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.
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Freedom is not worth having if it does not include the freedom to make mistakes.
Freedom is not worth having if it does not include the freedom to make mistakes.
Various kinds of ideas can be classified by their relationship to the authentication process. There are ideas systematically prepared for read more
Various kinds of ideas can be classified by their relationship to the authentication process. There are ideas systematically prepared for authentication ("theories"), ideas not derived from any systematic process ("visions"), ideas which could not survive any reasonable authentication process ("illusions"), ideas which exempt themselves from any authentication process ("myths"), ideas which have already passed authentication processes ("facts"), as well as ideas known to have failed- or certain to fail- such processes ("falsehoods" - both mistakes and lies).
It is the very essence of despotism that it can never afford to fail. This is what distinguishes it most read more
It is the very essence of despotism that it can never afford to fail. This is what distinguishes it most vitally from democracy. In a despotism there is no organized opposition which can take over the power when the Administration in office has failed. All the eggs are in one basket. Everything is staked on one coterie of men. When the going is good, they move more quickly and efficiently than democracies, where the opposition has to be persuaded and conciliated. But when they lose, there are no reserves. There are no substitutes on the bench ready to go out on the field and carry the ball. That is why democracies with the habit of party government have outlived all other forms of government in the modern world. They have, as it were, at least two governments always at hand, and when one fails they have the other. They have diversified the risks of mortality, corruption, and stupidity which pervade all human affairs. They have remembered that the most beautifully impressive machine cannot run for very long unless there is available a complete supply of spare parts.
What doth it profit a man if he gains the who world and loses his own soul?
What doth it profit a man if he gains the who world and loses his own soul?
The multitude is always in the wrong.
The multitude is always in the wrong.
The successful politician owes his power to the fact that he moves within the accepted framework of thought, that he read more
The successful politician owes his power to the fact that he moves within the accepted framework of thought, that he thinks and talks conventionally. It would be almost a contradiction in terms for a politician to be a leader in the field of ideas. His task in a democracy is to find out what the opinions held by the largest number are, not to give currency to new opinions which may become the majority view in some distant future.
...no civilized society can long exist, with an active power in its bosom that is stronger than the law.
...no civilized society can long exist, with an active power in its bosom that is stronger than the law.
Property is a central economic institution of any society, and private property is the central institution of a free society.
Property is a central economic institution of any society, and private property is the central institution of a free society.
My brother Bob doesn't want to be in government -- he promised Dad he'd go straight.
My brother Bob doesn't want to be in government -- he promised Dad he'd go straight.
