Political Leaders

"Let me be clear, other pakrewans are also part of this, but in the action of comrade Zilan, this part has come to the fore."

""An action is the action of one person, but without words it is an insult." This is actually the tactic of the PKK, the style of the PKK, and it is the style of action that the PKK should give as a response to the times."

"It is not possible to take the country without war"

"The women's revolution is the flower revolution. -"

"Zilan passed me by his action. I will be a militant and a follower of Zilan from now on."

"One can say that the most radical transformation of society is determined by the transformation that women will offer. The more equal and free women are, the more equal and free all parts of society are."

"The struggle of the Kurdish woman is the struggle of all the women of the world"

"The hegemonic powers also used religion and nationalism to preserve their supremacy. In all parts of Kurdistan, Islam is a state religion used as a tool for controlling the population. Even if these regimes embrace secularism, the entanglement of political and religious institutions is obvious."

"This war is not only a military war, but also a life war. It renews the society, renews the culture, renews the spirit, renews the brain and politics. Every Kurd knows that this is his/her rebirth."

"Only a woman who can think strongly can make beautiful and correct decisions."

"The century of women's freedom is the century of women's freedom"

"Under the flag of 'superior Turkey identity' the entire society was sworn to an aggressive nationalism."

"The right of self-determination of the peoples includes the right to a state of their own. However, the foundation of a state does not increase the freedom of a people. The system of the United Nations that is based on nation-states has remained inefficient. Meanwhile, nation-states have become serious obstacles for any social development. Democratic confederalism is the contrasting paradigm of the oppressed people. Democratic confederalism is a non-state social paradigm. It is not controlled by a state. At the same time, democratic confederalism is the cultural organizational blueprint of a democratic nation. Democratic confederalism is based on grassroots participation. Its decision-making processes lie with the communities. Higher levels only serve the coordination and implementation of the will of the communities that send their delegates to the general assemblies. For limited space of time they are both mouthpiece and executive institution. However, the basic power of decision rests with the local grassroots institutions."

"Leader Abdullah Öcalan:"

"Congressman David Dreier: Will the gentlewoman yield? Norton: I will not yield, sir! The District of Columbia has spent two hundred and six years yielding!"

"Working collectively and collaboratively is the difference between mediocrity by yourself...or success as a team. You have to share the pain... and the responsibility... and if you do then you will also share in the rewards."

"If we don't get gun-control laws in this country, we are full of beans. To have the National Rifle Association rule the United States is pathetic. And I agree with Mayor Michael Bloomberg: It's time to put up or shut up about gun control for both parties."

"A guy who didn’t have the guts to run for president. Little Michael. He doesn’t know anything about me. But he never had the guts to run. He probably wished he did but he didn’t. He spent millions of dollars on polling but he was missing one thing: guts. Little Michael."

"Taxes are not good things, but if you want services, somebody's got to pay for them so they're a necessary evil."

"Despite its potential, the federal government has restricted funding for creating new cell lines – putting the burden of any future research squarely on the shoulders of the private sector. Government’s most basic responsibility, however, is the health and welfare of its people, so it has a duty to encourage appropriate scientific investigations that could possibly save the lives of millions."

"“Others may doubt us. They may criticize us. They may try to deny us what is rightfully ours. But they will fail. And I promise you, as long as I am mayor, I will never back away from fighting any opponent -- or confronting any obstacle -- that would prevent our people from achieving all of their dreams in Our New York.”"

"The federal poverty measurement … hasn't been changed since it was first introduced in 1964. … [T]he formula [doesn't] indicate that we've made any gains in fighting poverty. … [Yet] we have made real progress in fighting poverty and raising living standards since the 70s. … The poverty formula … is bankrupt."

"On his controversial initiative "Opportunity NYC": "Now, you might say, 'why should we pay people for doing what they're supposed to do?' It's a fair question -- but think of it this way. Every other anti-poverty program that's been tried has failed to get the national poverty rate below 11 percent. … Why shouldn't we experiment with a program built around the one strategy that has proven time and again to work wonders -- capitalism?""

"I was elected to be independent. I was elected because I owed no political debts. I was elected to “do the job,” and not to spend my first four years in office campaigning. I’ve kept that promise -- and that’s why we face the future with renewed optimism."

"Too often, failing government agencies get bigger budgets, while successful agencies have their budgets cut – because government caters to those screaming the loudest, regardless of what they’re screaming about. In business, it’s exactly the opposite! You invest more in the most successful departments, and less in those that aren’t performing."

