Power is when we have every justification to kill, and we don't.
Interpretation
True power lies in the ability to show restraint and compassion even in extreme circumstances.
This quote by Thomas Keneally highlights the profound notion that true strength is not merely the ability to exert force or dominance, but rather the capacity to control one's impulses and choose a path of non-violence. It presents a moral perspective where the ability to refrain from harm, despite having the justification to do so, is a testament to one's character and ethical framework.
In practice
This quote can be used in a discussion about ethics in leadership.
A hero does for others. He would do anything for people he loves, because he knows it would make their lives better. I am not that kind of person, but I want you to be. You could give something to her, to me, to those children in the quarter. You could give something I never could ... The white people out there are saying you don't have it-that you're a hog, not a man. But I know they are wrong.
What the Anzac legend did do, by the bravery and sacrifice of our troops, was reinforce our own cultural notions of independence, mateship, and ingenuity. Of resilience and courage in adversity.
Ahead! Courage! In the spiritual life he who does not advance goes backward. It happens as with a boat which always must go ahead. If it stands still the wind will blow it back.
Without a sign, his sword the brave man draws, and asks no omen, but his country's cause.
When the Nobel Committee chose to honor me, the road I had chosen of my own free will became a less lonely path to follow.
I developed a problem with authority. Any time that authority was what I interpreted as being unjust, I stood up to it, and that became my personality.
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