"At the beginning of the 20th century, Germany was Europe's leading power but we made wrong decisions and experienced a total disaster.." (Joschka Fischer at the Teheran Center, August 2006)
"Realist" as Swearword in Bush's Iraq Quagmire (tags)
The great historical crisis of the 1860s proeduced Abraham Lincoln; the "Great Depression" produced Franklin Delano Roosevelt. We can only hope the political system of the US will produce similar leading figures.