Comments on: "Safire's Political Dictionary", William Safire http://www.bloggingthebookshelf.com/2009/06/16/safires-political-dictionary-william-safire/ Blogging my bookshelf - one book at a time Mon, 06 Sep 2010 03:50:18 +1000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.3 hourly 1 By: ray perkins jr http://www.bloggingthebookshelf.com/2009/06/16/safires-political-dictionary-william-safire/comment-page-1/#comment-12 ray perkins jr Thu, 18 Jun 2009 13:48:07 +0000 http://bloggingthebookshelf.wordpress.com/?p=124#comment-12 Thanks for the neat review of Safire's new edition of his Political Dictionary, especially your notice of his entry “better red than dead”, which he rightly attributes to the British philosopher Bertrand Russell. Unfortunately he also perpetuates the myth that Russell advocated “preventive war” against Russia in a speech in 1948. What Russell actually said, regarding the question of war, was “there is only one course of action open to us. That is to strengthen the Western Alliance … and hope it may become obvious to the Russians that they can’t make war successfully.” Yours, Ray Perkins. Jr. Editor, _Yours Faithfully Bertrand Russell: A Lifelong Fight for Peace, Justice and Truth in Letters to the Editor_ (Open Court, 2002) Bertrand Russell Society, Vice President (2001- ) Thanks for the neat review of Safire’s new edition of his Political Dictionary, especially your notice of his entry “better red than dead”, which he rightly attributes to the British philosopher Bertrand Russell. Unfortunately he also perpetuates the myth that Russell advocated “preventive war” against Russia in a speech in 1948. What Russell actually said, regarding the question of war, was “there is only one course of action open to us. That is to strengthen the Western Alliance … and hope it may become obvious to the Russians that they can’t make war successfully.”

Yours,

Ray Perkins. Jr.
Editor, _Yours Faithfully Bertrand Russell: A Lifelong Fight for Peace, Justice and Truth in Letters to the Editor_ (Open Court, 2002)
Bertrand Russell Society, Vice President (2001- )

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