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Democracy Quotes

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Democracy Quotes

“To balance China, the democracies will need new friends - and India with its fast-growing economy, youthful population, and democratic politics seems the obvious candidate.”

Needs Seems Economy Democracy Growing Balance India Democratic Population Obvious China Candidates New Friends Growing Economy

Author:David Frum

“In a democracy it is ultimately for us, the citizens, to judge where to place the balance between security and privacy, safety and liberty. It's our lives and liberties that are threatened, not only by terrorism but also by massive depredations of our privacy in the name of counter-terrorism. If those companies from which governments actually take most of our intimate details want to show that they are still on the side of the angels, they had better join this struggle for transparency too.”

“Democracy and markets are both fundamental building blocks for a decent society. But they clash at a fundamental level. We need to balance them.”

Needs Levels Democracy Building Balance Fundamentals Block Decent Clash Building Blocks

Book:Bad Samaritans: The Myth of Free Trade and the Secret History of Capitalism

Source: Bad Samaritans: The Myth of Free Trade and the Secret History of Capitalism

“One of the things we're going to have to discuss and debate is how are we striking this balance between the need to keep the American people safe and our concerns about privacy. Because there are some trade-offs involved. I welcome this debate, and I think it's healthy for our democracy.”

People Thinking Needs Democracy Balance Involved Healthy Safe Concern Trade Debate Welcome Privacy Nsa Trade Offs

Author:Barack Obama

“For all its apparent tolerance, the USA maintains a peculiar balance between the forces of capitalism and democracy. To achieve this I feel sure the country is guided by some hidden force; an organization working in secrecy, powerful enough to dispose of the Kennedys and of anyone else who gets in its way.”

Way Feels Country Enough Force Powerful Democracy Achieve Balance Capitalism Organization Tolerance Usa Peculiar Secrecy

Author:Mohammed Reza Pahlavi

“There is always an element of realpolitik that has to be present in the conduct of any nation's national security affairs. At the same time, we have to also have a balance between realpolitik and Wilsonian principles of freedom and democracy and human rights. And maintaining that balance is the greatest challenge that we in the West, including the Federal Republic of Germany, have to face because it's many times a very difficult decision-making process.”

“I think it's something that the citizenry needs to be vigilant about - participating in democracy, and that includes issues like what's going on and how much secrecy and transparency there should be. That's an on-going thing - in a democracy you want checks and balances and oversight, but you need a covert agency to protect the country. It's a very tricky balance and I think it changes as the world changes and I think we all need to be mindful of that.”

Thinking World Want Needs Should Country Democracy Issues Balance Protect Checks Agency Secrecy Transparency Tricky Participating Vigilant Citizenry Oversight Covert

Author:Matt Damon

“The world has paid a heavy price for the lack of democracy in most of the Middle East. Operation Ajax [CIA code for the August 1953 coup] taught tyrants and aspiring tyrants there that the world's most powerful governments were willing to tolerate limitless oppression as long as oppressive regimes were friendly to the West and to Western oil companies. That helped tilt the political balance in a vast region away from freedom and toward dictatorship.”

“It's precisely because America is not a democracy that we have survived! It's precisely because majority rule does have checks and balances on it. It's precisely because this is a representative republic that we have survived.”

Doe America Democracy Balance Majority Checks Republic Representatives Survived Majority Rule

Author:Rush Limbaugh

“We all need to provide the checks and balances for democracy.”

Needs Democracy Balance Checks

Author:Lisa Ling