In 1945 Lord Moran, a medical officer on the Western Front before he became Churchill’s doctor, published The Anatomy Of Courage. This thesis has since been much disputed, by warriors and doctors alike, but seems to me tenable. Moral courage is rarer than the physical kind, and thus deserving of greater respect. It is unreasonable to brand all dissembling politicians as liars, because their calling obliges them to believe six impossible things before breakfast, and no electorate will stand for being told the whole truth about anything. Nonetheless, moments come when renouncing beliefs to serve tactical expediency no longer seems…

Source: The Times May 14, 2019 16:07 UTC