:: Timely quote ::

While reading today from the works of German social philosopher and scientist Max Weber, a few passages from his "Politics as a Vocation" essay lecture stuck with me as being interesting and pertinent, particularly when juxtaposed into today's post-9/11 world.

"Damage to its interests a nation will forgive, but not damage to its honour" (Weber: "Selections in Translation. 1978. p.215)

Weber goes on to talk about the idea that the when a war is over, the vanquished nation should say to the victor:

"We lost the war, you have won it. All that is now over and done with: now let us talk about the conclusions to be drawn...in the light of the responsibility towards the future".

For today's world, his next words in this passage could be seen as a scathing view of the emptiness of the moral rhetoric we are bombarded with:

"Everything else is undignified. Every new document which comes to light years later leads to the revival of the undignified howls, the hatred and the anger, instead of allowing the war and its outcome to be a least morally buried. This can be done only if we adopt a realistic and chivalrous, but above all a dignified attitude. It cannot be done by insisting on 'morality': that really means no more than a lack of dignity on both sides". (p.215)

Particularly prosaic words, considering they were written and delivered by Weber in 1920, just after one world war and before the next one.

[ All italics are as shown in the original text ]