The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong. Mahatma Gandhi
Well, I have two things to say about this quotation:
1/ It is a statement — unsupported by reason — made with the tacit assumption that the reader will agree, and as such it is a bald sentiment entirely lacking in subtlety.
2/ It signally fails to account for such hard cases as have been the subject of my blogs on Wiesenthal.
Supposing however that for one mad moment we were to join the ‘strong’ in forgiving, who then should we decide to forgive? Here is a pleasant list for our consideration:
Dear Gandhi, do go and boil your head!
1 comment:
Well, Peter, as to my prior quotation, your point is well-taken. However, I do not believe Gandhi expected the living to forget the sins of the butchers you list. I think the term forgiveness in his context was aimed at healing the living. Forgiving Himmler or Stalin helps neither murderer in any way. The symbolic act of letting go might free the survivors from the torture they must suffer for the balance of their lives. I simply reasoned that Gandhi expressed the same sentiment more succinctly than my limited capabilities permit.
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