government Quotes

Every effort therefore must be made to perpetuate prosperity. And, since that is to the advantage of the rich as well as the poor, all that accrues from the revenues should be collected into a single fund and distributed in... ...

Both rulers who are few (oligarchs) and oppressive rulers (tyrants) distrust the people, so they take away their weapons.

It may be argued that peoples for whom philosophers legislate are always prosperous.

Democracies can fall apart and turn into oppressive systems.

The government of freemen is nobler and implies more virtue than despotic government. Neither is a city to be deemed happy or a legislator to be praised because he trains his citizens to conquer and obtain dominion over their neighbors,... ...

In most constitutional states the citizens rule and are ruled by turns, for the idea of a constitutional state implies that the natures of the citizens are equal, and do not differ at all.

Tyrants preserve themselves by sowing fear and mistrust among the citizens by means of spies, by distracting them with foreign wars, by eliminating men of spirit who might lead a revolution, by humbling the people, and making them incapable of... ...

The most perfect political community is one in which the middle class is in control, and outnumbers both of the other classes.

Nowadays, for the sake of the advantage which is to be gained from the public revenues and from office, men want to be always in office.

Most men appear to think that the art of despotic government is statesmanship, and what men affirm to be unjust and inexpedient in their own case they are not ashamed of practicing towards others; they demand just rule for themselves,... ...