Helmut Schmidt quotes

Helmut Schmidt was a German politician and statesman who served as Chancellor of West Germany. A prominent member of the Social Democratic Party, he played a key role in shaping the country's economic and foreign policies during the 1970s and early 1980s. He is remembered for his pragmatic leadership during times of crisis and his influential voice in European politics. Here are 22 of his quotes:

If you look closely, you'll see that the political journalists actually more belong to the political class and less to journalism.

Helmut Schmidt

Nothing is more important than pastoral care for people in need. [...] For me, nothing is less important than theology.

Helmut Schmidt

The more direct decisions by all the people, all the more ungovernable is the country!

Helmut Schmidt

With a democratic society, the concept of multiculturalism is difficult to reconcile. Maybe in a very long term. But if you ask, where multicultural societies have so far worked, you can get very quickly to the conclusion that they only work there peacefully where there is a strong authoritarian state there. So, it was a mistake that we picked up at the beginning of the 60's guest workers from foreign cultures into the country.

Helmut Schmidt

[Intelligence services] are poor pigs suffering from two mental illnesses: The one disease is because they never get public recognition for what they actually do. This is inevitable, as they have to work in secret. This deformes the soul. The other disease bases on the fact that they have the tendency to believe they understood the national interests of their own country much better than their own government. This latter disease is the reason that I do not trust them.

Helmut Schmidt

Science and future, that is a contradiction.

Helmut Schmidt

Today, the most important is to learn to understand other people. And not only their music, but also their philosophy, their attitude, their behavior. Only then will nations can get along with each other.

Helmut Schmidt

The rule of law does not have to win, it does not have to lose, but it has to exist!

Helmut Schmidt

The snail's pace is the normal pace of any democracy.

Helmut Schmidt

If we continue on for decades as before, then I have to be pessimistic about our country.

Helmut Schmidt

I think that the idea that a modern society would be able to establish itself as a multicultural society, with as many cultural groups as possible is absurd. One cannot make out of Germany with at least a thousand years of history since Otto I subsequently make a crucible.

Helmut Schmidt

It is an irony of history that the public sector union, my union, in which I am a member for over 50 years, that imagines that the public service should be the pacemaker in the wage increase. One must be crazy.

Helmut Schmidt

Do we want also to be world champion in moaning?

Helmut Schmidt

What troubles me is that we will see in Germany no approximation of the East German income to the West German income anymore, because productivity stays so far behind.

Helmut Schmidt

It seems to me that the German people can - pointedly - tolerate 5 percent price increase better than 5 percent unemployment.

Helmut Schmidt

Of course, nuclear power has its risks. But there is no power and nothing in the world without risks, not even love.

Helmut Schmidt

It is true that the politician at the moment of his actions or if he explains his actions and justifies them cannot provide at the same time also great philosophy. But if he acts without philosophical and ethical foundations, he is in danger of making mistakes. He is in danger to sink into opportunism. He is even in danger of being a charlatan.

Helmut Schmidt

The multicultural society is an illusion of intellectuals.

Helmut Schmidt

Helmut Schmidt continues to speak of a sense of duty, predictability, feasibility, firmness [...] These are secondary virtues. Simply put precise:.. So you can also run a concentration camp with them.

Helmut Schmidt