Eric Hoffer ( 10 of 253 )
Absolute power turns its possessors not into a God but an anti-God. For God turned clay into men, while the read more
Absolute power turns its possessors not into a God but an anti-God. For God turned clay into men, while the absolute despot turns men into clay.
No one has a right to happiness.
No one has a right to happiness.
We lie loudest when we lie to ourselves.
We lie loudest when we lie to ourselves.
We usually see only the things we are looking for- so much so that we sometimes see them where they read more
We usually see only the things we are looking for- so much so that we sometimes see them where they are not.
The only index by which to judge a government or a way of life is by the quality of the read more
The only index by which to judge a government or a way of life is by the quality of the people it acts upon. No matter how noble the objectives of a government, if it blurs decency and kindness, cheapens human life, and breeds ill will and suspicion- it is an evil government.
However different the holy causes people die for, they perhaps die basically for the same thing.
However different the holy causes people die for, they perhaps die basically for the same thing.
All mass movements generate in their adherents a readiness to die and a proclivity for united action; all of them, read more
All mass movements generate in their adherents a readiness to die and a proclivity for united action; all of them, irrespective of the doctrine they preach and the program they project, breed fanaticism, enthusiasm, fervent hope, hatred and intolerance; all of them are capable of releasing a powerful flow of activity in certain departments of life; all of them demand blind faith and singlehearted allegiance.
Our quarrel with the world is an echo of the endless quarrel proceeding within us.
Our quarrel with the world is an echo of the endless quarrel proceeding within us.
When people are bored, it is primarily with their own selves that they are bored.
When people are bored, it is primarily with their own selves that they are bored.
The truth seems to be that propaganda on its own cannot force its way into unwilling minds; neither can it read more
The truth seems to be that propaganda on its own cannot force its way into unwilling minds; neither can it inculcate something wholly new; nor can it keep people persuaded once they have ceased to believe. It penetrates into minds already open, and rather than instill opinion it articulates and justifies opinions already present in the minds of its recipients.