One of my historical heroes, Carl Schürz, a German refugee who became an influential editor of German-language newspapers in the United States and a general in the Civil War, was not always well-respected by his American-born contemporaries. But I treasure his response to the oft-heard phrase, 'My country right or wrong' -- 'My country right or wrong. When right to be kept right. When wrong to be put right.' This wisdom came from his willingness to consider other points of view in attempting to forge a life-giving consensus.
No comments:
Post a Comment