promoting fear in the nation.

This is a country which proves that it can make a difficult decision, a democratic decision, without fear, and that it is not afraid of threats and protests, ... On the other hand, it's a democratic country, in the sense that we can also protest, and we can also weep.

The most important thing in life is to dare. The most complicated thing in life is to be afraid. The smartest thing in the world is to try to be a moral person.

My heart goes out to the brave citizens of Syria, who each day risk and even sacrifice their lives to achieve freedom from a murderous regime. We in Israel welcome the historic struggle to forge democratic, peace-loving governments in our region.

My family's dream, and my own, was to live in Israel, and our eventual voyage to the port of Jaffa was like making a dream come true. Had it not been for this dream and this voyage, I would probably have perished in the flames, as did so many of my people, among them most of my own family.

For me, dreaming is simply being pragmatic.