# Can’t jump a millimeter in the Syrian desert? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 23, 2021, 12:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-t-jump-a-millimeter-in-the-syrian-desert/940612 "2021-04-23T12:23:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de053/32.png) [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackknifed_Juggernaut)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2021, 12:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-t-jump-a-millimeter-in-the-syrian-desert/940612/1 "2021-04-23T12:23:29Z")
Tom Friedman was on CNN and was making a metaphorical reference to the power of trust and stated (paraphrased, because I don’t remember the exact quote) “you can’t jump in the Syrian desert; not even a millimeter.” This isn’t really relevant to my question, but his point was that trust among people working together to create policy is like a hard wooden floor below a basketball player that allows the player to jump high enough to dunk a basketball. Meanwhile distrust is like the Syrian desert, where you can’t jump even a millimeter. Is this true? Are there at least some parts of that specific desert where it is indeed impossible for a person to jump? ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2021, 1:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-t-jump-a-millimeter-in-the-syrian-desert/940612/2 "2021-04-23T13:15:50Z")
I don’t believe there are going to be large areas of any kind of place (except those covered with water) where it’s impossible to jump anywhere. Googling images of the Syrian desert shows a variety of different terrains, some of them look quite compacted and rocky, where surely it’s possible to jump. If you’re standing on the steep flank of a sand dune, it may be impossible to jump, I suppose - the sand would just give way under you. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2021, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-t-jump-a-millimeter-in-the-syrian-desert/940612/3 "2021-04-23T17:10:09Z")
I would think anywhere you can walk, you could jump at least a millimeter. ---
**Author:** ![Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de053/32.png) [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackknifed_Juggernaut)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2021, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-t-jump-a-millimeter-in-the-syrian-desert/940612/4 "2021-04-23T18:34:22Z")
That was my first thought. I mean it’s not quicksand, right? ---
**Author:** ![mmmiiikkkeee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/edb3f5/32.png) [@mmmiiikkkeee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mmmiiikkkeee)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2021, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-t-jump-a-millimeter-in-the-syrian-desert/940612/5 "2021-04-23T18:49:55Z")
You do mention areas covered with water don’t count… but: I’ve walked on boggy ground and fens, where you have basically a thick soft mat of moss and other vegetation that’s either floating or fully saturated with ground water. Your feet sink in to your ankles, and if it’s soft enough below then your feet might punch even deeper. This, like soft tidal mud, are examples of a surface solid enough to walk on made (in part) from mineral or biomass, yet potentially not solid enough for you to jump from. ---
**Author:** ![md-2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9d8465/32.png) [@md-2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md-2000)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2021, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-t-jump-a-millimeter-in-the-syrian-desert/940612/6 "2021-04-24T12:57:03Z")
As a metaphor - you will have difficulty jumping in soft sand. The softer it is, the harder to jump. (If it’s like some east coast beaches above the tide line, it can be a pain even to walk in.) The “millimeter” bit is what I would call exaggeration for effect. ( “Not true! I can jump several millimeters!” ) ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2021, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-t-jump-a-millimeter-in-the-syrian-desert/940612/7 "2021-04-24T13:22:28Z")
[Syrian Desert](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syrian_Desert) The land is open, rocky or gravelly [desert pavement](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desert_pavement), cut with occasional [wadis](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wadi).[[5]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syrian_Desert#cite_note-betts-5)[[6]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syrian_Desert#cite_note-6)[[7]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syrian_Desert#cite_note-7)[[8]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syrian_Desert#cite_note-8) Does not appear to be a desert of loose sand where it is impossible or even difficult to jump a millimeter. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2021, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-t-jump-a-millimeter-in-the-syrian-desert/940612/8 "2021-04-24T16:09:57Z")
I can’t speak to deserts, but as to trust in human societies, this is relevant: > **[High trust and low trust societies](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High_trust_and_low_trust_societies)** > > Pages for logged out editors learn more > > A low trust society is defined as one in which interpersonal trust is relatively low, and which do not have shared ethical values. Conversely, a high trust society is one where interpersonal trust is relatively high, and where shared ethical values are strongly shared. > According to researchers, low trust societies are typically kinship based; outcomes of low trust societies can include difficulty in forming and maintaining corporate structures. M... I got a lot out of this book > **[TRUST | Kirkus Reviews](https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/francis-fukuyama/trust/)** > > Fukuyama offers a general theory of prosperity that provides provocative answers to certain of the questions he raised in The End of History and the Last Man (1992). While conceding that neoclassical economists have uncovered important truths about... back when it was released. Which was before Fukuyama sort of drank the Gingrich Kool-Aid and turned into a beast. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2021, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-t-jump-a-millimeter-in-the-syrian-desert/940612/9 "2021-04-24T22:14:10Z")
Syria is a big place. Somewhere, there is likely sand so loosely packed that you will sink into it up to your ankles making it impossible to have both feet off the ground at one time. I’d venture any country not perpetually bellow freezing has a terrain somewhere that meets the criteria, whether it be sand, mud, or whatever. ---
**Author:** ![Isilder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/cc9497/32.png) [@Isilder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isilder)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2021, 12:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-t-jump-a-millimeter-in-the-syrian-desert/940612/10 "2021-05-07T12:56:15Z")
Liehman was a reportor for New York Times based in Bierut and then in Jerusalem. So that might be why its not a known english expression… Anyway, here’s Douglas Wilson and a description of the talk, and a link to the full recording. > **[NYT Columnist and Author Tom Friedman on Leading in a New Age — Dr. Douglas...](https://douglasawilson.com/blogs/2020/12/23/nyt-columnist-and-author-tom-friedman-on-leading-in-a-new-age)** > > “The world is becoming fast, fused and deep.” This was Tom Friedman’s declaration on a recent virtual event with more than 140 executives – from both our CEO Leadership Alliance - Orange County and the Center for Higher Ambition Leadership ... ---
**Author:** ![Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de053/32.png) [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackknifed_Juggernaut)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2021, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-t-jump-a-millimeter-in-the-syrian-desert/940612/11 "2021-05-08T17:16:57Z")
Ah, so the expression has been used before. I wonder if it is commonly known. ---
**Author:** ![TSBG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/77aa72/32.png) [@TSBG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TSBG)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2021, 7:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-t-jump-a-millimeter-in-the-syrian-desert/940612/12 "2021-05-10T07:23:27Z")
I think anything Tom Friedman says can be presumed nonsense.