Robert Wagner Quotes
He delivers to each group what each group needs.
Robert Wagner, New York Mayor (Democrat), President, NYC Board of Education, U. S. Ambassador to Spain, Describing Brooklyn Borough President, Howard Golden, Quoted in New York Times, July 16, 1988
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Fiji is a multi-racial and multi-cultural society consisting of descendants of the original Fiji natives, immigrants from India and Westerners. The traditional Fiji chiefs wanted their positions of leadership recognized in the Fijian legal and governmental system. However, many of them were hostile to the Indians who were economically very successful and not part of the traditional tribal structure. But they and the Europeans are Fiji citizens just like the native descendants, and the traditional chiefs, if they wanted to represent the government had to represent and respect all—not just the traditional natives.
Selling supplies to foreign enemies has been an American problem for a long time. The next day, Congress passed the Embargo Act of 1813.
This has been a classic dilemma for all large multi ethnic states—trying to develop a sense of unity of citizenship in the face of populations who think of themselves foremost differently. Attempts like this of banning the names of the peoples from official use, banning languages, changing people’s names, requiring common dress and other such methods have failed in most cases (Ataturk’s Turkey being the notable exception). America, Great Britain and the Soviet Union showed the world that it was possible to have a strong sense of national unity and at the same time allow peoples, cultures, and ethnicities to maintain their own ethnic identities. However, many modern governments see their situation as so unique that ethnic repression of one kind or another is required. Modern China, in particular, while not as extreme as Sun Yat-Sen still makes it very difficult for certain cultures to thrive such as the Tibetans. Note that even in the United States we have many who argue that non English language usage should be discouraged and disapprove of the concept of hyphenated Americans. For example, see Theodore Roosevelt {631377}.
Lame was not opposed to civil rights as some who read this quotation sometimes conclude. He did think that much of the lack of success of minorities in America could be ameliorated by many self-improvement and individual efforts. His reference to destroying America, was an interesting rhetorical technique of assuming that what you advocate is not implemented and showing that it leads to disaster. Phrased this way, it gets and focuses the attention of an audience.
Such a comcept has been shared by most autocratic governments like Nazi Germany, but before and after Germans did not see this subservience to and power of the state as desirable or even necessary. The Vatican has had periods like this. But this Sistema has been a part of Russian culture during the millinium of Czarist rule. It was used andn explicitly made a part of Lennin and the Russian Revolutionaries, and then so heavily used by Joseph Stalin before, during and after WWII. It continued under the Post Stalinist Communist leader and when the Soviet Union fell and Russia became less authoratoran, it was not utilized but it was deeply embedded in the Russian psyche and culture as demonstrated by the fact that Vladimir Putin began t use it as an instrument of his governance.
He was in a Turkish Prison when he made this statement. Some of his more militant PKK followers rejected the statement assuming that it was coerced. Most agreed and were tired of a fight against an overwhelmg Turhish military and police. However the PKK militsntd, devclsred terrorists by the US and many other nations, killed 40,000 Turks including many Kurds who are and have been an ethnic minority in Turkey who have been treated very badly..
Robert John Wagner Jr. is an American actor of stage, screen, and television. He is known for starring in the television shows It Takes a Thief (1968–1970), Switch (1975–1978), and Hart to Hart (1979–1984). He later had a recurring role as Teddy Leopold in the TV sitcom Two and a Half Men (2007–2008) and made twelve guest appearances (2010-2019) as Anthony DiNozzo Sr. in the police procedural NCIS.
