Kissinger the Super K and Historical Revisionism
Was he an agent for good, or an evil war criminal? Can we handle the truth?
Super K and Historical Revisionism,.
by Donald H. Marks, physician and scientist
Henry Kissinger, conflicted elder statesman who pased at 100, former Secretary of State, Nat Sec advisor. Was he an agent for good, or an evil war criminal? Only time will tell the validity of different perspectives on the brilliant and controversial Super K. Maybe there is not a definitive answeĊ.
I recently added Henry Kissinger to my exclusive and famous list of Elitists, Neocons and Neoliberals. Was I wrong?
Whether or not calling Henry Kissinger a war criminal is, IMO, more another example of historical revisionism, and a matter of perspective. Some people believe that Kissinger's actions during his time as National Security Advisor and Secretary of State, such as his support for the Vietnam War and the Cambodian extension, meet the definition of war crimes. Others believe that Kissinger's actions were justified by the circumstances of the time and that he should not be held accountable for them today.
Historical revisionism is the act of misrepresenting or distorting historical events in order to serve a particular purpose. In the case of Henry Kissinger, some people may be trying to revise history in order to make him appear more guilty of war crimes than he actually may have been. Others may be trying to revise history in order to exonerate him of any wrongdoing.
Ultimately, it is up to each individual to decide whether or not they believe that Henry Kissinger, the contemporary Machiavelli, was a war criminal. There is no clear consensus on this issue, and there is evidence to support both sides of the argument.
Following is a link to my Podcast thoughts on the now-deceased Henry Kissinger, where you can learn why I refer to him above as conflicted.
LMK your thoughts.
Reference articles
Henry Kissinger at 100: A crooked legacy
Machiavelli and U.S. Politics Part 5: War Crimes and Atrocities. WION
Books by or about Henry Kissinger, which I have read and can recommend:
On China, by Henry Kissinger.
Does America Need a Foreign Policy?, by Henry Kissinger.
World Order, by Henry Kissinger.
Henry Kissinger and American Power: a political biography, by Thomas Alan Schwartz
Kissinger on Kissinger, Reflections on diplomacy. Lord and Kissinger.
The Inevitability of Tragedy: Henry Kissinger and His World, by Barry Gewen. (I would have rewritten the title as The Tragedy of Inevitability).
The Age of AI, and Our Human Future. Kissinger, Schmidt and Huttenlocher.
Genesis: Artificial Intelligence, Hope, and the Human Spirit. Henry A. Kissinger, Craig Mundie, Eric Schmidt. 2024. Currently reading and enjoying