Libertarianism Quotes - Page 7

• The truth was that all men having power ought to be distrusted to a certain degree.

  James Madison

  Truth, Men, Presidential

  James Madison's notes on the debates in the Federal Convention, avalon.law.yale.edu. July 11, 1787.

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• In framing a government which is to be administered by men over men you must first enable the government to control the governed; and in the next place oblige it to control itself.

  James Madison

  Power, Men, Liberty

  The Federalist no. 51 (1788)

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• f you analyze it I believe the very heart and soul of conservatism is libertarianism. I think conservatism is really a misnomer just as liberalism is a misnomer for the liberals - if we were back in the days of the Revolution, so-called conservatives today would be the Liberals and the liberals would be the Tories. The basis of conservatism is a desire for less government interference or less centralized authority or more individual freedom and this is a pretty general description also of what libertarianism is.

  Ronald Reagan

  Believe, Heart, Thinking

  "Reason" Magazine, July 1, 1975.

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• We contend that for a nation to try to tax itself into prosperity is like a man standing in a bucket and trying to lift himself up by the handle.

  Winston Churchill

  Freedom, Humor, Men

  Winston S. Churchill “Young Statesman”

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• Democracy is the road to socialism.

  Karl Marx

  Historical, Democracy, Liberty

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• Democracy is indispensable to socialism.

  Vladimir Lenin

  Historical, Democracy, Liberty

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• If a nation values anything more than freedom, it will lose its freedom; and the irony of it is that if it is comfort or money that it values more, it will lose that too.

  W. Somerset Maugham

  Freedom, Patriotic, Libertarian Party

  "Strictly Personal" by W. Somerset Maugham, (ch. 31), 1941.

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• The worst crime against working people is a company which fails to operate at a profit.

  Samuel Gompers

  Business, Failure, People

  "Bionomics: Economy as Business Ecosystem". Book by Michael L Rothschild, p. 115, 1990.

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• We Americans have no commission from God to police the world.

  Benjamin Harrison

  War, Presidential, Police

  Benjamin Harrison, United States. President (1889-1893 : Harrison) (1969). “Benjamin Harrison, 1833-1901: chronology, documents, bibliographical aids”

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• Perhaps the fact that we have seen millions voting themselves into complete dependence on a tyrant has made our generation understand that to choose one's government is not necessarily to secure freedom.

  Friedrich August von Hayek

  Freedom, Government, Our Generation

  "The Constitution of Liberty". Book by Friedrich Hayek, 1960.

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• The 'private sector' of the economy is, in fact, the voluntary sector; and the 'public sector' is, in fact, the coercive sector.

  Henry Hazlitt

  Political, Liberty, Libertarian

  Henry Hazlitt (1971). “Man Vs. the Welfare State”, p.121, Ludwig von Mises Institute

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• If there is any principle of the Constitution that more imperatively calls for attachment than any other it is the principle of free thought, not free thought for those who agree with us but freedom for the thought that we hate.

  Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.

  Freedom, Hate, Attachment

  United States v. Schwimmer (dissenting opinion) (1929)

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• Peace, commerce and honest friendship with all nations; entangling alliances with none.

  Thomas Jefferson

  Peace, Honesty, War

  First Inaugural Address, 4 Mar. 1801

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• I ask, sir, what is the militia? It is the whole people except for a few public officials.

  George Mason

  Gun, People, Second Amendment

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• If there be any among us who wish to dissolve the Union or to change its republican form, let them stand undisturbed, as monuments of the safety with which error of opinion may be tolerated where reason is left free to combat it.

  Thomas Jefferson

  Change, Errors, Safety

  First Inaugural Address, 4 Mar. 1801

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• Never forget that everything Hitler did in Germany was legal.

  Martin Luther King, Jr.

  Tyrants, Libertarian Party, Thought Provoking

  Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (2013). “The Essential Martin Luther King, Jr.: "I Have a Dream" and Other Great Writings”, p.94, Beacon Press

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• A little government involvement is just as dangerous as a lot - because the first leads inevitably to the second.

  Harry Browne

  Government, Liberty, Firsts

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• 

  The government was set to protect man from criminals, and the Constitution was written to protect man from the government.

  Ayn Rand

  Men, Libertarian Party, Liberty

  Ayn Rand (1964). “The Virtue of Selfishness”, p.92, Penguin

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• When taxes are too high, people go hungry.

  Laozi

  People, Liberty, Libertarian

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• Vices are simply the errors which a man makes in his search after his own happiness. Unlike crimes, they imply no malice toward others, and no interference with their persons or property.

  Lysander Spooner

  Men, Errors, Libertarian Party

  Lysander Spooner (2006). “Vices Are Not Crimes: A Vindication of Moral Liberty”, p.1, ReadHowYouWant.com

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• One of the reasons I'm drawn to civil libertarianism as opposed to communitarianism is that I don't worry so much about the rights of the majority; a majority is quite capable of enforcing and protecting its own rights.

  Wendy Kaminer

  Worry, Reason, Capable

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• However insignificant the minority, and however trifling the proposed trespass against their rights, no such trespass is permissible.

  Herbert Spencer

  Rights, Liberty, Minorities

  Herbert Spencer (2014). “The Right to Ignore the State”, p.9, The Floating Press

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• My whole take on libertarianism is simply that I don't know what's best for other people.

  Penn Jillette

  People, Whole, Knows

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• The liberty of the press is not confined to newspapers and periodicals. It necessarily embraces pamphlets and leaflets.

  Charles Evans Hughes

  Freedom, Liberty, Defense

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• Truth is not determined by majority vote.

  Douglas Gwyn

  Witty, Truth, Majority Vote

  "Why not pick *nice* places for the Usenix conventions?". Douglas Gwyn's post in USENET newsgroup comp.org.usenix, groups.google.com. July 3, 1991.

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