Jürgen Habermas

life history responsibility biography

“Only one who takes over his own life history can see in it the realization of his self. Responsibility to take over one's own biography means to get clear about who one wants to be.”

― Jürgen Habermas

parliament wise chosen argument rostrum

“The parliament no longer is an 'assembly of wise men chosen as individual personalities by privileged strata, who sought to convince each other through arguments in public discussion on the assumption that the subsequent decision reached by the majority would be what was true and right for the national welfare.' Instead it has become the 'public rostrum on which, before the entire nation (which through radio an television participates in a specific fashion in this sphere of publicity), the government and the parties carrying it present and justify to the nation their political program, while the opposition attacks this program with the same opennes and develops its alternatives.”

― Jürgen Habermas

global terrorism extreme lack goal exploitation complex

"Global terrorism is extreme both in its lack of realistic goals and in its cynical exploitation of the vulnerability of complex systems."

― Jürgen Habermas

september 11 european government scope interest

"After September 11, the European governments have completely failed. They are incapable of seeing beyond their own national scope of interests."

― Jürgen Habermas

partisan terrorist

"Partisans fight on familiar territory with professed political objectives to conquer power. This is what distinguishes them from terrorists."

― Jürgen Habermas

burgeois public private people

"The bourgeois public sphere may be conceived above all as the sphere of private people come together as a public."

― Jürgen Habermas