It is a dangerous and idle dream to think that the state can become rule by philosophers turned kings or read more

It is a dangerous and idle dream to think that the state can become rule by philosophers turned kings or scientists turned commissars. For if philosophers become kings or scientists commissars, they become politicians, and the powers given to the state are powers given to men who are rulers of states, men subject to all the limitations and temptations of their dangerous craft. Unless this is borne in mind, there will be a dangerous optimistic tendency to sweep aside doubts and fears as irrelevant, since, in the state that the projectors have in mind, power will be exercised by men of a wisdom and degree of moral virtue that we have not yet seen. It won't. It will be exercised by men who will be men first and rulers next and scientists and saints long after.

People constantly speak of "the government" doing this or that, as they might speak of God doing it. But the read more

People constantly speak of "the government" doing this or that, as they might speak of God doing it. But the government is really nothing but a group of men, and usually they are very inferior men. They may have some better man working for them, but they themselves are seldom worthy of any respect.

Envy plus rhetoric equals "social justice.".

Envy plus rhetoric equals "social justice.".

Demagogue: one who preaches doctrines he knows to be untrue to men he knows to be idiots.

Demagogue: one who preaches doctrines he knows to be untrue to men he knows to be idiots.

Liberty is an opportunity for doing good, but this is only so when it is also an opportunity for doing read more

Liberty is an opportunity for doing good, but this is only so when it is also an opportunity for doing wrong.

Find out just what any people will quietly submit to and you have the exact measure of the injustice and read more

Find out just what any people will quietly submit to and you have the exact measure of the injustice and wrong which will be imposed on them.

If the small minority of enlightened citizens who are able to conceive sound principles of political management do not succeed read more

If the small minority of enlightened citizens who are able to conceive sound principles of political management do not succeed in winning the support of their fellow citizens and converting them to the endorsement of policies that bring and preserve prosperity, the cause of mankind and civilization is hopeless. There is no other means to safeguard a propitious development of human affairs than to make the masses of inferior people adopt the ideas of the elite. This has to be achieved by convincing them. It cannot be accomplished by a despotic regime that instead of enlightening the masses beats them into submission. In the long run the ideas of the majority, however detrimental they may be, will carry on. The future of mankind depends on the ability of the elite to influence public opinion in the right direction.

Because we can expect future generations to be richer than we are, no matter what we do about resources, asking read more

Because we can expect future generations to be richer than we are, no matter what we do about resources, asking us to refrain from using resources now so that future generations can have them later is like asking the poor to make gifts to the rich.

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that read more

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has.