Pat Barker Quotes
The way I see it, when you put the uniform on, in effect you sign a contract. And you don't back out of a contract merely because you've changed your mind. You can still speak up for your principles, you can still argue against the ones you're being made to fight for, but in the end you do the job.
Barker, Pat. Regeneration. Viking, 1991.
Lord Murray had decided to support Prince Charles in his attempt to seize the Scottish Crown. His statement is one of the great examples of self-interest yielding to principles. Note that the capitalization of “King” and “Country” are the Lord’s and reflects the majesty that these words then reflected.
In the internecine warfare in the Iraq War many of the Iraqis who worked with and for the United States during the war, were threatened and many killed. Unlike the Ford Administration in the Vietnam War, which had resettled almost 200,000 Asians who had worked with America and were in danger of retaliation, the George W. Bush Administration would not allow the people who were loyal to United States forces in the war to immigrate to the U. S.
This quotation is classic in that it illustrates a fundamental difference between a political and religious view of rights. Politically a citizen is entitled to rights with no requirement or condition of responsibility. Politically, we may desire and applaud or even reward responsible behavior, but we may not condition the rights on someone’s version of responsible use of the rights. Indeed, the real test is if people have rights who are generally thought to be irresponsible. See {633640} .
Patricia Mary W. Barker, CBE, FRSL is an English writer and novelist. She has won many awards for her fiction, which centres on themes of memory, trauma, survival and recovery. Her work is described as direct, blunt and plainspoken. In 2012, The Observer named the Regeneration Trilogy as one of "The 10 best historical novels".
