Vaclav Havel Crushed Communism By Speaking The Truth

Investor's Business Daily ^ | 19 Dec 2011 | Editorial

[IBD editorial writer]

Leadership: Europe's outpouring of grief over the death of Vaclav Havel, hero of Czechoslovakia's great Velvet Revolution, says much about its longing for more like him. His honesty and courage liberated Europe.

Some 75,000 Czechs bearing roses and candles lined up in Wenceslas Square beginning Sunday, as they once did in 1989, to pay tribute to one of the greatest freedom fighters of the 20th century. Havel died Sunday at age 75 after liberating his country, leading his nation as president from 1989-2003, and voicing his moral authority to scourge lingering tyrants in Cuba, Burma and China.

Havel, a playwright whose health had been weakened by years spent in communist dungeons, was an unlikely and yet perfect leader for leading Eastern Europe's liberation from communism. He unshackled Europe with the only weapon in his arsenal — words, which he animated and empowered by expressing them truthfully.

[IBD editorial writer]

Havel was the most perfect liberating leader of Europe's modern age. He was real.

[oyez]

Condemned from birth as a "bourgeois element"

That kind of condemnation was a common thing in Czechoslovakia 70 years ago and is just now is being brought into existance in the USA. What progress we have made..

[Olog-hai]

“Europe” (i.e. the EU) really should be silent on this issue, since all they wanted to do was swallow up the Ukraine.

[ScottinVA]

Havel was the most perfect liberating leader of Europe's modern age. He was real.

He spoke the truth even when jailed and threatened with death. The man had an indomitable spirit and vision and his place in history will be a lofty one. And the amazing thing about Havel is .. he always had his feet on the ground and remained a regular guy. Tourists at Hradceny Castle would sometimes find Havel showing up -- unannounced and without an entourage -- to serve up coffee and interact with the visitors.

Děkuji vám a Bůh s vámi, pane Havel.

(Thank you and God be with you, Mr. Havel)

[tcrlaf]

“Havel was the most perfect liberating leader of Europe’s modern age. He was real.”

He and Wallesa led Eastern Europe in to the modern era. What is less talked about is how much of a role Wallesa and Solidarity played in the downfall of Soviet Czechoslovakia.

[Mr. K]

The only morons who love communism are the idiots who never lived under it

[Twotone]

My aunt married a Czech scientist who was allowed to come to the US to study at Johns Hopkins during the Prague Spring under Dubcek. She returned to Prague with him & their first child was only 3 months old when the Russians invaded in 1968. My aunt came back to the US after about 10 years, unable to continue life under that oppression. She had to leave her two kids with their father. When the wall came down, they were finally able to see her again, & we got to meet them for the first time.

God bless Vaclav Havel & all those who put their life on the line for freedom!

[saleman]

Yea. And we still have people pining for the “good ole day's” of communism.

What a bunch of idiots. Hell, their worse than idiots. They're dangerous.

[LucianOfSamasota]

Didn’t Ronald Reagan play a part in this as well?
I seem to recall a previous Czech dissent which was answered with tanks (1968).

[dfwgator]

There are also those whose names nobody here knows that helped bring down Communism, here are nine of them:

Jan Stawisiński,
Joachim Gnida,
Józef Czekalski,
Krzysztof Giza,
Ryszard Gzik,
Bogusław Kopczak,
Andrzej Pełka,
Zbigniew Wilk
Zenon Zając

Thirty years ago, these nine men gave their lives at the Wujek Mine, massacred by Polish Communist Militia thugs, but their sacrifice inspired many in Poland who continued to fight on.