Conservatives are not necessarily stupid, but most stupid people are conservatives.

Conservatives are not necessarily stupid, but most stupid people are conservatives.

If history could teach us anything, it would be that private property is inextricably linked with civilization.

If history could teach us anything, it would be that private property is inextricably linked with civilization.

The conception that government should be guided by majority opinion makes sense only if that opinion is independent of government. read more

The conception that government should be guided by majority opinion makes sense only if that opinion is independent of government. The ideal of democracy rests on the belief that the view which will direct government emerges from an independent and spontaneous process. It requires, therefore, the existence of a large sphere independent of majority control in which the opinions of the individuals are formed.

Without a country, I am not a man.

Without a country, I am not a man.

All revolutions...have been led by persons who knew oppression well, but not on their own skin.

All revolutions...have been led by persons who knew oppression well, but not on their own skin.

It is much safer to obey, than to govern.

It is much safer to obey, than to govern.

Discontent does not invariably create a desire for change. Other factors have to be present before discontent turns into disaffection. read more

Discontent does not invariably create a desire for change. Other factors have to be present before discontent turns into disaffection. One of these is a sense of power.

...the argument for liberty is not an argument against organization, which is one of the most powerful tools human reason read more

...the argument for liberty is not an argument against organization, which is one of the most powerful tools human reason can employ, but an argument against all exclusive, privileged, monopolistic organization, against the use of coercion to prevent others from doing better.

The tendency of democracies is, in all things, to mediocrity, since the tastes, knowledge, and principles of the majority form read more

The tendency of democracies is, in all things, to mediocrity, since the tastes, knowledge, and principles of the majority form the tribunal of appeal.