There's a basic problem with the history of the Holocaust. The people who do it don't know the necessary languages. — Timothy D. Snyder History Copy Share Image
Every day you don't do something, it makes it less likely that you will ever do something. So you've got to get… — Timothy D. Snyder Day Copy Share Image
Republics, like other forms of government, exist in history and can rise and fall. — Timothy D. Snyder Democracy Copy Share Image
Most Americans are exceptionalists; we think we live outside of history. — Timothy D. Snyder America Copy Share Image
I thought I was going to grow up and become a diplomat and negotiate nuclear arms. — Timothy D. Snyder Diplomat Copy Share Image
To abandon facts is to abandon freedom. If nothing is true, then all is spectacle. — Timothy D. Snyder Abandon Copy Share Image
The minor choices we make are themselves a kind of vote. Our words and gestures, or their absence, count very much. — Timothy D. Snyder Absence Copy Share Image
Very often, when leaders repeat things over and over, they are preparing you for when that meme actually emerges in reality. — Timothy D. Snyder Leaders Copy Share Image
What we ended up with, from Bill Clinton onward, is a status quo party and an 'undo the system' party, where the… — Timothy D. Snyder Democracy Copy Share Image
Courage does not mean not fearing or not grieving. It does mean recognizing and resisting terror management right away, from the moment… — Timothy D. Snyder Courage Copy Share Image
It is aspiring tyrants who say that 'civil liberties end when an attack on our safety begins.' Conversely, leaders who wish to… — Timothy D. Snyder Civil liberties Copy Share Image
Maybe I am naive, but I don't think talking about the Holocaust with total and complete cynicism is possible for Israeli politicians.… — Timothy D. Snyder Cynicism Copy Share Image
Getting out to protest, this is something real and, I would say, something patriotic. Part of the new authoritarianism is to get… — Timothy D. Snyder Action Copy Share Image
Americans can accept that the American Dream will not work out for them; what has been heartbreaking for so many is the… — Timothy D. Snyder American Copy Share Image
Totalitarianism is not about some state that appears out of nowhere and suddenly is all-powerful. There can't be any such thing. Totalitarianism… — Timothy D. Snyder Between Copy Share Image
One thing that I would like to get across is that even the most horrible events do have explanations that we can… — Timothy D. Snyder Always Copy Share Image
In the descent from a world of factual discourse into a world of emotions and alternative realities, the first step you take,… — Timothy D. Snyder Emotions Copy Share Image
We think about democracy, and that's the word that Americans love to use, 'democracy,' and that's how we characterize our system. But… — Timothy D. Snyder Democracy Copy Share Image
If we can't have exchanges with our friends and family, with loved ones that won't at some point be made public, then… — Timothy D. Snyder Family Copy Share Image
The premise of Russian foreign policy to the West is that the rule of law is one big joke; the practice of… — Timothy D. Snyder Find Copy Share Image
When listening to politicians, distinguish certain words. Look out for the expansive use of 'terrorism' and 'extremism.' Be alive to the fatal… — Timothy D. Snyder Language Copy Share Image
People who lived in the 1920s and '30s and '40s were not so different from us. In some ways, they were probably… — Timothy D. Snyder Attention Copy Share Image
In rhetoric and action, the Trump administration has aggrandized 'radical Islamic terror,' thus making what Madison called a 'favorable emergency' more likely. — Timothy D. Snyder Action Copy Share Image
The 20th century shows that the form of government that we take for granted, a constitutional democratic republic with checks and balances… — Timothy D. Snyder Checks and balances Copy Share Image
Mr. Trump is primarily a television personality. As such, he is judged by that standard. This means that a scandal does not… — Timothy D. Snyder Desire Copy Share Image
Anticipatory obedience teaches authorities what is possible and accelerates unfreedom. — Timothy D. Snyder Authorities Copy Share Image
Modern tyrants are terror managers. Do not allow your shock to be turned against your freedom. — Timothy D. Snyder Freedom Copy Share Image
Get the screens out of your room and surround yourself with books. — Timothy D. Snyder Books Copy Share Image
If we don't have access to facts, we can't trust each other. Without trust, there's no law. Without law, there's no democracy. — Timothy D. Snyder Access Copy Share Image
Trump bankrupted six companies but succeeded on the biggest of stages. He is the champion of failures. — Timothy D. Snyder Champion Copy Share Image
We can only see as much and we can only go as far as our languages take us. — Timothy D. Snyder Far Copy Share Image
People in the West tend to identify with western victims. So even when they think about the Holocaust, they really think about… — Timothy D. Snyder Holocaust Copy Share Image
If you want to avoid criticism, then you shouldn't be a historian, because historians are trying to understand and explain. If you're… — Timothy D. Snyder Business Copy Share Image
When a terrorist attack comes, you will not necessarily know who did it. What you can know is that certain kinds of… — Timothy D. Snyder Attack Copy Share Image
Fascism says what you and I experience as facts or what reporters experience as facts are irrelevant. All that matters are impressions… — Timothy D. Snyder Emotions Copy Share Image
It is not hard to see why Trump might choose Putin as his fantasy friend. Putin is the real-world version of the… — Timothy D. Snyder Fantasy Copy Share Image
For the Russians, the displacement of the Holocaust is calculated and cynical. It's not emotional; they don't care about the Holocaust one… — Timothy D. Snyder Cynical Copy Share Image
Americans are no wiser than the Europeans who saw democracy yield to fascism, Nazism, or communism. Our one advantage is that we… — Timothy D. Snyder Communism Copy Share Image
I think, whatever ideological coloration we think actually applies to Trump, we can be pretty confident that he sees the American state… — Timothy D. Snyder American Copy Share Image
It is unclear how much money Trump has, but it is not enough to matter in Russia. If he keeps up his… — Timothy D. Snyder Media Copy Share Image
