An appeal to the reason of the people has never been known to fail in the long run.
—James Russell Lowell, c. 1865Quotes
Every communist must grasp the truth: “Political power grows out of the barrel of a gun.”
—Mao Zedong, 1938The poor have sometimes objected to being governed badly; the rich have always objected to being governed at all.
—G.K. Chesterton, 1908Politics is the art of the possible.
—Otto von Bismarck, 1867The more corrupt the republic, the more numerous the laws.
—Tacitus, c. 117You should never have your best trousers on when you go out to fight for freedom and truth.
—Henrik Ibsen, 1882O citizens, first acquire wealth; you can practice virtue afterward.
—Horace, c. 8 BCPolitics is the art of preventing people from taking part in affairs which properly concern them.
—Paul Valéry, 1943Envy is the basis of democracy.
—Bertrand Russell, 1930I say violence is necessary. It is as American as cherry pie.
—H. Rap Brown, 1967The whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace alarmed (and hence clamorous to be led to safety) by menacing it with an endless series of hobgoblins, all of them imaginary.
—H.L. Mencken, 1921Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.
—Lord Acton, 1887The vice presidency isn’t worth a pitcher of warm piss.
—John Nance Garner, c. 1967