Despotic power is always accompanied by corruption of morality.
LORD ACTONPolitical differences essentially depend on disagreement in moral principles.
More Lord Acton Quotes
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The one pervading evil of democracy is the tyranny of the majority.
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It is bad to be oppressed by a minority, but it is worse to be oppressed by a majority.
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History, to be above evasion or dispute, must stand on documents, not on opinions.
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When the last of the Reformers died, religion, instead of emancipating the nations, had become an excuse for the criminal art of despots. Calvin preached, and Bellarmine lectured; but Machiavelli reigned.
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If some great catastrophe is not announced every morning, we feel a certain void. Nothing in the paper today, we sigh.
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Liberty is the prevention of control by others. This requires self-control and, therefore, religious and spiritual influences; education, knowledge, well-being.
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A liberal is only a bundle of prejudices until he has mastered, has understood, experienced the philosophy of Conservatism.
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To develop and perfect and arm conscience is the great achievement of history.
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There are two things which cannot be attacked in front: ignorance and narrow-mindedness. They can only be shaken by the simple development of the contrary qualities. They will not bear discussion.
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Federalism is the best curb on democracy. [It] assigns limited powers to the central government. Thereby all power is limited. It excludes absolute power of the majority.
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Truth is the only merit that gives dignity and worth to history.
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Socialism means slavery.
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But when modern absolutism arose, it laid claim to everything on behalf of the sovereign power….
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Government rules the present. Literature rules the future.
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The danger is not that a particular class is unfit to govern. ~ Every class is unfit to govern … Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men.
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