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Democracy Quotes

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Democracy Quotes

“..(T)here are two opposite reasons for being a democrat. You may think all men so good that they deserve a share in the government of the commonwealth, and so wise that the commonwealth needs their advice. That is, in my opinion, the false, romantic doctrine of democracy. On the other hand, you may believe fallen men to be so wicked that not one of them can be trusted with any irresponsible power over his fellows.”

“The United Nations should come in and take over Liberia, not temporarily, but for life. To make Liberians believe in democracy, to make us believe in human rights, they need to go in and just seize control of the country. That is the only way Liberia will ever become the kind of country it was supposed to be.”

Way Needs Should Believe Humans Kind Country Nations United Democracy Rights Human Rights Supposed To Be United Nations

Author:George Weah

“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

“It seems to rise again when the crisis times come, and this is a time of most severe crisis, as we all know, not just for the history of the United States and the survival indeed of our democracy, but for the future peace of the world. And never before probably has the need for interfaith commitment been nearly as great as it is at this very moment.”

Knows World Needs States Moments God Seems Time Spirituality United History United States Democracy Future Survival Commitment Crisis Severe Interfaith

Author:Walter Cronkite

“The fact that you are here tonight gathered together with us testifies to the fact you understand the need for this organization and the need for redoubling our efforts in this organization to try to assure that democracy as represented by the United States must depend upon a total freedom of religion, which is written into our Constitution, of course, and the mere suggestion that anyone could maintain that one's patriotism, one's devotion to one's country can be judged by one's religion is so vile, so vile that we have to take to the streets indeed and to put it aside.”

“Ethics must be reintroduced to public service to restore people's faith in government. Without such faith, democracy cannot flourish. Your ambitious agenda is filling a desperate need.”

People Needs Government Democracy Integrity Ethics Desperate Agendas Ambitious Filling Public Service

Author:Walter Cronkite

“Although Israel was founded based on the historic Jewish homeland and the need to have a Jewish homeland, Israeli democracy has been premised on everybody in the country being treated equally and fairly. And I think that that is what's best about Israeli democracy.”

Thinking Needs Has Beens Country Democracy Israel Treated Historic Israeli Homeland Democracies Have

Author:Barack Obama

“How do we get democracy at the international level? That's our problem. and it's essentially the same problem people faced in the 18th Century when they tried to get democracy nationally. Now we need it internationally.”

People Needs Problem Levels Democracy Century International 18th Century

Author:Susan George

“I believe that all of us have gangster proclivities and greedy orientations that need accountability. That's why democracies are necessary. We have to have institutions to try to curtail the use of arbitrary power so that our greedy orientations and gangster-like proclivities don't get out of hand.”

Needs Trying Believe Use Hands I Believe Democracy Institutions Accountability Greedy Arbitrary Orientation Gangsters

Author:Cornel West

“We need the value and the beauty of democracy, and the beauty of pluralism is there's a free exchange of ideas. Nobody is right all the time. I'm not right all the time. I don't agree with anybody all the time, and I don't even agree with myself all the time.”

Needs Ideas Values Democracy Agree Pluralism Pluralism Is

Author:Rick Warren

“There is a reason for the affected profession of " anarchist sympathies" among Tories and grandees, and of " libertarian principles" by Hobbesian yahoos of the right. Among the former, one sees the upholding of the view that a gentleman's business and property are his own, and none of the government's. Among the latter, a distaste for democracy, for taxation, and for the need to consult others about the planet.”

Needs Reason Government Views Principles Democracy Planets Property Libertarian Profession Former Gentleman Latter Affected Taxation Anarchist Distaste

Book:For the Sake of Argument: Essays and Minority Reports

Source: For the Sake of Argument: Essays and Minority Reports

“At bottom, the Court's opinion is thus a rejection of the common sense of the American people, who have recognized a need to prevent corporations from undermining self-government since the founding, and who have fought against the distinctive corrupting potential of corporate electioneering since the days of Theodore Roosevelt. It is a strange time to repudiate that common sense. While American democracy is imperfect, few outside the majority of this court would have thought its flaws included a dearth of corporate money in politics.”

“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

“Political monopoly and economic monopoly are two sides of the same coin, two heads of the same monster. Despite all the claims to the contrary, the essential ideology of Neo-Conservatism is to preserve the status quo, with all of its injustices. Its public relations experts call for "freedom and democracy" without a framework of higher values. They fail to comprehend the need for a paradigm of justice and therefore are blind to what concerns most of the people in the world. This failure is the taproot of terrorism.”

“We want to be masters of our own destiny. We need no Gods or Emperors. We do not believe in the existence of any saviour. We want to be masters of the world and not instruments used by autocrats to carry out their wild ambitions. We want a modern lifestyle and democracy for the people. Freedom and happiness are our sole objectives in accomplishing modernisation.”

“I don't find any difference between Islam and Islamic fundamentalists. I believe religion is the root, and from the root fundamentalism grows as a poisonous stem. If we remove fundamentalism and keep religion, then one day or another fundamentalism will grow again. I need to say that because some liberals always defend Islam and blame fundamentalists for creating problems. But Islam itself oppresses women. Islam itself doesn't permit democracy and it violates human rights.”

