Quotessence
Home / Quotes / Quote by Thomas Friedman

Quote by Thomas Friedman

“I don't think the Arab Spring had much to do with energy. I think it was just the opposite, in fact. I think the Arab Spring happened because particularly young people knew they were living in a context where they could not realize their full potential, that they are being kept down by their own governments.”

Quote by Thomas Friedman

Create image

Author

Thomas Friedman
Thomas Friedman

Thomas Friedman is an American journalist known for his in-depth analysis of globalization and international politics. He served as a columnist for The New York Times and won numerous awards for his unique perspective and thorough research. more

You May Also Like

“America was the funder of petro-dictatorships. We treated all these countries as basically big, large gas stations: Libya station, Iraq station, Iran station, Egypt station, Syria station, and all we asked of them were three things: Keep your palms open, your prices low and don't bother Israel too much, and you can do whatever you want to your own people.”

PeopleWantCountryBigsAmericaThreeCan DoToo MuchLowsIraqIsraelTreatedBotherGasIranStationsDictatorshipSyriaEgyptPalmsThree ThingsLibyaDo Whatever You WantGas Stations
Author:Thomas Friedman
Create image

“When people get frustrated, it's when they feel they are living in a context that deprives them of dignity, deprives them of justice and deprives them of the freedom to realize their full potential, and that to me is what the Arab awakening was all about. I think it applied to every country, and so I have been an unmitigated supporter of it.”

PeopleThinkingFeelsHas BeensCountryRealizingJusticeDignityAwakeningFrustratedSupporterFull Potential
Author:Thomas Friedman
Create image

“I am being very humble about the Arab Spring. There's kind of a competition out there, you might have noticed, of who can be the first to say the Arab Spring is going to fail. Everyone says, "I told you so, I told you so about the Muslim Brotherhood." I have no desire to tell anyone anything. I don't know. I'm just listening, watching. It may turn out all these people are right, they may be wrong. They may be right this year and wrong next year, by the way. I'm just trying to listen day to day, figure it out.”

PeopleKnowsWayTryingYearsFirstsKindMayMightDesireTurnsNextFailingFiguresListeningSpringCompetitionHumbleBrotherhoodDay To DayNext YearJust ListenArab SpringMuslim BrotherhoodTold You So
Author:Thomas Friedman
Create image