If Greece had gone through a very normal political life I may have not been in politics. But just the fact that I lived through huge upheavals and very difficult struggles and polarization and the barbarism of dictatorships - that made me feel that we had to change this country.

It is important to recognize and politics positive thinking is often the slaves' virtue - something that people do to con themselves about the burden and change being placed upon them.

I think the rules are going to have to change for me to ever run for public office. My checkered past will always keep me out of politics.

I came into politics because I wished to change things. You can't do that by lying to people you have to educate and persuade and carry them with you - and it's often a long haul.

You have to believe that it's through politics that societies can lead social and economic and political change.

Yeah exactly you can talk about politics in music you can talk about something else but that's always going to change and love is never going to change.

We need to dig deep and give people a reason to be optimistic just as Obama is doing in America. Because in the same way that outcome of the U.S. elections will change the course of events there and around the world so too do politics here in Britain.

For sure the 'Obamania' that's fast taking hold reflects an incredible thirst for change in global politics and dare I say a wave of optimism that things can be different.

There are three critical ingredients to democratic renewal and progressive change in America: good public policy grassroots organizing and electoral politics.

One of the big changes in politics has been because families individuals have felt worried insecure... worried about the economy worried about their jobs worried about their kids' futures... actually the disconnect between the public and media discourse and people's everyday concerns has become bigger not smaller.