Aim at heaven and you will get earth thrown in. Aim at earth and you get neither.

Aim at heaven and you will get earth thrown in. Aim at earth and you get neither.

The first duty of society is to give each of its members the possibility of fulfilling his destiny. When it read more

The first duty of society is to give each of its members the possibility of fulfilling his destiny. When it becomes incapable of performing this duty it must be transformed. - Reflections on Life.

All political parties die at last of swallowing their own lies.

All political parties die at last of swallowing their own lies.

With the power of conviction, there is no sacrifice.

With the power of conviction, there is no sacrifice.

You can get a lot more done with a kind word and a gun, than with a kind word alone.

You can get a lot more done with a kind word and a gun, than with a kind word alone.

While rationalism at the individual level is a plea for more personal autonomy from cultural norms, at the social level read more

While rationalism at the individual level is a plea for more personal autonomy from cultural norms, at the social level it is often a claim- or arrogation- of power to stifle the autonomy of others.

Intelligence has nothing to do with politics.

Intelligence has nothing to do with politics.

If the small minority of enlightened citizens who are able to conceive sound principles of political management do not succeed read more

If the small minority of enlightened citizens who are able to conceive sound principles of political management do not succeed in winning the support of their fellow citizens and converting them to the endorsement of policies that bring and preserve prosperity, the cause of mankind and civilization is hopeless. There is no other means to safeguard a propitious development of human affairs than to make the masses of inferior people adopt the ideas of the elite. This has to be achieved by convincing them. It cannot be accomplished by a despotic regime that instead of enlightening the masses beats them into submission. In the long run the ideas of the majority, however detrimental they may be, will carry on. The future of mankind depends on the ability of the elite to influence public opinion in the right direction.

Our whole constitutional heritage rebels at the thought of giving government the power to control men's minds.

Our whole constitutional heritage rebels at the thought of giving government the power to control men's minds.