Every now and then, in the course of great events, the elements of tradition and innovation ally themselves and each one’s weakness supplements the other and together they achieve the perfect debacle.

Murray Kempton (1917-1997) American journalist.

“The Genius of Mussolini,” New York Review of Books (7 Oct 1982)
    (Source)

Reprinted in Rebellions, Perversities, and Main Events (1994).