Somone — Tony Howard, I think — wrote the other day that he had never understood Talleyrand’s saying that something was “worse than a crime: it was a mistake.” I think the difference is this. A crime is something for which you can later make reparation. A mistake, in Talleyrand’s sense, robs you even of the power to make amends.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Somone — Tony Howard, I think — wrote the other day that he had never understood Talleyrand’s saying that something was “worse than a crime: it was a mistake.” I think the difference is this. A crime is something for … Continue reading