| On Daddy's Coattails |
October
2002 |
Profiles in Courage for Our Times, by Caroline Kennedy
President Kennedy's "Profiles in Courage" was not much of a book, but the idea was a solid one, and the timing of its publication significant. His daughter's new compilation can be summed up in the same words. The idea of a collection of essays examining the quality of courage immediately grabs the reader. And in days like these, perhaps, we need the inspiration of past examples. But this still isn't much of a book.
Most of the essays are dull and focus on courage that is more common than inspirational. Yet, there are two that stand out: Michael Daly's discussion of the Ulster Peace Accords (The Good Friday Deal), and Bob Woodward's assessment of President Ford's pardon of Richard Nixon.
In the first case, the courage to stop fighting puts the usual priorities on their heads. We read of men who have planted the bombs and pulled the triggers finally saying "Enough!" Yes, terrorists growing sick of terror. And the cowards are the ones who refuse to make a deal -- Kensington is Unionist as a matter of practicality, but there is a special place in Hell for Ian Paisley.
The Woodward piece is a marvelous examination of the events leading up to the pardon of Nixon by Ford written by one of the men who got Nixon. Clearly, Ford's decision was a brave one, and in retrospect, a good one for the nation. But what is almost as brave is a journalist realizing years later that his own instincts were wrong, and then publishing the admission of error.
Order
Profiles in Courage for Our Time.