“The gentlemen who wrote the Constitution were as suspicious of efficient government as they were wary of democracy, a "turbulence and a folly" that was associated with the unruly ignorance of an urban mob.” GovernmentDemocracyIgnoranceConstitutionGentlemanFollyEfficientUrbanSuspiciousTurbulenceUnruly Book:Waiting for the Barbarians Source: Waiting for the Barbarians
“I have the highest veneration of those Gentleman, -- but, Sir, give me leave to demand, what right had they to say, We, the People? My political curiosity, exclusive of my anxious solicitude for the public welfare, leads me to ask who authorized them to speak the language of, We, the People, instead of We, the States? States are the characteristics, and the soul of the confederation. If the States be not the agents of this compact, it must be one of great consolidated National Government of the people of all the States.” PeopleIfsGivingSoulStatesGovernmentPoliticalAsksSpeakLanguageDemandHighestConstitutionGive MeCuriosityAgentsWelfareGentlemanCharacteristicsAnxiousSovereigntyExclusiveLeading MeCompactVenerationSolicitudeConfederationPublic Welfare Author:Patrick Henry
“There is a reason for the affected profession of " anarchist sympathies" among Tories and grandees, and of " libertarian principles" by Hobbesian yahoos of the right. Among the former, one sees the upholding of the view that a gentleman's business and property are his own, and none of the government's. Among the latter, a distaste for democracy, for taxation, and for the need to consult others about the planet.” NeedsReasonGovernmentViewsPrinciplesDemocracyPlanetsPropertyLibertarianProfessionFormerGentlemanLatterAffectedTaxationAnarchistDistaste Book:For the Sake of Argument: Essays and Minority Reports Source: For the Sake of Argument: Essays and Minority Reports
“I'd like to have every gentleman and lady in this room commit themselves to get our government to legalize drugs. So they have to get it through a doctor, not just some gangsters who sell it under the table. Let's legalize drugs like they did in Amsterdam. No one's hiding or sneaking around corners to get it. They go to a doctor to get it.” GovernmentRoomsDrugDoctorsTablesSellsCornersCommitGentlemanHidingGangstersAround The CornerAmsterdamSneaking Around Author:Tony Bennett