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From the absolute will of an entire people there is no appeal, no redemption, no refuge but treason.

Lord Acton

Socialism easily accepts despotism. It requires the strongest execution of power — power sufficient to interfere with property.
LORD ACTON

Accepting Deposition Execution Power Requires Socialism Strongest Sufficient
History, to be above evasion or dispute, must stand on documents, not on opinions.
LORD ACTON

Disputes Document Evasion History Opinion Stand
Political differences essentially depend on disagreement in moral principles.
LORD ACTON

Differences Disagreement Essential Moral Political Principles
Moral precepts are constant through the ages and not obedient to circumstances.
LORD ACTON

Age Circumstance Constant Moral Obedient Through
Men cannot be made good by the state, but they can easily be made bad. Morality depends on liberty.
LORD ACTON

Bad Easily Good Made Men State
Monarchy hardens into despotism. Aristocracy contracts into oligarchy. Democracy expands into the supremacy of numbers.
LORD ACTON

Aristocracy Contract Democracy Fanaticism Number Religious
Though oppression may give rise to violent and repeated outbreaks, like the convulsions of a man in pain, it cannot mature a settled purpose and plan of regeneration, unless a new notion of happiness is joined to the sense of present evil.
LORD ACTON

Convulsion Evil Give Man Men Oppression Outbreak Pain Purpose Repeat Settle Violent
Liberty is not a means to a higher political end. It is itself the highest political end…liberty is the only object which benefits all alike, and provokes no sincere opposition…
LORD ACTON

Benefit Class Higher Liberty Mean Men Political
We are not sure we are right until we have made the best case possible for those who are wrong.
LORD ACTON

Case Made Possible Sure Thing Wrong
There is not a more perilous or immoral habit of mind than the sanctifying of success.
LORD ACTON

Habit Mind More Perilous Sanctifying Succes
Liberty, next to religion has been the motive of good deeds and the common pretext of crime, from the sowing of the seed at Athens, 2,460 years ago, until the ripened harvest was gathered by men of our race
LORD ACTON

Ago Bad Common Crime Good Ignorance Liberty Men Next Pretext Seed Sow Strong Year
In every age its progress has been beset by its natural enemies, by ignorance and superstition, by lust of conquest and by love of ease, by the strong man’s craving for power, and the poor man’s craving for food.
LORD ACTON

Age Best Conquest Crave Enemies Every Food Ignorance Man Poor Progress
The science of politics is the one science that is deposited by the streams of history, like the grains of gold in the sand of a river; and the knowledge of the past, the record of truths revealed by experience, is eminently practical, as an instrument of action and a power that goes to making the future.
LORD ACTON

Gold Grainm Stream Knowledge Past Politics River Rivers Sand Science
A convinced man differs from a prejudiced man as an honest man from a liar.
LORD ACTON

Convince Differ Honest Liar Men
I have reached the end of my time, and have hardly come to the beginning of my task.
LORD ACTON

Begining Come End Hardly Task Time
Liberty is not a means to a higher political end. It is itself the highest political end.
LORD ACTON

End Higher Liberty Mean Political

From the absolute will of an entire people there is no appeal, no redemption, no refuge but treason.

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From the absolute will of an entire people there is no appeal, no redemption, no refuge but treason.

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