Tony Judt World Quotations

As citizens of a free society, we have a duty to look critically at our world. But if we think we know what is wrong, we must act upon that knowledge.

There is nothing to be said for being crippled. You don't see the world better or clearer, nor do you develop some special set of skills by way of compensation.

Unlike memory, which confirms and reinforces itself, history contributes to the disenchantment of the world.

I grew up in a world where the social democratic state was the norm, not the exception.

I do think we're on the edge of a terrifying world, and that many young people know that but don't know how to talk about it.

We no longer ask of a judicial ruling or a legislative act: is it good? Is it fair? Is it just? Is it right? Will it help bring about a better society or a better world? Those used to be the political questions, even if they invited no easy answers. We must learn once again to pose them.