But at the end of the 20th century let alone from a senior American official such contemptuous indifference to the 200-year old struggle for freedom and democracy is utterly inappropriate.
Americans tend to avoid some bits of their past notably what they did to the American Indians but they have managed to cast most of their history, including the civil war, as part of their struggle for freedom.
Mr Leshchenko began working for Ukrainska Pravda several days before Gongadze's disappearance but he refuses to be compared to the dead journalist who has become an iconic figure in Ukraine, a symbol of struggle for the freedom of speech.
But a Turkish lawyers' association, CHD, accused the state of "an all-out attack against people and institutions who oppose the system and struggle for democracy and freedom", Hurriyet reports on its website.
President Arafat was not just a leader, he was a symbol for our struggle and our freedom.
The Venezuelan people, consistent with the country's republican tradition, its struggle for independence, peace and freedom, shall not recognize any regime, legislation or authority that stands in contradiction to the country's values, principles, and democratic guarantees.
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And, yes, we're here to stand, and proudly so, for all who struggle to break free from totalitarianism, for all who know in their hearts that freedom is the one true path to peace and human happiness.
So the succession struggle is also a fight for influence, interests and freedom.
It is the latest round in the ongoing struggle over Europe's future between the integrationists and those who favour maximum freedom for nation states.
Warsaw, Poland (CNN) -- Lech Walesa, the man who led Poland to freedom in its Cold War struggle with the Soviet Bloc, is refusing to apologize for suggesting gay Polish politicians should "sit behind a wall" in the country's parliament.
"In the spirit of the Black Panthers, in the spirit of Assata Shakur, we make this movement towards freedom, for all those who have been oppressed, and all those in the struggle, " he sings.
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Leaving the cocoon of blissful freedom that was the holiday break behind to get back on the grind can be a struggle for many.
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