Terrorism is the war of the poor, and war is the terrorism of the rich.
Interpretation
This quote suggests a deep socioeconomic divide in how conflict is perceived and conducted, highlighting the struggles of the impoverished versus the actions of the wealthy.
Peter Ustinov's quote illustrates the stark contrast between the motivations and consequences of terrorism and war from the perspectives of different social classes. It implies that those who are disenfranchised may resort to terrorism as a desperate means of fighting back, while those with wealth and power engage in war, often impacting the poorer populations disproportionately. This statement captures the cyclical nature of violence and the inequalities perpetuated by economic hardships and the accumulation of wealth.
In practice
In a discussion about the root causes of conflict, one might quote Ustinov to emphasize the socioeconomic factors at play.
Marriage is like a three-speed gearbox - affection, friendship, love. It is not advisable to crash your gears and go right through to love straightaway. You need to ease your way through. The basis of love is respect, and that needs to be learned from affection and friendship.
I'm convinced there's a small room in the attic of the Foreign Office where future diplomats are taught to stammer.
I imagine hell like this: Italian punctuality, German humour and English wine.
Parents are the bones on which children cut their teeth.
Because they have been in love they have survived everything that life could throw at them, even their own failures.
Corruption is nature's way of restoring our faith in democracy.
Government is never more dangerous than when our desire to have it help us blinds us to its great power to harm us.
In my mind, President Snow should be viewed in front of marble pillars hung with oversized flags. It's jarring to see him surrounded by the ordinary objects in the room. Like taking the lid off a pot and finding a fanged viper instead of stew.
International order is not an evolution; it is an imposition. It is the domination of one vision over others- in this case, the domination of liberal free market principles of economics, democratic principles of politics, and a peaceful international system over other visions that other nations and peoples may have. It will last only as long as those who favor it retain the capacity to defend it.
My view of democratic socialism builds on the success of many other countries around the world that have done a far better job than we have in protecting the needs of their working families, their elderly citizens, the children, the sick and the poor.
My great objection to this government is, that it does not leave us the means of defending our rights, or of waging war against tyrants.
I have been thinking that I would make a proposition to my Republican friends... that if they will stop telling lies about the Democrats, we will stop telling the truth about them.
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