Maxioms by Frederic Bastiat
The mind never fully accepts any convictions that it does not owe to its own efforts.
The mind never fully accepts any convictions that it does not owe to its own efforts.
The worst thing that can happen to a good cause is, not to be skillfully attacked, but to be ineptly read more
The worst thing that can happen to a good cause is, not to be skillfully attacked, but to be ineptly defended.
The sort of dependence that results from exchange, i.e., from commercial transactions, is a reciprocal dependence. We cannot be dependent read more
The sort of dependence that results from exchange, i.e., from commercial transactions, is a reciprocal dependence. We cannot be dependent upon a foreigner without his being dependent on us. Now, this is what constitutes the very essence of society. To sever natural interrelations is not to make oneself independent, but to isolate oneself completely.
We cannot but be astonished at the ease with which men resign themselves to ignorance about what is most important read more
We cannot but be astonished at the ease with which men resign themselves to ignorance about what is most important for them to know; and we may be certain that they are determined to remain invincibly ignorant if they once come to consider it as axiomatic that there are no absolute principles.
Now since man is naturally inclined to avoid pain- and since labor is pain in itself- it follows that men read more
Now since man is naturally inclined to avoid pain- and since labor is pain in itself- it follows that men will resort to plunder whenever plunder is easier than work. History shows this quite clearly. And under these conditions, neither religion nor morality can stop it.When, then, does plunder stop? It stops when it becomes more painful and more dangerous than labor.It is evident, then, that the proper purpose of law is to use the power of its collective force to stop this fatal tendency to plunder instead of to work. All the measures of the law should protect property and punish plunder.
