But the consequences of the tragic separation of progress and freedom are still with us. The cause of freedom continues to depend on popular tradition and patriotism; it lacks a coherent philosophy that understands the acute contemporary experience of contemporary revolutions in the east, and the demons of unemployment and poverty in the west. But no one can lead the peoples of this planet if they don't lead them to progress; and therefore freedom cannot be saved unless it becomes a progressive idea again.

Michael Polanyi, foreword