Quotes from Chrystia Freeland

I know Russia well.

The economic reality is that, thanks to smart machines and global trade, the well-paying, middle-class jobs that were the backbone of Western democracies are vanishing.

Income inequality is one thing, but a permanent division into the haves and have-nots is an entirely different thing - and much less acceptable.

My mother was born in a refugee camp in Germany before the family immigrated to western Canada. They were able to get visas thanks to my grandfather's older sister, who had immigrated between the wars.

There are no bad seats at the cabinet table.

In practice, getting rid of crony capitalism is incredibly difficult.

I am a very strong supporter of our government's view that it is important to engage with all countries around the world - very much including Russia.

Living as we do in the age of Facebook, we shouldn't be surprised that some countries are starting to imagine themselves more as social networks than as a physical place.

It was surprising to me to hear a member question whether another member of the House was an adult. We're all adults in the House of Commons, and I think it diminishes us all to suggest otherwise.

Sometimes who is going to be taking care of all of my kids on any given day is more complicated than any trade agreement.

One consequence of Russia's klepto-capitalist model is the growing appeal of government jobs, with their lucrative opportunities for payoffs.

Plutocrats were the chief beneficiaries of so-called neoliberalism and the suite of political changes it brought beginning in the late 1970s - deregulation, weaker protection for unions, the shareholder value movement, and the subsequent inflation of executive compensation.

Sprawling, earnest, and ambitious - its modest title is 'The Future' - Al Gore's new book embodies both the virtues and the flaws of its author. But those hardy souls who slog past the weaknesses will be rewarded by a book that is brave, original and often fun.

The main point of democracy is to deliver positive results for the majority.

This globalization is lifting up hundreds of millions of people out of poverty. The Left needs to see that.

Fancy GPS systems and space-age tractors are what most excite the farmers I know and astound their city friends.

Western investment is usually assumed to walk hand-in-hand with the democratic values of its home countries, and indeed, opening an economy to outside money is one of the textbook steps in a shift from authoritarianism to an open society.

Environmentally friendly business practices have long been mainstream, particularly when they create a brand advantage, as with organic foods.

I really believe in hoping for the best and preparing for the worst.

It's important to remember that, in the 1930s, a lot of people in the West looked at communism as a pretty good idea. That was partly because they didn't know how bad things were on the communist side of the world, but it was also partly because things were bad in the West.

Individual nations have offered their own contributions to income inequality - financial deregulation and upper-bracket tax cuts in the United States; insider privatization in Russia; rent-seeking in regulated industries in India and Mexico.

The hollowing out of the middle class. That's not just about capitalism or the structure of taxation. That is also about the fundamental truth that machines can do a lot of things better than humans used to do. A lot of those people are being pushed down to do less value-adding jobs, so they get paid less money.

What is interesting is that, although it is framed as a war between the elites and Main Street, the Tea Party is actually really good for the elites.

If the Tea Party gets its way, there will be less government - which is great for the elites. They don't need the government.