The term "national idea" is an unclear one. One might think of it as a widely shared understanding among a people as to the desired way of life in their country, an idea that holds sway over the population. A unifying concept like that can be useful, but should never be created artificially or imposed top-down by the powers-that-be.
Aleksandr SolzhenitsynFor a country to have a great writer is like having a second government. That is why no regime has ever loved great writers, only minor ones.
Aleksandr SolzhenitsynNo one can bar the road to truth, and to advance its cause I am prepared to accept even death.
Aleksandr SolzhenitsynYou must understand, the leading Bolsheviks who took over Russia were not Russians. They hated Russians. They hated Christians. Driven by ethnic hatred they tortured and slaughtered millions of Russians without a shred of human remorse. It cannot be overstated. Bolshevism committed the greatest human slaughter of all time. The fact that most of the world is ignorant and uncaring about this enormous crime is proof that the global media is in the hands of the perpetrators.
Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn