandons containment for deliberate risk-creation. — Thomas C. Schelling, The Strategy of Conflict, 431; Unforeseeable escalation risk alone can deter aggression even among cautious rational actors. — Thomas C. Schelling, The Strategy of Conflict, 430; Compellence works by creating shared uncontrollable risk of catastrophe — Thomas C. Schelling, The Strategy of Conflict, 444 (+1 more)
Related
Broader Connections
- Compellence works by creating shared uncontrollable risk of catastrophe
#exemplifies(0.92) — Thomas C. Schelling, The Strategy of Conflict, 444 - Limited war deters partly by exposing both sides to uncontrollable risk of escalation
#exemplifies(0.85) — Thomas C. Schelling, The Strategy of Conflict, 425