In contrast, fear societies are societies in which dissent is banned.

This scepticism is the same scepticism I heard a generation ago in the USSR when few thought that a democratic transformation behind the iron curtain was possible.

The central premise behind Oslo was that if Arafat were given enough legitimacy, territory, weapons and money, he would use his power to fight terror and make peace with Israel.

It is not surprising, then, that in the decade since Oslo began, Arafat used all the resources placed at his disposal to fan the flames of hatred against Israel.

In dictatorships you need courage to fight evil; in the free world you need courage to see evil.

Japan is not a Western democracy. The Japanese have kept their traditions, culture and heritage, but they have joined the community of free nations.

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.

Free societies are societies in which the right of dissent is protected.

As soon as people become a little less fearful, they will also begin demanding more freedom.

Non-democratic regimes always need to mobilize their people against external enemies in order to maintain internal stability.

Will dissent be permitted? The answer to that question will determine whether the society is a free society or a fear society.

With heavy rainfall, the river will overflow its banks.

Music evokes emotion and emotion can bring it's memory.

He has chosen not to heal me, but to hold me. The more intense the pain, the closer His embrace.

Today and tomorrow is an illusion, days are all joined together, and if you are waiting for your time, you are wasting your time.

Thou shalt not be a victim. Thou shalt not be a perpetrator. Above all, thou shalt not be a bystander. (U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum qtd. in Halter)

What I don't miss is living in a small town where everybody knows you, your family, and what you ate for breakfast.

I think there are no meaningful images. Meanings are created outside of the image.

I would not exchange the laughter of my heart for the fortunes of the multitudes.

I really connect with music that has a point, that's not just a heavy riff and cool sounds. I always like it to have a purpose.

There's this whole sense of judgment and who's right and who's wrong and who's moral and who's going to be punished.