Forgive

The most recent example of a good person making a serious mistake is, no doubt, the incident of GC.

I shall not give the details here; it is well described by the morning paper, and many of our colleagues know even better.

The principal question is: How should we treat ourselves if it happens on us?

Let me tell you a story:

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In September 1944, the Allied army - led by General Eisenhower - began in Netherlands the largest airborne operation of all time, with an aim of seizing the control of Rhine, so that the Allies could gain direct access to Germany and end the war before Christmas.

The idea was excellent - just that the plan didn't work out. Dwight Eisenhower (and Bernard Montgomery, the British commander) underestimated the German defence in Netherlands, and the task they demanded from the British First Airborne Division was a mission impossible. The project fell into pieces; the result was 16000 casualties for the Allied side (nearly half from the British First).

I don't think I have to elaborate on what happened in Europe in the following months; the campaign was eventually successful - under the leadership of Eisenhower. No, he did not resign from military practice; he knew just too well he made a terrible mistake, but he remained the best person for this job. (Well, fortunately, Winston Churchill and Franklin Roosevelt also agreed on this point.)

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It used to be said that it is most difficult to forgive your enemy. No, it is even more difficult to forgive yourself. Unfortunately, the line between knowing you have done wrong but you forgive yourself, and a complete lack of insight and introspection, is faint and not often discernible.

PS. The battle was latter known as the Operation Market Garden. Although the title seems humble and sounds like a detective fiction by S.S. van Dine, it represents the Allies' most infamous chapter in the War, the details of which we may discuss later.