"But you must remember, my fellow-citizens, that eternal vigilance by the people is the price of liberty, and that you must pay the price if you wish to secure the blessing. It behooves you, therefore, to be watchful in your States as well as in the Federal Government." -- Andrew Jackson, Farewell Address, March 4, 1837
“There is no safety for honest men except by believing all possible evil of evil men.” -- Edmund Burke
"The greatest tyrannies are always perpetrated in the name of the noblest causes." -- Thomas Paine
"No man is entitled to the blessings of freedom unless he be vigilant in its preservation." -- General Douglas MacArthur
"Liberty cannot be preserved without a general knowledge among the people." -- John Adams
"In the end, more than they wanted freedom, they wanted security. They wanted a comfortable life, and they lost it all -- security, comfort, and freedom. When ... the freedom they wished for was freedom from responsibility, then Athens ceased to be free." -- Sir Edward Gibbon (1737-1794)
"A people may prefer a free government, but if, from indolence, or carelessness, or cowardice, or want of public spirit, they are unequal to the exertions necessary for preserving it; if they will not fight for it when it is directly attacked; if they can be deluded by the artifices used to cheat them out of it; if by momentary discouragement, or temporary panic, or a fit of enthusiasm for an individual, they can be induced to lay their liberties at the feet even of a great man, or trust him with powers which enable him to subvert their institutions; in all these cases they are more or less unfit for liberty: and though it may be for their good to have had it even for a short time, they are unlikely long to enjoy it." -- John Stuart Mill, Representative Government, 1861
"The two enemies of the people are criminals and government, so let us tie the second down with the chains of the Constitution so the second will not become the legalized version of the first."-- Thomas Jefferson
"Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely."
Lord Acton, Letter to Bishop Mandell Creighton, 1887
"Power corrupts the few, while weakness corrupts the many."
Eric Hoffer (1902 - 1983)
"A patriot must always be ready to defend his country against his government." -- Edward Abbey
"The hottest places in hell are reserved for those who, in a time of moral crisis, maintain their neutrality." -- Dante, The Inferno
"The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants. ... God forbid we should ever be twenty years without such a rebellion; what country can preserve its liberties if their rulers are not warned from time to time that their people preserve the spirit of resistance? Let them take arms." -- Thomas Jefferson to William Stephens Smith, 1787
"Of course the people don't want war. But after all, it's the leaders of the country who determine the policy, and it's always a simple matter to drag the people along whether it's a democracy, a fascist dictatorship, or a parliament, or a communist dictatorship. Voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked, and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism, and exposing the country to greater danger. "
Hermann Göring, Reich Marshal, at the Nuremberg Trials
"Wherever you have an efficient government you have a dictatorship."
Harry S. Truman
April 28, 1959
"A little neglect may breed mischief ... for want of a nail, the shoe was lost; for want of a shoe the horse was lost; and for want of a horse the rider was lost."
1758 - Poor Richard's Almanac - Benjamin Franklin
"I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty, or give me death!"
March 23, 1775 Patrick Henry
"Fear is the foundation of most government."
1776 - Thoughts on Government John Adams
"Written laws are like spider's webs; they will catch, it is true, the weak and poor, but would be torn in pieces by the rich and powerful."
Anacharsis - 6th Century BC
"The unexamined life is not worth living."
Socrates 469 - 399 BC
"It is never right to do wrong or to requite wrong with wrong, or when we suffer evil to defend ourselves by doing evil in return."
Socrates 469 - 399 BC
"Jacta alea est- The die is cast."
Julius Caesar 100 - 44 BC
"Eureka! I've got it."
Archimedes c.287 - 212 BC
"Give me but one firm spot on which to stand, and I will move the earth."
Archimedes c.287 - 212 BC
“There is no safety for honest men except by believing all possible evil of evil men.” -- Edmund Burke
"The greatest tyrannies are always perpetrated in the name of the noblest causes." -- Thomas Paine
"No man is entitled to the blessings of freedom unless he be vigilant in its preservation." -- General Douglas MacArthur
"Liberty cannot be preserved without a general knowledge among the people." -- John Adams
"In the end, more than they wanted freedom, they wanted security. They wanted a comfortable life, and they lost it all -- security, comfort, and freedom. When ... the freedom they wished for was freedom from responsibility, then Athens ceased to be free." -- Sir Edward Gibbon (1737-1794)
"A people may prefer a free government, but if, from indolence, or carelessness, or cowardice, or want of public spirit, they are unequal to the exertions necessary for preserving it; if they will not fight for it when it is directly attacked; if they can be deluded by the artifices used to cheat them out of it; if by momentary discouragement, or temporary panic, or a fit of enthusiasm for an individual, they can be induced to lay their liberties at the feet even of a great man, or trust him with powers which enable him to subvert their institutions; in all these cases they are more or less unfit for liberty: and though it may be for their good to have had it even for a short time, they are unlikely long to enjoy it." -- John Stuart Mill, Representative Government, 1861
"The two enemies of the people are criminals and government, so let us tie the second down with the chains of the Constitution so the second will not become the legalized version of the first."-- Thomas Jefferson
"Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely."
Lord Acton, Letter to Bishop Mandell Creighton, 1887
"Power corrupts the few, while weakness corrupts the many."
Eric Hoffer (1902 - 1983)
"A patriot must always be ready to defend his country against his government." -- Edward Abbey
"The hottest places in hell are reserved for those who, in a time of moral crisis, maintain their neutrality." -- Dante, The Inferno
"The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants. ... God forbid we should ever be twenty years without such a rebellion; what country can preserve its liberties if their rulers are not warned from time to time that their people preserve the spirit of resistance? Let them take arms." -- Thomas Jefferson to William Stephens Smith, 1787
"Of course the people don't want war. But after all, it's the leaders of the country who determine the policy, and it's always a simple matter to drag the people along whether it's a democracy, a fascist dictatorship, or a parliament, or a communist dictatorship. Voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked, and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism, and exposing the country to greater danger. "
Hermann Göring, Reich Marshal, at the Nuremberg Trials
"Wherever you have an efficient government you have a dictatorship."
Harry S. Truman
April 28, 1959
"A little neglect may breed mischief ... for want of a nail, the shoe was lost; for want of a shoe the horse was lost; and for want of a horse the rider was lost."
1758 - Poor Richard's Almanac - Benjamin Franklin
"I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty, or give me death!"
March 23, 1775 Patrick Henry
"Fear is the foundation of most government."
1776 - Thoughts on Government John Adams
"Written laws are like spider's webs; they will catch, it is true, the weak and poor, but would be torn in pieces by the rich and powerful."
Anacharsis - 6th Century BC
"The unexamined life is not worth living."
Socrates 469 - 399 BC
"It is never right to do wrong or to requite wrong with wrong, or when we suffer evil to defend ourselves by doing evil in return."
Socrates 469 - 399 BC
"Jacta alea est- The die is cast."
Julius Caesar 100 - 44 BC
"Eureka! I've got it."
Archimedes c.287 - 212 BC
"Give me but one firm spot on which to stand, and I will move the earth."
Archimedes c.287 - 212 BC
