A Quarrel Between People of Whom We Know Nothing

If you know anything at all about the history of the 20th century, then you've probably read of the famous phrase uttered by Neville Chamberlain, and usually in the context of his being held up as an exemplar of craven cowardice in the face of militaristic aggression. As attractively simple as this portrayal may be, however - particularly to politicians looking to score cheap points - it does little justice to the reality of Chamberlain the man or his political efforts; as a corrective, I strongly suggest listening to all 8 minutes and 27 seconds of the full speech in which these often-quoted words were spoken, and judging for oneself whether the speaker seems at all the cowardly fool he has so often been made out to be.

Although Neville Chamberlain may have suffered from a certain failure of imagination in being unable to comprehend how anyone could wish for another global war right on the heels of the bloodiest the world had yet seen, it is not as if most people would have been able to do any better, even now. After all, in our own very day, hardly anyone dares to make the case for militarily challenging Iran's nuclear ambitions, and this after 2 small-scale wars that have cost the West hardly anything in terms of lives lost, comparatively speaking; it is the fear of being labelled a "warmonger", and of being accused of ignoring the war-fatigue of Western nations' citizens, which constrains the world to imposing yet more sanctions that immiserate the Iranian populace while doing nothing to frustrate the Iranian government's nuclear programme. If today's "reasonable" politicians feel constrained to such ineffectual action in the face of such a weak enemy, by what right can we condemn Chamberlain's refusal to rush into armed conflict with a far more formidable adversary?

If anything, "warmongers" of Winston Churchill's ilk were even more disreputable and outside the scope of "responsible politics" than the most rabid "neo cons" are at present (which is no mean feat): only with Hitler's treaty with Stalin and his subsequent invasion of Poland did Churchill cease to be seen as a washed-up, war-crazed old imperialist toff, unworthy of being let anywhere near 10 Downing Street ...