It is an axiom, enforced by all the experience of the ages, that they who rule industrially will rule politically.
Aneurin BevanRead
I know that the right kind of leader for the Labour Party is a desiccated calculating machine who must not in any way permit himself to be swayed by indignation. If he sees suffering, privation or injustice he must not allow it to move him, for that would be evidence of the lack of proper education or of absence of self-control. He must speak in calm and objective accents and talk about a dying child in the same way as he would about the pieces inside an internal combustion engine.
Interpretation
What this quote means
A true leader must remain emotionally detached to effectively manage and address issues without being swayed by personal feelings.
Aneurin Bevan's quote emphasizes that effective leadership requires a level of emotional detachment. He argues that leaders, particularly in the context of political and social issues, should approach suffering and injustice with cold rationality and objectivity. This detachment is portrayed as a hallmark of proper education and self-control, suggesting that a leader's role is to analyze problems dispassionately, rather than to become emotionally overwhelmed by them.
Themes
LeadershipDetachmentEmotionObjectivityCalmness
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech addressing a policy issue, a politician might reference this quote to justify a rational and unemotional approach to governance.
More from Aneurin Bevan
All quotes →How can wealth persuade poverty to use its political freedom to keep wealth in power? Here lies the whole art of Conservative politics in the twentieth century.
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He brings to the fierce struggle of politics the tepid enthusiasm of a lazy summer afternoon at a cricket match.
Aneurin BevanRead
I have never regarded politics as the arena of morals. It is the arena of interest.
Aneurin BevanRead
Stand not too near the rich man lest he destroy thee - and not too far away lest he forget thee.
Aneurin BevanRead
There can be no immaculate conception of socialism.
Aneurin BevanRead
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