This situation becomes more difficult as companies venture into emerging markets, each with its own political peculiarities. Going from the be a stretch, United States to Mexico may the United but that pales in comparison to expanding from States to, say, Saudi Arabia, Kazakhstan, Latvia, or Rwanda. No matter how powerful the spreadsheet or insightful the expert, the dimensions and dynamic of a political environment defy precise specification. Certainly, developing broad frameworks that antioipate unpredict able hazards makes good business sense, However, prudently managing political risk starts by rejecting the delusion that one can. The objective is protection, not prediction