Bookbenchers: Rory Stewart MP

Jeremy

I agree with Mr Stewart about Aristotle's 'Ethics' - I only wish that I knew more about its contents. But I do know that it is a book which the religious like to pretend does not exist. There can be no ethics outside of Christianity, you see.

I saw Mr Stewart's television series about Lawrence and the Arabs, which I thought was excellent. At least, I think it was about Lawrence...or perhaps it was about Mr Stewart himself. I can no longer remember which.

Fergus Pickering

Good Heavens. The Tories have two intellectual MPs, this man and Daniel Hannan. Mind you, that's two more than Labour have got.

Jeremy

What's this? Pickering's comment is up and not mine? O injustice!

oldtimer

An interesting book review, so much so that I will buy the book. The thinking described by Andrews Alexander is, I think, an example of the groupthink that entraps political leaders who have expended so much energy in persuading their electorates of a course of action. Even though circumstances and sound reasons may justify a change of course they find it politically difficult or impossible to change that course. I think that the current global warming stance of the political parties falls into this category. They are trapped by their rhetoric, even though the basis for it is extremely shaky if not worse.

Peewit

Pseud.

Framer

Yawn. Constituency-related bedside reading.

paulg

Rather strange I would have chose the same three books.

Old Slaughter

Would love to hear a Niall Ferguson counterfactual to AA's thesis.

Sounds a bit, 'what have the Romans ever done...'

Dominic

Jeremy,

I think you'll find that St Thomas Aquinas was rather keen on Aristotle's Ethics, and he was fairly religious.

mohammed yousouf

Mabruk on an excellent review on something we all felt about the Americans but perhaps were scared to say!

Edward Harkins

Delightful. One of the few intelligent, humanist and pragmatic voices I heard in the domain of insanity that is UK foreign policy – and now I find out he is an admirer of Aristole’s Ethics. We are not alone.

KEN STONE

Just viewed my video of Rory's analysis of Lawrence for the nth time.

The best I've seen amongst my subtatial library on TEL.

For some years I was a volunteer at Clouds Hill and could add further info if intersetd.

Rory's account of his time as District Officer in Iraq was similarly interesting. That with his walking in the desert seems to really connect with the activities of TEL.