If freedom makes social progress possible, so social progress strengthens and enlarges freedom. The two are inseparable partners in the great adventure of humanity.
Robert KennedyRead
Nothing is more false than the notion that the triumph of Communism is inevitable or that the Communists are steadily pushing the free world into a corner.
Interpretation
The belief that Communism will inevitably succeed is misguided; the free world is not being cornered by Communist forces.
Robert Kennedy's quote challenges the prevalent belief in the inevitability of the triumph of Communism. He emphasizes that this notion is fundamentally incorrect and reassures that the forces of freedom are not being driven into a corner by Communism, thus encouraging a more nuanced understanding of geopolitical dynamics rather than a deterministic viewpoint.
In practice
In a political debate discussing the future of global governance.
If freedom makes social progress possible, so social progress strengthens and enlarges freedom. The two are inseparable partners in the great adventure of humanity.
Elections remind us not only of the rights but the responsibilities of citizenship in a democracy.
Within the United States, we have put great emphasis upon political freedoms. Because it has been our experience that these freedoms can lead to others.
It is one thing to open job opportunities. It is another to train people to fill them, or to persuade American enterprise to seek Negro as well as white applicants.
Our attitude towards immigration reflects our faith in the American ideal. We have always believed it possible for men and women who start at the bottom to rise as far as the talent and energy allow. Neither race nor place of birth should affect their chances.
The Gross National Product measures neither our wit nor our courage, neither our wisdom nor our learning, neither our compassion nor our devotion to our country. It measures everything, in short, except that which makes life worthwhile, and it can tell us everything about America - except whether we are proud to be Americans.
If cars and buses were attacked daily by petrol bombs or stones for 16 months in Washington, could you imagine it would be tolerated? It would not, because in the name of democracy, to preserve democracy, steps would be taken.
Of what does politics consist except the making of imperfect decisions, many of them unjust and quite a few of them deadly?
Arresting opposition leaders and restricting civil society will not stop people from protesting, but it can create leaderless movements that leave no one with whom the government can mediate a peaceful way forward.
Because so many voters happen to be illiterate, India invented the party symbol, so that voters who could not read the name of their candidate could vote for him or her anyway by recognizing the symbol under which they campaigned.
The government should not be guided by Temporary Excitement, but by Sober Second Thought.
The State has invariably shown a striking talent for the expansion of its powers beyond any limits that might be imposed upon it.
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