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Pleasure and freedom from pain, are the only things desirable as ends.

John Stuart Mill

The idea that truth always triumphs over persecution is one of those pleasant falsehoods, which most experience refutes. History is teeming with instances of truth put down by persecution. If not put down forever, it may be set back for centuries.
JOHN STUART MILL

Experience Forever History Ideas Persecution Truth
A democratic constitution, not supported by democratic institutions in detail, but confined to the central government, not only is not political freedom, but often creates a spirit precisely the reverse, carrying down to the lowest grade in society the desire and ambition of political domination.
JOHN STUART MILL

Ambition Creation Democracy Desire Domination Grade Institution Politics Society Spirit
The price paid for intellectual pacification is the sacrifice of the entire moral courage of the human mind.
JOHN STUART MILL

Courage Human Intellectual Mindset Pay Price
The study of science teaches young men to think, while study of the classics teaches them to express thought.
JOHN STUART MILL

Expression Literature Science Study Teaching Thinking Young
The fatal tendency of mankind to leave off thinking about a thing when it is no longer doubtful is the cause of half their errors.
JOHN STUART MILL

Errors Fatal Mistake Reason Tendency Thinking
As often as a study is cultivated by narrow minds, they will draw from it narrow conclusions.
JOHN STUART MILL

Conclusion Cultivation Draw Narrow Study
The human faculties of perception, judgment, discriminative feeling, mental activity, and even moral preference, are exercised only in making a choice. He who does anything because it is the custom, makes no choice.
JOHN STUART MILL

Activity Choice Discrimination Faculty Human Mental
Human nature is not a machine to be built after a model, and set to do exactly the work prescribed for it, but a tree, which requires to grow and develop itself on all sides, according to the tendency of the inward forces which make it a living thing.
JOHN STUART MILL

Development Force Human Live Machine Nature Requirement Tree
Next to selfishness the principal cause which makes life unsatisfactory is want of mental cultivation.
JOHN STUART MILL

Cultivation Life Mental Reason Satisfaction
A state which dwarfs its men, in order that they may be more docile instruments in its hands even for beneficial purposes–will find that with small men no great thing can really be accomplished.
JOHN STUART MILL

Accomplishment Finding Hands Instrument Man Order Purpose State
The only purpose for which power can be rightfully exercised over any member of a civilized community, against his will, is to prevent harm to others. His own good, either physical or moral, is not sufficient warrant.
JOHN STUART MILL

Himself Moral Prevent Purpose Right Willing
Originality is the one thing which unoriginal minds cannot feel the use of.
JOHN STUART MILL

Feeling Mindset Oneself Original
He who does anything because it is the custom, makes no choice.
JOHN STUART MILL

Choice Custom Himself
The general tendency of things throughout the world is to render mediocrity the ascendant power among mankind.
JOHN STUART MILL

Average General Kind Man World
To refuse a hearing to an opinion, because they are sure that it is false, is to assume that their certainty is the same thing as absolute certainty. All silencing of discussion is an assumption of infallibility.
JOHN STUART MILL

Certain Discussion Fake Opinion Refuse Silence
Although it is not true that all conservatives are stupid people, it is true that most stupid people are conservative.
JOHN STUART MILL

Conservative People Stupidity True

Pleasure and freedom from pain, are the only things desirable as ends.

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Pleasure and freedom from pain, are the only things desirable as ends.

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