“Candide” was Voltaire’s takedown of the Enlightenment - Andersen’s “The Emperor has no clothes” is a lesser tale which demonstrates the power of ”groupthink”
Rory Stewart seems everywhere these days – his craggy face on television interviews about his life, his gravelly voice on podcasts revealing what is clearly a "beautiful mind". He has recently been promoting his latest book “Politics on the Edge – a memoir from within” which paints a devastating picture of the state of British politics. Few doubt the scale of his commitment to public service. It was bred in him at Eton - after a brief period in military service, he became a diplomat, ran a NGO in Afghanistan, became an MP in 2010, a Minister shortly thereafter, actually ran a campaign to be Prime Minister and was one of an illustrious group of 21 to be booted out of the Conservative party in 2019
But what exactly is his motivation for the excessive marketing of his brand? He clearly enjoyed his time wielding what power he had as a Minister but, as a 50-year old he clearly suffers from what the Germans call “Die Qual der Wahl” – the torture of choice. He’s had too gilded a career - he doesn’t know which of the many options open to him he should choose for the rest of his illustrious career.
His latest book seems quite brilliant in its analysis of how the exercise of power eats into the soul (I have only these interviews to go on). So he could become an interesting member of the political punditry – although he might need to extend his range to cover more than British politics
He already manages an international NGO encouraging cash transfers so could eventually land up with a plum job with a key international agency
he remains a (traditional) conservative but is unlikely to be tempted back to ministerial roles. His caustic comments about colleagues make him “unreliable” – a great sin in politics.
He has an American wife – perhaps he should acquire US citizenship and lobby to become President of the World Bank
Other interviews
https://open.spotify.com/episode/4IbnTBgYxGbJLi39lE3KZT with mary beard
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cbA5hfHCnjw&ab_channel=Tortoise
James o’brien interviews Rory Stewart
Jonathan Aitken interviews Rory Stewart
If David Miliband returns to replace Starmer as the rational choice of the British ruling class, given Starmer's pro-Brexit position, there will be a job going replacing "Brains" at the International Rescue outfit in New York!
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