Henry Kissinger was a colossus who bestrode a century

Daily Mail ^ | 30th November 2023 | Niall Ferguson

[Ennis85]

Henry Kissinger, who died on Wednesday night at the age of 100, was the most enduringly influential secretary of state in the history of the United States. He was also the most controversial. But the influence matters far more than the controversy.

His critics have wasted no time in ignoring the old injunction that no ill should be spoken of the recently deceased. The scurrilous magazine Rolling Stone led with the repulsive headline 'Henry Kissinger, War Criminal Beloved by America's Ruling Class, Finally Dies'.

At a time when anti-Semitism has again reared its ugly head in the wake of the October 7 atrocities in Israel, we should pause to ask ourselves why for decades hack journalists on both the Left and the Right have used such odious and historically inaccurate language so frequently about Henry Kissinger but never about other American diplomats.

Kissinger's life was a series of extraordinary improbabilities. What were the chances of a German Jew born in Bavaria in 1923 living to be 20, much less 100? More than a dozen members of his family died in the Holocaust.

What were the chances of a teenage refugee who arrived in New York in 1938 - who started his life in America working in a shaving-brush factory - going on to hold the highest office in the executive branch of government for which a foreign-born citizen is eligible?

And what were the chances of Kissinger surviving service as an American rifleman at the Battle of the Bulge? Had the Germans captured him, they would have executed him without hesitation, as they regarded naturalised Americans of German-Jewish origin as traitors as well as racial enemies.

What were the chances of such a man not merely gaining admission to study at Harvard, America's most prestigious university, but going on to

[MNDude]

Now he is in hell.

[Rlsau1]

Ole Henry certainly profited handsomely from all his “diplomacy” and consulting. One can always judge the stature of a man by the company he keeps. In Henry’s case........

[Jan_Sobieski]

National Security Memorandum 200

[Ennis85]

Why?

[FarCenter]

>>What were the chances of such a man not merely gaining admission to study at Harvard, America’s most prestigious university,

Pretty good if he was talent-spotted during WW II while working in Army intelligence. He undoubtedly had some sponsor.

[gov_bean_ counter]

Because St. Peter subcontracted the keys to the Kingdom to MNDude???

[alloysteel]

Now why would anyone say that? We as mere humans cannot question the determinations of any deity, as we have not the means of arriving at that judgment. “God has a special providence for fools, drunkards, and the United States of America”, which Henry Kissinger had adopted as his chosen home, and he was a shining example of the Horatio Alger paragon of excellence as a guiding principle.

Now maybe Otto von Bismarck never uttered or put down on paper that quote, but it rings surprisingly applicable in relation to the vast good fortune the United States has enjoyed throughout its history. And Henry Kissinger was but one example of the right man at the right time in building that legacy.

[omega4412]

If Kissinger were the genius he thought he was, he would have played the Russia card against China, not the China card against Russia.

[MNDude]

OKAYYY..every human that lives will go to heaven. Happy?

[fidelis]

He may or may not be. But none of us can presume to know this, let alone empirically state it. God is his eternal Judge, not you or I.

[SunkenCiv]

• Statement from the New York Yankees regarding the passing of former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger [11/30/2023]
• Henry Kissinger's World War II [11/30/2023]
• Henry Kissinger, "It was a serious mistake to let in so many people with completely different cultures, religions and concepts. [11/30/2023]
• Henry Kissinger, former secretary of state and presidential adviser, dies at 100 [11/29/2023]
• Henry Kissinger, Former Secretary of State, Dies at 100 [11/29/2023]
• Henry Kissinger's About-Face: He Now Warns of Muslim Migrant Danger-He and his fellow European political elites have a lot to answer for [10/20/2023]
• In a stunning admission, Henry Kissinger just endorsed the premise of my book, 'Stealth Invasion' [10/13/2023]
• Kissinger says it was 'grave mistake' for Germany to take in so many migrants amid pro-Hamas protests [10/12/2023]
• Declassified Nixon letter to then-Prez Clinton includes prophetic warning about Russia [07/25/2023]
• Declassified Richard Nixon letter to President Clinton proves prophetic on Russia [07/24/2023]
• Shocking Revelations about Hillary Clinton's Watergate Committee Job [08/07/2023]
• Tucker Carlson: The Deep State Removed Nixon, The Most Popular President Ever, To Cover Up CIA's Murder Of JFK (Video) [09/07/2023]
• Ramaswamy Says He Loves Richard Nixon. Is He Serious? [08/30/2023]

[Verginius Rufus]

More influential than the first Secretary of State, Thomas Jefferson? Or John Quincy Adams (treaty with Spain that garnered Florida for the US) or William Seward (gained Alaska) or George C. Marshall (the Marshall Plan)?

[SuperLuminal]

Henry Kissinger was a colossus..."

Henry Kissinger was a colostomy bag...

[Midwesterner53]

He helped sell out South Vietnam when the war was nearly won from Operation Linebacker II at Christmas 1972 just to get POWs back.

[odawg]

Kissinger was not a colossus and he certainly did not bestride a century. People do like to be dramatic.

Reagan kept him out of the government when he was president.

[minnesota_bound]

Kissinger policies helped kill millions and destabilize many countries.