"Our reputation has been hurt very badly in the last few years. We've had a go-it-alone mentality in a world where because of communications and transportation, you should be going exactly in the other direction."

"Progress is not inevitable. It's up to us to create it."

"Leading from the front: It’s what built America. But these days, the federal government isn’t at the front – it’s cowering in the back corner of the room, ducking responsibility and hoping no one notices."

"When you go to Washington now, you can feel a sense of fear in the air – the fear to do anything, or say anything, that might affect the polls, or give the other side an advantage, or offend a special interest."

"Neither party has God on its side, a monopoly on good ideas, or a lock on any single fiscal, social, or moral philosophy."

"Partisanship may be King in Washington – but the rest of us don’t have to pay tribute."

"I believe we can turn around our country’s current, wrong-headed course, if we start basing our actions on ideas, shared values, and a commitment to solve problems without regard for party."

"I’ve always wondered if people who block each other from expressing their opinions do so because they have so little confidence in their own. To me, encountering an opposing point of view is a chance to gain a deeper understanding of the issues at stake... and develop my own point of view. But the first thing you’ve got to do is you’ve got to let people speak and you’ve got to listen. And that’s what the first amendment is all about. That’s what really distinguishes this country from others."

"...[W]e’re paying more for the privilege of getting sick and dying early. Once again, it makes no sense. And once again, no one in Washington is talking about how to fix it."

"Although my plans for the future haven't changed, I believe this brings my affiliation into alignment with how I have led and will continue to lead our city."

"One's a dog-eat-dog world, and the other one's just the opposite."

"Today, you're a piranha if you are seen having coffee with somebody from the other party in many cases."

"The press really is not doing its job of holding [the candidates'] feet to the fire. … The tough questions are not what are you in favor of, but how are you going to get it through Congress?"

"Nobody's going to elect me president of the United States."

"“I don't know if Bernie Madoff got his idea from there, but if there's ever a Ponzi scheme, people say Madoff was the biggest? Wrong. Social Security is, far and away,""

"Most people won’t have opportunity to do full-time service, but those lucky enough to have monetary wealth or some spare time really can make an enormous difference. As someone who’s now in the public sector, and is seeing up-close-and-personal the real impact of what we do and what we give, I can tell you: every dollar and every volunteer help, in more ways than you can count."

"In response to criticism from Democratic mayoral candidates for appearing at a 2004 event for the Independence Party: "To all the critics who are rushing out to criticize me tonight, criticize me for being here tonight, let me point out that this night is about the one million New Yorkers who are denied the most basic rights by the two major political parties.""

"If you want to get the best people to run for office, we’ve got to make the rules easier, and simpler, and more understandable to get on the ballot."

"Despite the potential to lead us to new cures, the federal government has restricted funding for creating new cell lines – putting the burden of any future research squarely on the shoulders of the private sector. The consequences of this decision have not only driven thousands of scientists overseas in search of more money and greater opportunity – but also put the brakes on the march of medicine. I’ve always wondered how these legislators would act if their health – or their children’s health – was on the line and stem cell research might lead to a cure.""

"We all know that election reform takes time. That’s because those who have benefited from the system are the ones who fight hardest to preserve it. So if we’re going to succeed, we need an independent coalition of citizens who believe in reform, who believe that our election laws should treat every voter equally, who believe that low levels of competition and participation are not healthy for democracy. The Independence Party is helping to build that coalition and I am happy to join you in doing so."

"New York has been, and will continue to be, a magnet for people from all over the world. This is where the arts, business, research and technology converge to create the world's foremost urban economy."

"If it wasn't for O'Flanagan's Pub on Manhattan's Upper East Side, I don't know where I would have spent my Friday nights as a young man."

"Government by three men in a room has turned New York State into a national symbol of governmental dysfunction. Enough is enough!"

"There will be ups, there will be downs, there will be sideways. I can just tell you I have been hired, I have been fired, I have been lauded, I have been vilified. I've said some of the most brilliant things that just by accident appeared on my tongue, and I’ve said some of the dumbest things that you could imagine. But each day - even the day that I knew I was going to be fired - I looked forward to because I've always believed that tomorrow was going to be the best day of my life."

"My father, a bookkeeper who never earned more than $11,000 a year in his life, sat there, writing out a $25 check to the NAACP. When I asked him why, he said discrimination against anyone is discrimination against us all. And I never forgot that. Indeed, his philanthropy was a gift, not just to that organization, but to me."