“Socialisms not a word that I use. I say social democracy because I dont think the government needs to own all the means of production.”

Thinking Needs Mean Use Government Social Democracy Productions Socialism Social Democracy

Author:David Cunliffe

“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

“I am big supporter of the idea of a global anti-corruption movement - but one that begins by recognizing that the architecture of corruption is different in different countries. The corruption we suffer is not the same as the corruption that debilitates Africa. But it is both corruption, and both need to be eliminated if the faith in democracy is not going to be destroyed.”

Ifs Needs Ideas Different Country Bigs Suffering Democracy Movement Corruption Architecture Destroyed Supporter Recognizing Different Countries

Author:Lawrence Lessig

“We all know that election reform takes time. That's because those who have benefited from the system are the ones who fight hardest to preserve it. So if we're going to succeed, we need an independent coalition of citizens who believe in reform, who believe that our election laws should treat every voter equally, who believe that low levels of competition and participation are not healthy for democracy. The Independence Party is helping to build that coalition and I am happy to join you in doing so.”

“democracy ... is not something that occurs overnight. It is not a gift delivered on a golden tray. Democracy is a long process of fighting, challenging accepted ideas, and perpetually striving for freedom. Like a seed that has to be watered every day to become a flower, democracy needs constant attention and care.”

Needs Long Ideas Care Fighting Process Challenges Attention Democracy Flower Constant Strive Seeds Accepted Golden Trays

Author:Shirin Ebadi

“Every democracy must involve civil society in the process of establishing budgets, and all sectors of society must be consulted to determine what the real priorities of the population are. Lobbies, including military contractors and other representatives of the military-industrial complex, must not be allowed to hijack these priorities to the detriment of the population's real needs.”

Needs Real Process Democracy Military Complexes Including Population Determine Priorities Budgets Representatives Civil Society Military Industrial Complex Contractor

Author:Alfred-Maurice de Zayas

“There is an urgent need to-day for the citizens of a democracy to think well. It is not enough to have freedom of the Press and parliamentary institutions. Our difficulties are due partly to our own stupidity, partly to the exploitation of that stupidity, and partly to our own prejudices and personal desires.”

Thinking Needs Wells Enough Desire Democracy Citizens Difficulty Prejudice Institutions Presses Stupidity Dues Exploitation Urgent Freedom Of The Press Parliamentary Personal Desire

Author:Susan Stebbing

“In a democracy, dynasty politics is wrong. We need to free the state and nation from it.”

Needs States Nations Democracy India Election Dynasty

Author:Narendra Modi

“We need efforts to integrate the nation, not divide it. The 2014 elections is about voting for India. It is to decide what kind of India we want to create. So Vote for India. Neither for a person, nor for a party, let us Vote for India.”

Want Needs Kind Persons Nations Party Effort Democracy Vote India Election Voting Divides Integrating

Author:Narendra Modi

“Majorities can be wrong, majorities can overrule rights of minorities. If majorities ruled, we could still have slavery. 80% of the population once enslaved 20% of the population. While run by majority rule that is ok. That is very flawed notion of what democracy is. Democracy has to take into account several things - proportionate requirements of people, not just needs of the majority, but also needs of the minority. Majority, especially in societies where the media manipulates public opinion, can be totally wrong and evil. People have to act according to conscience and not by majority vote.”

“To make Democracy work, you need an aristocratic democracy. To make Aristocracy work, you need a democratic aristocracy.”

Needs Democracy Democratic Aristocracy Aristocratic

Book:The Collected Works of George Bernard Shaw: Plays, Novels, Articles, Letters and Essays: Pygmalion, Mrs. Warren’s Profession, Candida, Arms and The Man, Man and Superman, Caesar and Cleopatra, Androcles And The Lion, The New York Times Articles on War, Memories of Oscar Wilde and more

Source: The Collected Works of George Bernard Shaw: Plays, Novels, Articles, Letters and Essays: Pygmalion, Mrs. Warren’s Profession, Candida, Arms and The Man, Man and Superman, Caesar and Cleopatra, Androcles And The Lion, The New York Times Articles on War, Memories of Oscar Wilde and more

“Schools need not preach political doctrine to defend democracy. If they shape men capable of critical thought and trained in social attitudes, that is all that is necessary.”

Ifs Men Needs School Political Social Education Attitude Democracy Shapes Capable Critical Doctrine

Author:Albert Einstein

“We need not fear any isms if our democracy is achieving the ends for which it was established.”

Ifs Needs Ends Fear Democracy Achieve Communism Isms

Author:Eleanor Roosevelt

“Democracy is not a fragile flower; still it needs cultivating.”

Needs Stills Government Politics Democracy Flower Fragile Cultivating

Author:Ronald Reagan

“As the only class distinction available in a democracy, the college degree has created a caste society as rigid as ancient India's. Condemning elitism and simultaneously quaking in fear that our children won't become members of the elite, we send them to college, not to learn, but to "be" college graduates, rationalizing our snobbery with the cliché that high technology has eliminated the need for the manual labor that we secretly hold in contempt.”

