On Martin Luther King Day, there are hundreds of things one could say. I’m going to choose one of them. I will repeat something I’ve heard Kevin Williamson say, from time to time.
You can say a lot of bad about Thomas Jefferson — personally, intellectually. But he got one big thing right. Splendidly right. The thing he is known for: human liberty (slaveholder that he was).
You can say a lot of bad about Mohandas Gandhi. But he got one big thing right (etc.): India ought to be governed by Indians.
You can say a lot of bad about Martin Luther King. Etc., etc. But he knew, damn it, that Americans ought to have equal rights. And he paid for this conviction, this commitment, with his life — murdered by a racist.
Let me add something of my own (the rest is from Kevin). When I write about Abraham Lincoln, I usually hear from anti-Lincoln people, picking at him. Okay. Fine. But, you know? He led the Union side in the Civil War, ably. He articulated what many of us regard as the American creed. He issued the Emancipation Proclamation. He saved the Union. And he paid for all this with his life — murdered by a Confederate.
At the time of his murder, Lincoln was in his mid 50s and had just been reelected president. (MLK was 39 when he was murdered.) (Gandhi got to 78, before being murdered.)
I mean, what more do you want from a guy? How many lives are as useful or admirable? You know?
You know.