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Under democracy one party always devotes its chief energies to trying to prove that the other party is unfit to read more
Under democracy one party always devotes its chief energies to trying to prove that the other party is unfit to rule--and both commonly succeed, and are right.
Of government, at least in democratic states, it may be said briefly that it is an agency engaged wholesale, and read more
Of government, at least in democratic states, it may be said briefly that it is an agency engaged wholesale, and as a matter of solemn duty, in the performance of acts which all self-respecting individuals refrain from as a matter of common decency.
The condition upon which God hath given liberty to man is eternal vigilance; which condition if he break, servitude is read more
The condition upon which God hath given liberty to man is eternal vigilance; which condition if he break, servitude is at once the consequence of his crime, and the punishment of his guilt.
The tendency of democracies is, in all things, to mediocrity.
The tendency of democracies is, in all things, to mediocrity.
Confronted with the choice, the American people would choose the policeman's truncheon over the anarchist's bomb.
Confronted with the choice, the American people would choose the policeman's truncheon over the anarchist's bomb.
The kind of man who wants the government to adopt and enforce his ideas is always the kind of man read more
The kind of man who wants the government to adopt and enforce his ideas is always the kind of man whose ideas are idiotic.
The only kind of freedom that the mob can imagine is freedom to annoy and oppress its betters, and that read more
The only kind of freedom that the mob can imagine is freedom to annoy and oppress its betters, and that is precisely the kind that we mainly have.
It is the invariable habit of bureaucracies, at all times and everywhere, to assume...that every citizen is a criminal. Their read more
It is the invariable habit of bureaucracies, at all times and everywhere, to assume...that every citizen is a criminal. Their one apparent purpose, pursued with a relentless and furious diligence, is to convert the assumption into a fact. They hunt endlessly for proofs, and, when proofs are lacking, for mere suspicions. The moment they become aware of a definite citizen, John Doe, seeking what is his right under the law, they begin searching feverishly for an excuse for withholding it from him.
If you are to stand up for your Government you must be able to stand up to your Government.
If you are to stand up for your Government you must be able to stand up to your Government.