It would have been difficult to design a path out of communism worse than the one that has been followed.

The fewer limitations the artist imposes on his work, the less chance he has for artistic success.

A decline in courage may be the most striking feature that an outside observer notices in the West today. The Western world has lost its civic courage . . . . Such a decline in courage is particularly noticeable among the ruling and intellectual elite, causing an impression of a loss of courage by the entire society.

I have always had that inner drive, since my birth. And I have always devoted myself gladly to work - to work and to the struggle.

In military science there is a principle more important than "Forward": it is that the task should be proportionate to the means.

You're sincere, but in order not to upset your views you avoid talking with people who think differently. You pick your thoughts from conversations with people like yourself, from books written by people like yourself. In physics they call it resonance. You start out with modest opinions, but they match and build each other up to a scale.

The simple step of a courageous individual is not to take part in the lie. "One word of truth outweighs the world.