Over the last year, the White House has led a campaign to clean up television by substantially increasing the fines against networks that broadcast foul language -- even when it happens inadvertently, such as during live sporting events.

President Bush didn't help his cause last month when he was caught using indecent language while talking with British Prime Minister Tony Blair at a summit in Russia. "See, the irony is what they need to do is get Syria to get Hezbollah to stop doing this [expletive deleted] and it's over," the president said, unaware of the live microphone nearby.

And, this was not the first time. At a campaign stop during his first campaign, a live microphone caught Bush making a derogatory comment about a New York Times reporter.

Do as I say, not as I do.

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Public debates are often emotional issues with each side believing it is firmly in the right. The result is often a punch-counterpunch, act-react mentality fueled by a need to win every battle, regardless of size.

Sometimes, like a great dialogue in a movie or a well-timed pause in a speech, saying nothing will have a far greater impact.

Here are four situations in which to consider whether silence gives you the best chance to attract people who are undecided in their support.

• When your opponent is already perceived as delusional. In these cases, every rant and every statement can serve to fortify your case, especially among the undecided people who are trying to understand and rationalize the issue.
• When you are winning the argument convincingly. The irony here is that by not responding you actually show greater confidence in your beliefs than if you were to respond.
• When responding gives your opponent undo credibility. Credibility is the most important part of winning any argument. When you respond to an opponent’s argument, you immediately give the opponent’s argument credence and risk planting a seed of doubt about your position among undecided listeners.
• When you will look like a bully. Killing a fly with an elephant gun can achieve the end -- a dead fly. The means can also lead to feelings that you are insecure or lack confidence in your side of the argument.

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Next time you have an important idea, try putting it in ten words or less. Maj. Gen. James Mattis, who led the initial invasion of Iraq with the 1st Marine Division, implored his troops at every opportunity: "First, do no harm. No better friend. No worse enemy." Recognizing the importance of building support among the Iraqi people, Mattis’ ten words summed up and demonstrated no equivocation about his commitment to doing the right thing even in war.

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Atkinson Public Relations Chairman Sue Atkinson recently participated in the leadership institute for young executives from nine Central Eurasian countries. The following comes from a Coca-Cola gexecutive who addressed the group.

People are moved by what you are, not what you say or do.

1. Do you believe?
2. Do you care?
3. Are you realistic?
4. Do you make tough decisions?
5. Do you have inner strength?
6. Are you open?
7. Do you develop yourself?

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Google to the max

As part of their "Finding Research-Quality Websites" class, two teaching librarians at the University of California at Berkeley have assembled an outstanding tutorial for getting the most out of your Google searches. The tips show you how to exclude words from your search, look for synonyms to search terms, and search using number ranges. Happy searching.

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Creating Competitive Advantage by Jaynie L. Smith and William G. Flanagan

Many large restaurant chains use pagers to let you know a table is available. The 50 largest chains use pagers from JTECH.

If every business seeks a similar competitive advantage, then Jaynie L. Smith and William G. Flanagan have written the road map.

Using examples for large and small companies, the authors cover a variety of topics, including what is a competitive advantage, how to determine if your company has one, and how to maximize the advantage while you have it.

Smith and Flanagan emphasize several times throughout the book that competitive advantage is much more than actual products and services; product knowledge, post-sale tech support, overall performance, and ease of installation can all be used to establish an advantage over the competition.

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