Diplomats were invented simply to waste time.

Diplomats were invented simply to waste time.

It is not the literal past, the "facts" of history, that shape us, but images of the past embodied in read more

It is not the literal past, the "facts" of history, that shape us, but images of the past embodied in language.

The limit is about 300 words. Kipling's "Recessional" really did something to England when it was published. It helped them read more

The limit is about 300 words. Kipling's "Recessional" really did something to England when it was published. It helped them through a bad time. Let me know if you find any great poems lying around.

History would be wonderful thing - if it were only true.

History would be wonderful thing - if it were only true.

The conception that government should be guided by majority opinion makes sense only if that opinion is independent of government. read more

The conception that government should be guided by majority opinion makes sense only if that opinion is independent of government. The ideal of democracy rests on the belief that the view which will direct government emerges from an independent and spontaneous process. It requires, therefore, the existence of a large sphere independent of majority control in which the opinions of the individuals are formed.

Politics is not an exact science.

Politics is not an exact science.

Many bad policies are simply good policies taken too far.

Many bad policies are simply good policies taken too far.

Freedom means freedom from forces and circumstances which would turn man into a thing, which would impose on man the read more

Freedom means freedom from forces and circumstances which would turn man into a thing, which would impose on man the passivity and predictability of matter. By this test, absolute power is the manifestation most inimical to human uniqueness. Absolute power wants to turn people into malleable clay.

The history of mankind is little else than a narrative of designs which have failed and hopes that have been read more

The history of mankind is little else than a narrative of designs which have failed and hopes that have been disappointed.