Lunch With Henry
Given that I just had my 30th Birthday this past Friday, May 23, I was struck that a mere 4 days later it is the 85th birthday of Henry Kissinger. As anyone who reads this blog knows well, I am in constant admiration of Dr. Kissinger. Though I may not always be in agreement with him, there are few practioners of statecraft that I have a greater respect for. Here is a thoughtful reflection by a friend of Dr. K from a recent lunch they shared.
Certainly, he has his flaws and may have been a greater tactician than strategist, though this is debateable (as is everything concerning his legacy). At the end of the day, however, his grasp of history is quite strong and it is the prism of history through which we humans judge the actions of men. Therefore, few former statesmen will ever have the right kind of lens to gain the appreciation necessary for how history's ebbs and flows shape and reshape the world. No "It" theory of the moment will ever explain better how the world is what it is than a tussle with the challenges and questions posed by history. For history is the mirror that reflects what happens and has happened. Even in this postmodern age of deconstruction and Foucaldian interpretations of "power", history still beckons those who wish to understand.
If history and philosophy are guides to at least partial understanding, Kissinger stands as a titanic figure who looms over the second half of the 20th Century. He offers no easy answers, but he constantly offers edification.
He has certainly seen a lot in his political life.
Me too. Comments invited: http://collectingmythoughts.blogspot.com/2008/05/another-ohio-poverty-push-dear-governor.html
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