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History handed Lenin a gift in the shape of the First World War. He grasped it with both hands and used it to craft an insurrection. It is revolutions that make history happen. Liberals of every sort, with rare exceptions, are found on the other side.

— Tariq Ali The Dilemmas of Lenin: Terrorism, War, Empire, Love, Revolution (2017)

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More quotes by Tariq Ali

We live, after all, in a world where illusions are sacred and truth profane.

The Clash of Fundamentalism (2002)

Torture, encouraged from above, became a fact of life [in occupied Iraq]. Perhaps some good liberal apologist for Blair will soon explain how democratic torture is much nicer than authoritarian torture.

The Clash of Fundamentalism (2002)

What accounts, then, for his elevation to a cult figure?

Winston Churchill: his times, his crimes (2022)

Revolutionary periods invariably encompass a huge fluctuation of political consciousness that can never be registered accurately by any referendum.

The Dilemmas of Lenin: Terrorism, War, Empire, Love, Revolution (2017)

Why is insurrection an art? Because an armed uprising against he capitalist state or occupying imperialist armies has to be choreographed with precision, especially during its final stages.

The Dilemmas of Lenin: Terrorism, War, Empire, Love, Revolution (2017)

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Quote text and notes from Wikiquote: Tariq Ali (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Source quality and labels are our own summary of what Wikiquote records.