Source: Lump It Or Leave It

“Thank God we in Iran have neither the desire nor the need to suffer from democracy.”

Needs Desire Suffering Democracy Iran Thank God

Author:Mohammed Reza Pahlavi

“The idea of self-government is foreign to Americans. ... Self-government is a form of self-control, self-limitation. It goes against our whole grain. We're supposed to go after what we want, not question whether we really need it.”

Want Needs Ideas Self Whole Government Form Democracy Limitation Grain Self Control Self-government Whole Grains

Author:Judith Perelman Rossner

“But our perfect democracy, which neither needs nor particularly wants voters, is a rarity. It is important to remember there still exist many other forms of government in the world today, and that dozens of foreign governments still long for a democracy such as ours to be imposed on them.”

World Want Needs Long Stills Important Government Today Remember Form Perfect Democracy Voters Dozen World Today Forms Of Government Rarity

Author:Jon Stewart

“Our culture is at a critical cusp - a time that requires that we define what it means to be a citizen in a democracy. Within our nation we need to foster a greater sense of collective responsibility.”

Needs Mean Culture Nations Responsibility Democracy Greater Internet Citizens Critical Collectives Free Speech Cusp Collective Responsibility

Author:Robert Neelly Bellah

“America cannot do most of what needs to be done alone. You need friends. And we have good friends around the world. We have friends with whom we share values in Europe and Asia - thanks to the forward march of democracy - in Latin America, in Africa, and increasingly in the Middle East.”

World Needs Done America Values Democracy Share Middle Europe East Thanks Around The World March Latin Middle East Good Friend Asia Latin America Friend In Need

Author:Condoleezza Rice

“We want no dictatorship of physicists, as physicists. If our democracy is to realize its full promise, we want no dictatorship at all - of any species. What we want and need is the enlightened and active interest of all men of intelligence and goodwill in their government, and their participation in its functions.”

Ifs Men Want Needs Government Interest Realizing Democracy Promise Function Species Intelligence Active Enlightened Dictatorship Participation Physicist Goodwill Wants And Needs

Author:Jerome Frank

“There is a connection waiting to be made between the decline in democratic participation and the explosion in new ways of communicating. We need not accept the paradox that gives us more ways than ever to speak, and leaves the public with a wider feeling than ever before that their voices are not being heard. The new technologies can strengthen our democracy, by giving us greater opportunities than ever before for better transparency and a more responsive relationship between government and electors”

“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

“I grew up in a dictatorship, so I really appreciate democracy. I think democracy isn't just a random thing that's around - a democratic society needs the involvement of everybody.”

Thinking Needs Democracy Grew Grew Up Appreciate Democratic Dictatorship Involvement Democratic Society Random Things

Author:Paul van Dyk

“For countries to succeed, for democracies to succeed, the women and men in those countries need to be free. Women and men need to know their rights.”

Knows Men Needs Country Democracy Rights Succeed Men And Women

Author:Laura Bush

“It's coming to America first, The cradle of the best and of the worst. It's here they got the range And the machinery for change And it's here they got the spiritual thirst. It's here the family's broken And it's here the lonely say That the heart has got to open In a fundamental way: Democracy is coming to the U.S.A. O mighty Ship of State! To the Shores of Need Past the Reefs of Greed Through the Squalls of Hate Sail on, sail on.”

Source: The Lyrics of Leonard Cohen: Enhanced Edition

“I recognize the need to provide the press - and, through you, the American people - with information to the fullest extent possible. In our democracy, the work of the Pentagon press corps is important, defending our freedom and way of life is what this conflict is about, and that certainly includes freedom of the press.”

People Way Needs Important Life Is Democracy Information Conflict Presses Freedom Of The Press Pentagon

Author:Donald Rumsfeld

“Where we find young democracies, we need to help them. Where we find the enemy, we need to fight them. And that's exactly the Bush policy.”

Needs Helping Young Fighting Enemy Democracy Policy

Author:George W. Bush

“Democracy is a hegemonic tool of the West and contrary to Islam. Why do you act as though the entire world needs democracy? And when it comes to homosexuality, the issue is clearly dealt with by the Koran. It says it is forbidden and should be punished.”

World Needs Should Democracy Issues Tools West Islam Contrary Homosexuality Forbidden

Author:Abdul Sattar Abu Risha

“We Jews really don't need any tutoring in democracy.”

Needs Democracy Jew

Author:Charlotte Knobloch

“What Tunisia urgently needs, is freedom and the building of a real democracy.”

Needs Real Democracy Building Tunisia

Author:Rashid al-Ghannushi

“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.”

“The more there is a need to talk about the ideals of democracy, the less democratic the system usually is.”

Needs Democracy Ideals Democratic

Book:Chomsky on Mis-Education

Source: Chomsky on Mis-Education

“A profound transformation is happening here. The framers of our nation never envisioned these huge media giants; never imagined what could happen if big government, big publishing and big broadcasters ever saw eye-to-eye in putting the public's need for news second to their own interests. I approach the end of my own long run believing more strongly than ever that the quality of journalism and the quality of democracy are inextricably joined ... .”