新加坡前總理李光耀因病于23日凌晨3時18分在新加坡中央醫院去世，享年91歲。李光耀是新加坡開國元首，1959年至1990年擔任總理，被譽為“新加坡國父”。同時也是新加坡現任總理李顯龍的父親。

強悍、充滿斗志甚至偏執的強人遠去，我們一起來回顧一下他冷硬如刀、直指人心的箴言。

李光耀談媒體

【沒有新聞就是好新聞】

“我總是覺得此事很奇怪：一個國家有麻煩時，就會受到國際媒體注目......1942年日本占領新加坡之前，或1955年和1956年新加坡發生暴動期間導致兩名記者遇害之前，世上沒有多少人聽過新加坡這個地方。後來我開始明白，當涉及外國媒體時，沒有消息就是好消息。”

──李光耀於1959年9月16日於外國記者協會發言

【No news is good news】

“I have always thought it strange that a country figures prominently in the world press mainly when it is in trouble…Nobody in the rest of the world heard much about Singapore until it was captured by the Japanese in 1942 or again until there were riots in 1955 and 1956 in the course of one of which two members of your fraternity were killed. I have come to believe that, so far as the foreign press is concerned, no news is good news.”

- Speech at Foreign Correspondents Association, 16th Sep, 1959

關於國際領袖

【誰最偉大？】

“我覺得最偉大的是鄧小平。以他這個年紀，要承認自己的錯誤，承認馬克斯丶列寧丶毛澤東思想不可行而必須放棄，只有偉人才能做到。”

──《李光耀對話錄》（Conversations with Lee Kuan Yew ）湯姆．普雷特（Tom Plate）著

“I would say the greatest was Deng Xiaoping. At his age, to admit that he was wrong, that all these ideas, Marxism, Leninism, Maoism, they are just not working and have to be abandoned, you need a great man to do that…”

- Tom Plate's Conversations with Lee Kuan Yew

【再談鄧小平】

“鄧小平是個偉人。中國原是一個破敗的國家，本可能像蘇聯那樣崩潰，但他一手改變了中國的命運，讓這個國家變成今天的面貌，并逐步成為全球最大經濟體。”

──《新加坡賴以生存的硬道理》

【On Deng Xiaoping (again)】

Deng Xiao Ping is a great man because he changed China froma broken-backed state, which would have imploded like the Soviet Union, into what it is today, on the way to becoming the world's largest economy.

- "Hard Truths to Keep Singapore Going"

【談及習近平】

“我認為習近平能夠與納爾遜．曼德拉（NelsonMandela）相提并論：一個情緒極為穩定丶不受自身苦難影響判斷的人──換言之，是個了不起的人物。”

──《時代雜志》（2007年11月19日）

【On Xi Jinping】

“I would put him in Nelson Mandela's class of persons. A person with enormous emotional stability who does not allow his personal misfortunes or sufferings to affect his judgement. In other words, he is impressive.”

- TIME Nov 19, 2007

【談美國人】

“美國人是了不起的傳教士，他們有一股難以壓抑的沖動，要別人改變信仰。”

──《李光耀才智名人名言錄》（1992年）

【On Americans】

“The Americans are great missionaries. They have an irrepressible urge to convert others.”

- 1992, The Wit & Wisdom of Lee Kuan Yew

【最偉大的美國總統是？】

“如果沒有水門事件，我認為是理查?尼克森（Richard Nixon）。他的世界觀很務實，分析力很強，實事求是，還精於謀略，把事情辦好。但他凡事過問的性格，加上極希望連任，令他為人變得過於執著。”

──《李光耀對話錄》（Conversations with Lee Kuan Yew ）湯姆．普雷特（Tom Plate）著

【On thegreatest US President that he'veseen】

“But for the misfortune of Watergate, I would say Richard Nixon. He had a realistic view of the world. He was a great analyst, realistic, but also a tactician to get things done. But this need with wanting to know everything and to make sure he got re-elected became obsessive.”

- Tom Plate's Conversations with Lee Kuan Yew

【最差勁的美國總統是？】

“我的名字是吉米．卡特（Jimmy Carter），我是種花生的，現在競選總統。然後，他就當了總統！”

──《李光耀對話錄》（Conversations with Lee Kuan Yew ）湯姆．普雷特（Tom Plate）著

【On the worst US President】

“my name is Jimmy Carter, I'm a peanut farmer, I'm running for president. The next thing you know, he was the president!”

- Tom Plate's Conversations with Lee Kuan Yew

【談喬治?布什】

“我不認為他是第二差的總統。我覺得小布什的顧問分析事物過於悲觀……布什自知經驗不足，了解自己是一種美德。”

──《李光耀對話錄》（Conversations with Lee Kuan Yew ）湯姆．普雷特（Tom Plate）著

【On George W. Bush】

“I would not put him (George W Bush) the second worst. Iwould say Bush Jr. had melancholy advisers…Bush Jr. knew he didn't have much experience. It is virtue to know yourself”.

- Tom Plate's Conversations with Lee Kuan Yew

【談比爾?克林頓】

“他很聰明，精於政治，且性格外向，很討人歡喜……跟他說話，你會自覺是世上最重要的人。但我想，他經常犯規，這大致上也是事實……就他的情況來說，這部份是他性格所致。我不知道。我的意思是：他的童年很艱苦，諸如此類…….”

──《李光耀對話錄》（Conversations with Lee Kuan Yew ）湯姆．普雷特（Tom Plate）著

【On Bill Clinton】

“Very clever man, very political, likeable fellow because he's got that outgoing personality… When he talks to you, you are the most important person in the world. But I think, it's generally true, he breaks the rules… Well, in his case, it's partly his character. I don't know. I mean, he had a difficult childhood and so on, so forth”.

- Tom Plate's Conversations with Lee Kuan Yew

【談及英國政治人物】

“在英國，要是看看牛津或劍橋一等榮譽畢業生的事業歷程，就會發現這些人最終沒有從政，而是當上銀行家丶金融家或專業人士。”

【On British politicians】

“In Britain, if you look at the First Class Honours list of Oxford or Cambridge and trace their careers, you will find that these people end up not in politics, but in banking, finance and the professions.”

【談及李顯龍】

“如果我沒當上總理，他可能早幾年就坐上那個位置了。我不會讓不夠格的家庭成員擔任要職，因為這對新加坡或我本人的歷史功過來說，都是個災難。絕不能允許有那樣的事。”

──《李光耀才智名人名言錄》（2005年）

【On Lee Hsien Loong】

“If I were not the Prime Minister, he [Lee Hsien Loong]could have become Prime Minister several years earlier. It is against my interest to allow any family member, who's incapable, to be holding an important job because that would be a disaster for Singapore and my legacy.That cannot be allowed.

- 2005 The Wit & Wisdom of Lee Kuan Yew

【談是否為兒子當上總理而自豪】

“是的。但我也非常小心，以免他犯錯……他正面對一個艱難時期，但比起我掌政之初，他可以運用的資源豐富得多。”

──《李光耀對話錄》（Conversations with Lee Kuan Yew ）湯姆．普雷特（Tom Plate）著

【On whetherhe was proud of his son being the PM】

“Yeah, but at the same time, I must be very careful that heis not going to smudge the record.. Well, he has got a tough time, but he has got more resources than I had when I started.”

- Tom Plate's Conversations with Lee Kuan Yew