Liberty Quotes - Page 4

• The single most exciting thing you encounter in government is competence, because it's so rare.

  Daniel Patrick Moynihan

  Government, Political, Encounters

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• This, then, is freedom in the external life of man-that he is independent of the arbitrary power of his fellows.

  Ludwig von Mises

  Independent, Men, Arbitrary

  Ludwig von Mises (2016). “Socialism - An Economic and Sociological Analysis: The Economist”, p.168, VM eBooks

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• The moral and constitutional obligations of our representatives in Washington are to protect our liberty, not coddle the world, precipitating no-win wars, while bringing bankruptcy and economic turmoil to our people.

  Ron Paul

  Money, Peace, War

  Ron Paul (1987). “Freedom Under Siege”, p.60, Ludwig von Mises Institute

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• The price of freedom is eternal vigilance.

  Desmond Tutu

  Memorial Day, Peace, Freedom

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• The patriot's blood is the seed of Freedom's tree.

  Thomas Campbell

  Uplifting, Memorial Day, Freedom

  Thomas Campbell, J. Logie Robertson (1884). “The Complete Poetical Works of Thomas Campbell”, p.215, Ardent Media

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• The power which a multiple millionaire, who may be my neighbor and perhaps my employer, has over me is very much less than that which the smallest "functionaire" possesses who wields the coercive power of the state, and on whose desecration it depends whether and how I am allowed to live or to work.

  Friedrich August von Hayek

  May, Libertarian, Neighbor

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• Of all the enemies to public liberty war is, perhaps, the most to be dreaded, because it comprises and develops the germ of every other. War is the parent of armies; from these proceed debts and taxes; and armies, debts, and taxes are the known instruments for bringing the many under the domination of the few... No nation could preserve its freedom in the midst of continual warfare.

  James Madison

  Inspirational, War, Army

  "Political Observations" by James Madison, founders.archives.gov. April 20, 1795.

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• We do many things at the federal level that would be considered dishonest and illegal if done in the private sector.

  Donald T. Regan

  Done, Levels, Libertarian

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• Whatever crushes individuality is despotism.

  John Stuart Mill

  Crush, Individuality, Despotism

  On Liberty ch. 3 (1859)

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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, Libertarian, Facts

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

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• The right to be let alone is indeed the beginning of all freedom.

  William O. Douglas

  Freedom, Libertarian

  "Public Utilities Commission v. Pollak, 343 U.S. 451". U.S. Supreme Court case, supreme.justia.com. May 26, 1952.

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• There is no difference between communism and socialism, except in the means of achieving the same ultimate end: communism proposes to enslave men by force, socialism - by vote. It is merely the difference between murder and suicide.

  Ayn Rand

  Suicide, Mean, Men

  Ayn Rand (1988). “The Ayn Rand Lexicon: Objectivism from A to Z”, p.466, Penguin

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• The most basic question is not what is best, but who shall decide what is best.

  Thomas Sowell

  Inspirational, Libertarian, Economic

  Thomas Sowell (1996). “Knowledge And Decisions”, p.79, Basic Books

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• The ground of liberty is to be gained by inches, and we must be contented to secure what we can get from time to time and eternally press forward for what is yet to get. It takes time to persuade men to do even what is for their own good.

  Thomas Jefferson

  Men, Libertarian, Inches

  Thomas Jefferson, H. A. Washington (2011). “The Writings of Thomas Jefferson: Being His Autobiography, Correspondence, Reports, Messages, Addresses, and Other Writings, Official and Private”, p.126, Cambridge University Press

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• The means of defense against foreign danger historically have become the instruments of tyranny at home.

  James Madison

  Freedom, War, Mean

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• The government's only proper job is to protect individual rights against violence by force or fraud ... to protect men from foreign invaders ... to settle disputes among men according to objective laws ... The greatness of the Founding Fathers was how well they understood this issue and how close some of them came to understanding it perfectly.

  Ayn Rand

  Jobs, Father, Greatness

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• Complete and accurate surveillance as a means of control is probably a practical impossibility. What is much more likely is a loss of privacy and constant inconvenience as the wrong people gain access to information, as one wastes time convincing the inquisitors that one is in fact innocent, or as one struggles to untangle the errors of the errant machine.

  Victor C. Ferkiss

  Struggle, Mean, Loss

  Victor C. Ferkiss (1969). “Technological Man: The Myth and the Reality”

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• We are willing enough to praise freedom when she is safely tucked away in the past and cannot be a nuisance. In the present, amidst dangers whose outcome we cannot foresee, we get nervous about her, and admit censorship.

  E. M. Forster

  Fear, Past, Freedom Of Speech

  E.M. Forster (1951). “Two Cheers for Democracy”

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• Armed people are free. No state can control those who have the machinery and the will to resist, no mob can take their liberty and property. And no 220 pound thug can threaten the well-being or dignity of a 110 pound woman who has two pounds of iron to even things out. Is that evil? Is that wrong?

  L. Neil Smith

  Thug, Two, Iron

  L. Neil Smith (2001). “The Probability Broach”, p.121, Macmillan

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• The [U.S.] Constitution is a limitation on the government, not on private individuals ... it does not prescribe the conduct of private individuals, only the conduct of the government ... it is not a charter for government power, but a charter of the citizen's protection against the government.

  Ayn Rand

  Government, Doe, Citizens

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• No nation was ever ruined by trade.

  Benjamin Franklin

  Business, Libertarian, Economics

  Benjamin Franklin, William-Temple Franklin (1818). “Memoirs of the Life and Writings of (the Same), Continued to the Time of His Death by William Temple Franklin. - London, H. Colburn 1818”, p.157

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• The triumph of persuasion over force is the sign of a civilized society.

  Mark Skousen

  Libertarian, Triumph, Persuasion

  "Civilization Held Together by Persuasion, Not Force". The Religion & Liberty Interview, acton.org. July 20, 2010.

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• For those looking for security, be forewarned that there's nothing more insecure than a political promise.

  Harry Browne

  Insecure, Political, Promise

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• America needs fewer laws, not more prisons.

  James Bovard

  Law, America, Needs

  James Bovard (2016). “Lost Rights: The Destruction of American Liberty”, p.6, St. Martin's Griffin

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• The great rule of conduct for us, in regard to foreign nations, is, in extending our commercial relations, to have with them as little political connection as possible.

  George Washington

  Political, Connections, Alliances

  George Washington, J. M. Williams (1800). “Washington's political legacies: To which is annexed an appendix, containing an account of his illness, death, and the national tributes of respect paid to his memory, with a biographical outline of his life and character”, p.90

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