#cs

All government, in its essence, is a conspiracy against the superior man: its one permanent object is to oppress him and cripple him. If it be aristocratic in organization, then it seeks to protect the man who is superior only in law against the man who is superior in fact; if it be democratic, then it seeks to protect the man who is inferior in every way against both. One of its primary functions is to regiment men by force, to make them as much alike as possible and as dependent upon one another as possible, to search out and combat originality among them. All it can see in an original idea is potential change, and hence an invasion of its prerogatives. The most dangerous man to any government is the man who is able to think things out for himself, without regard to the prevailing superstitions and taboos. Almost inevitably he comes to the conclusion that the government he lives under is dishonest, insane and intolerable, and so, if he is romantic, he tries to change it. And even if he is not romantic personally he is very apt to spread discontent among those who are. ↗

— H.L. Mencken

#change

A city's only ever three hot meals away from anarchy. ↗

— Alastair Reynolds

#sf #social-commentary #anarchy

[I]n communism, you'd threaten a dog into compliance, while in capitalism, obedience is obtained through bribes. ↗

— Adam Johnson

#capitalism #communism #economics #north-korea #obedience

TO the States or any one of them, or any city of the States, Resist much, obey little, Once unquestioning obedience, once fully enslaved, Once fully enslaved, no nation, state, city of this earth, ever after-ward resumes its liberty. ↗

— Walt Whitman

#politics #wisdom #obedience

I am at liberty to vote as my conscience and judgment dictates to be right, without the yoke of any party on me... Look at my arms, you will find no party hand-cuff on them. ↗

— David Crockett

#loyalty #politics #judgment

Extremes to the right and to the left of any political dispute are always wrong. ↗

— Dwight D. Eisenhower

#conservatives #democrats #extremism #liberalism #liberals

Conservatism is not about tradition and morality, hasn't been for many decades... It is about the putative biological and spiritual superiority of the wealthy. ↗

— Greg Bear

#politics #biology

I’m wearing shoes made of sea foam, and I am here to seduce the elderly. If you brought the geriatrics, then I brought the jellyfish.
 ↗

— Jarod Kintz

#geriatrics #jellyfish #ocean #sea #seduce

Dear Government... I'm going to have a serious talk with you if I ever find anyone to talk to. ↗

— Stieg Larsson

#corruption #government #politics #corruption

It is not power that corrupts but fear. ↗

— Aung San Suu Kyi

#burma #genocide #myanmar #politics #corruption