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Democracy Quotes

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Democracy Quotes

“For Singapore, its test for its own democracy must be whether it fit and serve the interests of its people and conditions, and not serve some abstract ideal that the Western media thought it ought to conform to. If in 10 years, Philippines, Taiwan and Korea were better societies because they adopted the US model, Singapore would hurry to catch.”

People Ifs Years Interest Democracy Conditions Media Ought Fit Models Ideals Tests Western Abstract Conform Adopted Korea Singapore Philippines Taiwan Western Media

Author:Goh Chok Tong

“The essence of constitutionalism in a democracy is not merely to shape and condition the nature of majorities, but also to stipulate that certain things are impermissible, no matter how large and fervent a majority might want them.”

Want Matter Might Certain Liberty Democracy Conditions Shapes Essence Majority Fervent Constitutionalism

Book:With a Happy Eye, But...: America and the World, 1997--2002

Source: With a Happy Eye, But...: America and the World, 1997--2002

“We talk about spreading democracy and freedom all over the world, but they are to us words rather than conditions. We haven't even got them here in America, and the farther we get into this war the farther we get away from democracy and freedom. Where is it leading us to, and when will it end? The war might stop this winter, but that is improbable. It may go on for fifty years or more. That also is improbable. The elements are too conflicting and confused to form any accurate judgment of its length. There may be a series of wars, one after another, going on indefinitely.”

World Years May War Ends Might America Form Democracy Conditions Havens Goes On Elements Judgment Series Winter Confused Fifty Get Away Length Accurate Improbable

Author:Charles Lindbergh

“Political democracy cannot flourish under all economic conditions. Democracy requires an economic system which supports the political ideals of liberty and equality for all. Men cannot exercise freedom in the political sphere when they are deprived of it in the economic sphere.”

Men Political Politics Liberty Support Economy Democracy Economic Conditions Exercise Ideals Liberalism Spheres Deprived Economic Systems Equality For All Liberty And Equality

Book:The Capitalist Manifesto

Source: The Capitalist Manifesto

“The form of government and the condition of society must always correspond. Social equality is therefore a postulate of pure democracy.”

Government Form Social Democracy Conditions Pure Forms Of Government Social Equality

Book:The History of Freedom (and other Essays)

Source: The History of Freedom (and other Essays)

“Pick the topic you like: the Middle East, international terrorism, Central America, whatever it is - the picture of the world that's presented to the public has only the remotest relation to reality. The truth of the matter is buried under edifice after edifice of lies upon lies. It's all been a marvelous success from the point of view in deterring the threat of democracy, achieved under conditions of freedom, which is extremely interesting. It's not like a totalitarian state, where it's done by force. These achievements are under conditions of freedom.”

Source: Media Control: The Spectacular Achievements of Propaganda

“We want the full works of citizenship with no reservations. We will accept nothing less . . . This condition of freedom, equality, and democracy is not the gift of gods. It is the task of men, yes, men, brave men, honest men, determined men.”

Men Want Accepting Democracy Conditions Honest Tasks Brave Determined Citizenship Honest Man Gift From God Brave Man Reservations No Reservations

Author:A. Philip Randolph

“Some commentators have drawn such a stark and gloomy picture of the Weimar Republic's early difficulties that the Republic seems foredoomed to failure from the outset... The conditions in which Weimar democracy were born were certainly not such as to help it flourish; and as it unfolded, it was clearly saddled with a burden of problems, in a range of areas.”

Helping Problem Seems Born History Democracy Conditions Areas Difficulty Burden Range Republic Nazi Commentators Starks Gloomy Nazi Germany

Book:A History of Germany 1918-2014: The Divided Nation

Source: A History of Germany 1918-2014: The Divided Nation

“The vulgar charge that the tendency of democracies is to leveling, meaning to drag all down to the level of the lowest, is singularly untrue; its real tendency being to elevate the depressed to a condition not unworthy of their manhood.”

Real Levels Democracy Conditions Tendencies Drag Lowest Manhood Vulgar Unworthy Untrue

Author:James F. Cooper

“Worldwide, the twentieth century has seen the rise of extraordinary concentrations of economic and political power - evoking the people as the source of power while simultaneously privatizing its most meaningful exercise. Democracy always seems to be at least slightly elusive under such conditions.”

People Seems Political Democracy Economic Conditions Century Source Exercise Extraordinary Meaningful Concentration Twentieth Century Elusive Political Power Most Meaningful

Author:Thomas L. Dumm

“Liberty lives in protest and democracy prospers under conditions of change. When we travel about the world and come to a country whose newspapers are filled with bad news we feel that liberty lives in that land. When we come to a country whose newspapers are filled with good news, we feel differently.”

World Feels Country Liberty Democracy Land Conditions News Filled Newspapers Protest Good News Bad News

Author:Daniel Patrick Moynihan

“The great multinationals are unwilling to face the moral and economic contradictions of their own behavior - producing in low-wage dictatorships and selling to high-wage democracies. Indeed, the striking quality about global enterprises is how easily free-market capitalism puts aside its supposed values in order to do business. The conditions of human freedom do not matter to them so long as the market demand is robust. The absence of freedom, if anything, lends order and efficiency to their operations.”

“I think democracy fails under a variety of conditions and one of the conditions occurs when people don't have the ability to get the kind of information they need to make up their mind. Ideologically, I don't care much for FOX News. But the truth is that, as long as there are countervailing points of view available on the spectrum, it doesn't matter.”

“Democracy, in any rational form, also imposes conditions on majority rule. That's what the Bill of Rights is about, for example.”

Form Democracy Rights Conditions Example Bills Majority Rational Bill Of Rights Majority Rule

Author:Noam Chomsky