The world is a bit dimmer today with the passing of Václav Havel (5 October 1936 – 18 December 2011). He was a Czech writer, dramatist, and politician. He led Czechoslovakia’s 1989 “Velvet Revolution” against communism, was the last President of Czechoslovakia, and the first President of the Czech Republic.
He was a personal hero of mine, he was a romantic idealist who proved that intelligence and philosophical depth could triumph over military force and venal political ideology. In an era of staggering mendacity and corruption, he sincerely promoted (and as far as I can tell, lived by) the frequently and hopelessly disregarded ideal that “Truth and love will overcome lies and hatred.”
Václav Havel waves to well wishers on December 29, 1989 shortly after he took the oath as President of Czechoslovakia. (AFP Photo/Lubomir Kotek)
The tragedy of modern man is not that he knows less and less about the meaning of his own life, but that it bothers him less and less.
– Václav Havel
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