“You were given the choice between war and dishonour. You chose dishonour, and you will have war.”
"Churchill did not continue to dwell on Chamberlain’s failings, because his emphasis was on a victory over Nazism, not on destroying Chamberlain. In fact, Chamberlain was the leader of the Conservative Party to which Churchill at that time belonged, and Churchill wanted to work with Chamberlain, as well as with the other parties, in a broad united national front against what Churchill recognized was a mortal threat to Britain and “an outrage against the civilisation and the freedom of the whole world.”
"Churchill saw that there was a problem in the culture itself of Britain and its allies that left them all unable to defend themselves against a fiercely committed enemy. Addressing that deep-seated cultural sickness was his tremendous focus.
"In the aftermath of the Munich surrender to Hitler, Churchill made his moral point before the House of Commons in memorable words:
… Terrible words have for the time being been pronounced against the Western Democracies: “Thou art weighted in the balance and found wanting.” And do not suppose that this is the end. This is only the beginning of the reckoning. This is only the first sip, the first foretaste of the bitter cup that will be proffered to us year by year unless, by a supreme recovery of moral health and martial vigour, we arise again and take our stand for freedom as in the olden time.
"Churchill’s greatness as a statesman was in recognizing the centrality of the moral issues and communicating the moral imperative with vigor, clarity, and power. How rare that is in politics. Who in power today could one call a statesman without smirking?" . . .
No comments:
Post a Comment