Quotes from Madeleine K. Albright

his reputation for shouting things that more conventional politicians were too timid to whisper. The senator's skin, however, was paper-thin, and he seemed not to care very much whether his startling disclosures had any basis in fact.

he was warning the Senate of "a conspiracy so immense and an infamy so black as to dwarf any previous such venture in the history of man.

Over the decades, I have given speeches of many types, but commencement addresses (along with remarks at funerals) are the hardest to prepare. At my own graduation, the principal speaker was the secretary of defense, who advised the young ladies of Wellesley to find suitable husbands and raise smart children.

ON THE NIGHT of November 23, Beneš began an eventful pilgrimage

people. THE EARLIEST SETTLERS of the lands that lie within the heart of Europe between the Carpathian Mountains and the Danube were the Boii, a Celtic tribe on the run from northern floods.

Throughout history, demagogues have often outperformed democrats in generating popular fervor, and it is almost always because they are perceived to be more decisive and sure in their judgements.

The 2008 financial crisis reinforced this trend by causing many citizens to doubt the competence of their leaders and to question the fairness of systems that seem to protect the wealthy at the expense of everyone else.

More broadly, it is vital for leaders to work across international boundaries to minimize the number of people who feel the need to leave their home countries in the first place.

The advantage of a free press is diminished when anyone can claim to be an objective journalist, then disseminate narratives conjured out of thin air to make others believe rubbish.

A speechmaker's gravest sin is to leave the listener indifferent. I was determined not to be dull.

Given that fascism tends to take hold in a step-by-step manner rather than by making one giant leap, could it ever proceed very far in America before being stopped? Is the United States immune to this malady—or susceptible?

with the rights of others, and is willing to use violence and whatever other means are necessary to achieve the goals he or she might have.

that for Fascism to extend its reach from the streets to the high offices of state, it must secure backing from multiple sectors of society.

Worldwide, there are more refugees huddled in camps than there have been since the Nazi surrender almost three-quarters of a century ago

Mussolini was not an original thinker, but he was a gifted actor who could play a role.

A whole generation has been born and come of age since the Communist bloc disintegrated. What does this mean? It means that we no longer judge established democracies by comparing them with the Soviet alternative; and that we don't evaluate emerging democracies by looking at their totalitarian predecessors. We have tossed the measuring-sticks we used in the past into the waste bin.

a Fascist is someone who identifies strongly with and claims to speak for a whole nation or group, is unconcerned with the rights of others, and is willing to use whatever means are necessary—including violence—to achieve his or her goals. In that conception, a Fascist will likely be a tyrant, but a tyrant need not be a Fascist

person who is learning has less time to think about growing old. I also enjoy surprising people

Promoters of free institutions, myself included, love to say that liberty is a universal yearning, but so is the wish to eat.

Let us recall the boys and girls who had the nerve to write poetry and create works of art, and the adults who cared enough about life to debate philosophy, treat the ill and share their meager belongings all in a prison expressly designed to crush their spirit.

blood and instinct will regain their rights. . . . The era of individualism, liberalism and democracy, of humanitarianism and freedom, is nearing its end. The masses will accept with resignation the victory of the Caesars, the strong men, and will obey them.

the clash between Nazi lies and the rule of law came to a head; the lies won.

The inherent tensions between the White House and the press should not worry a president who is disciplined about observing certain elementary tactics of survival. Take responsibility, admit mistakes, put out bad news quickly, and acknowledge inconsistencies before others point them out.

Trump's view of life as a wilderness of Darwinian dogfights doesn't correspond to the intricately interdependent world in which we must frequently join forces if we are to make the best of our lot.