As quoted in "Is Putin Popular?" https://www.nationalreview.com/2018/03/is-putin-popular-c/ (2018), by Jay Nordlinger, National Review <br class="br">2010s

“For inspiration I look to those great players who consistently found original ways to shock their opponents. None did this better than the eighth world champion, Mikhail Tal. The "Magician of Riga" rose to become champion in 1960 at age twenty-three and became famous for his aggressive, volatile play.”

Garry Kasparov

Part I, Chapter 5, Talent, p. 60-61
2000s, How Life Imitates Chess (2007)

“[C]hess is not a game for dictators for numerous reasons. One, it's transparent. It’s all information hundred percent available so you know exactly what you have, you know exactly what your opponent has. You don’t know what he or she is thinking, but you definitely know what kind of resources your opponent can use to hurt you, to damage your position. Also, chess is very much a strategic game so you have to think long-term. Dictators don’t think long-term. Dictators, especially who are in power for so long as Putin is, they have to work on the survival mode. Because it’s all about today, maybe tomorrow morning. Everything that helps us survive is good. Because the moment the dictator thinks long-term, he’ll definitely miss guys from his own entourage hitting him in his own back. The game that defines dictators much better is poker because it’s about bluffs. It doesn’t matter whether you have a strong hand or weak hand. You can have a weak hand, but if you’re comfortable bluffing, raising stakes, and if you can read your opponent.”

Garry Kasparov

2010s, Interview with Bill Kristol (2016)

“Somehow people always forget that it's much easier to install a dictator than to remove one.”

Garry Kasparov

Foreword, p. XIV https://www.amazon.com/Winter-Coming-Vladimir-Enemies-Stopped/dp/1610396200/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr= <br class="br">2010s, Winter is Coming (2015)

“We must decide what we value and decide what is worth fighting for and then–the most important part–we must fight for it.”

Garry Kasparov

Source: 2010s, Winter is Coming (2015), p. 62

“It’s still unfathomable that Russia went from joyously celebrating the end of totalitarianism to electing a KGB lieutenant-colonel in just nine years. Never take your liberty for granted, and be careful whom you vote for because it may be the last election you’ll ever have.”

Garry Kasparov

2010s, The Truth About Putin (2018)

“I was almost annoyed hearing that Putin plays chess and Obama or other leaders of the free world they play checkers. I thought I had to defend the integrity of my game because chess is not a game for dictators for numerous reasons. One, it’s transparent. It’s all information hundred percent available so you know exactly what you have, you know exactly what your opponent has. You don’t know what he or she is thinking, but you definitely know what kind of resources your opponent can use to hurt you, to damage your position.”

Garry Kasparov

2010s, Interview with Bill Kristol (2016)

“Let’s move on to the next major lie in my opening statement, the idea of Putin’s popularity in Russia. I could not begin to count the number of times I’ve been forced to address this myth, the persistence of which I again attribute to our lack of language to describe modern dictatorships. Terms like “polls” and “popularity” as applied to politicians in the free world have very different meanings in authoritarian regimes. I’m fond of asking in response to questions about Putin’s “popularity” if a restaurant is popular if it’s the only one in town and every other restaurant was burned to the ground.”

Garry Kasparov

2010s, The Truth About Putin (2018)

“Putin should simply be called a dictator.”

Garry Kasparov

2010s, The Truth About Putin (2018)

“In chess, we say that the player with the initiative is obliged to attack, otherwise the initiative will be lost and the counterattack will likely be decisive.”

Garry Kasparov

2010s, The Truth About Putin (2018)

“Solving new problems is what keeps us moving forward as individuals and as a society, so don't back down.”

Garry Kasparov

Part III, Chapter 13, Man Vs. Machine, p. 170
2000s, How Life Imitates Chess (2007)

“Communism is like an autoimmune disorder; it doesn't do the killing itself, but it weakens the system so much that the victim is left helpless and unable to fight off anything else.”

Garry Kasparov

Source: 2010s, Winter is Coming (2015), p. 33

“When I retired from professional chess in 2005 to join the Russian pro-democracy movement against Putin, I was frequently asked how my chess experience might help me in politics. My answer was that it wouldn’t help much at all, because in chess we had fixed rules and uncertain results, while in Russian politics it was exactly the opposite.”

Garry Kasparov

2010s, The Truth About Putin (2018)

“For inspiration I look to those great players who consistently found original ways to shock their opponents. None did this better than the eighth world champion, Mikhail Tal.”

Garry Kasparov

The "Magician of Riga" rose to become champion in 1960 at age twenty-three and became famous for his aggressive, volatile play.
Part I, Chapter 5, Talent, p. 60-61
2000s, How Life Imitates Chess (2007)