Natan Sharansky
Natan Sharansky
Natan Sharanskyon 20 January 1948) is a Soviet-born Israeli politician, human rights activist and author who spent nine years in Soviet prisons. Natan Sharansky has served as Chairman of the Executive of the Jewish Agency since June 2009...
NationalityRussian
ProfessionWriter
Date of Birth20 January 1948
CountryRussian Federation
order people enemy
Non-democratic regimes always need to mobilize their people against external enemies in order to maintain internal stability.
evil lines able
When we are unwilling to draw clear moral lines between free societies and fear societies, when we are unwilling to call the former good and the latter evil, we will not be able to advance the cause of peace because peace cannot be disconnected from freedom.
believe drug believe-in-me
Believe me, the drug of freedom is universally potent.
latin japan america
It is important to remember that some of the most serious thinkers once thought that democracy was not compatible with the cultures of Germany, Italy, Japan, Latin America and Russia.
answers dissent determine
Will dissent be permitted? The answer to that question will determine whether the society is a free society or a fear society.
easter believe optimistic
I am optimistic that peace can be achieved in the region because I believe that every society on earth can be free and that if freedom comes to the Middle East, there can be peace.
army thinking people
Just as the 99% of Soviet citizens who supported the Soviet regime in 1985 was no indication of what the people inside the USSR really thought, the army of true believers that we think we see in the Arab world is an illusion.
powerful support leader
Democratic leaders, whose power is ultimately dependent on popular support, are held accountable for failing to improve the lives of their citizens. Therefore, they have a powerful incentive to keep their societies peaceful and prosperous.
simple squares views
A simple way to determine whether the right to dissent in a particular society is being upheld is to apply the town square test: Can a person walk into the middle of the town square and express his or her views without fear of arrest, imprisonment, or physical harm? If he can, then that person is living in a free society. If not, it's a fear society.
people littles fearful
As soon as people become a little less fearful, they will also begin demanding more freedom.
america forget
When did America forget that it's America?
country war support
Imagine if the United States, in its war against Hitler, had said to Stalin: we don't want your support until you make your country democratic.
japan community democracy
Japan is not a Western democracy. The Japanese have kept their traditions, culture and heritage, but they have joined the community of free nations.
views squares being-free
Can someone within that society walk into the town square and say what they want without fear of being punished for his or her views? If so, then that society is a free society. If not, it is a fear society.