Kissinger’s reputation is based on the fact that a) he’s really smart and b) was very effective at getting what he wanted, which is the primary metric of diplomatic talent. The problem was that as a strategist (and a human being), “what Kissinger wants” and “what’s good for the U.S. and humanity” were frequently,…

God, I miss Craig having a talk show.

“Mitt Romney for Secretary of State? Oh thank god!”

That’s a great way of putting it! Brilliant guy, but the lack of humanity bit has always been scary. The weight of all his deeds & misdeeds do not seem to weigh heavily on him.... I mean, shit, he’s outlived almost everyone from the entire cold war.... and you’re probably right about him sleeping like a lamb.

Gorbi might mean Chernomyrdin or Primakov, but Putin has been Russia Tsar since 1999. And yes Yeltsin was on till 1999, but everyone forgot about that alcoholic who took over after Gorbi.

Hard to imagine him lying in bed, restless, turning over the moral impact of his deeds and weighing the calculus of greater good vs. lesser evil. No — I suspect Henry is more of a “Sucks for Timor,” lights out, sleeps like a lamb. A brilliant man, with added intelligence in the place where most people store their…

For anyone who’s interested, The Trials of Henry Kissinger is a great documentary. It paints a portrait of a man who is probably literally the devil, and just like the devil you can’t help but admire his brilliance. Kissinger is waaaaay too smart for that Icarus reference not to be shade.

I need a review of this shade call. Unless Gorbi meant Yeltsin, he was talking about Putin inheriting Putin’s own mess and there was shadiness around the manufacturing of that mess. Also, he did not mean Yeltsin.

He’s always been one of those Interesting Evil People.

It was actually a freak bungee-jumping accident, where she had attached the bungee to her hair scrunchie before jumping. So her face got pulled tight and immobile like that. When she came up again, she just had the doctor chop off the slack skin that’d accumulated at the back of her head. It’s just science.

Truth. “We thought we’d hit rock bottom, but then we heard a knock from below...”

“I kind of miss that Bush guy”

Yeah, when Henry I-Was-Cool-With-Nixon Kissinger gives you the cold shoulder because of who you’re in bed with politically, you know you fucked up somewhere.

Henry Kissinger is a war criminal, but he gets a grudging “Not bad” from me. Very grudging.

Henry Kissinger has been a prized dinner guest and escort of famous ladies of a certain age for decades. I’ll bet he’s a hoot and a holler, and has many a good story to tell.

CAREFUL, ICARUS (I love this bit):

Really, the skill sets to be a good diplomat and a Shade Queen are just about identical.

You’re right. Kissinger’s ability to diss someone who is unfortunately relevant in a way we find momentarily entertaining as we all prepare for various dystopian fictions to manifest into our current reality also translates to complete forgiveness and unanimous approval for Henry Kissinger.

Or are we just saying ‘even…

Faced with a crisis that he inherited from his predecessor,

I’m deeply resentful of 45's administration for many reasons; on the list is that his presidency has forced me to say things like, “Wow, this Kissinger piece is hilarious” and “Let’s not besmirch the good name of Richard Nixon by comparing him to Trump.”