Political Thought Quotes

That the religious right completely took over the word Christian is a given. At one time, phrases such as Christian charity and Christian tolerance were used to denote kindness and compassion. To perform a "Christian" act meant an act of giving, of acceptance, of toleration. Now, Christian is invariably linked to right-wing conservative political thought
Christian nation, Christian morality, Christian values, Christian family. ~ Peter McWilliams

The idea of sovereignty current in the English speaking world of the 1760's was scarcely more than a century old. It had first emerged during the English Civil War, in the early 1640's, and had been established as a canon of Whig political thought in the Revolution of 1688. ~ Bernard Bailyn

It is not self-forgetting and pain-loving antiquarianism nor self-forgetting and intoxicating romanticism which induces us to turn with passionate interest, with unqualified willingness to learn, toward the political thought of classical antiquity. We are impelled to do so by the crisis of our time, the crisis of the West. ~ Leo Strauss

Meanwhile, two other great currents in political thought, had a decisive significance on the development of socialist ideas: Liberalism, which had powerfully stimulated advanced minds in the Anglo-Saxon countries, Holland and Spain in particular, and Democracy in the sense. to which Rousseau gave expression in his Social Contract, and which found its most influential representatives in the leaders of French Jacobinism. While Liberalism in its social theories started off from the individual and wished to limit the state's activities to a minimum, Democracy took its stand on an abstract collective concept, Rousseau's general will, which it sought to fix in the national state. Liberalism and Democracy were pre-eminently political concepts, and since most of the original adherents of both did scarcely consider the economic conditions of society, the further development of these conditions could not be practically reconciled with the original principles of Democracy, and still less with those of Liberalism. Democracy with its motto of equality of all citizens before the law, and Liberalism with its right of man over his own person, both were wrecked on the realities of capitalist economy. As long as millions of human beings in every country have to sell their labour to a small minority of owners, and sink into the most wretched misery if they can find no buyers, the so-called equality before the law remains merely a pious fraud, since the laws are made by those who find themselves ~ Rudolf Rocker

Political thought is representative. I form an opinion by considering a given issue from different viewpoints, by making present to my mind the standpoints of those who are absent; that is, I represent them. ... The more people's standpoints I have present in my mind while I am pondering a given issue, and the better I can imagine how I would feel and think if I were in their place, the stronger will be my capacity for representative thinking and the more valid my final conclusions, my opinion. ~ Hannah Arendt

Evsei Slonim would have seen himself as a member of the intelligentsia, a classless class whose features Nabokov described as""the spirit of self-sacrifice, intense participation in political causes or political thought, intense sympathy for the underdog of any nationality, fanatical integrity, tragic inability to sink to compromise, true spirit of international responsibility. ~ Stacy Schiff

Can one understand politics without understanding history, especially the history of political thought, and will this distinguish political philosophy from some other kinds of philosophy (such as, perhaps, logic) to which the study of history is not integral? ~ Raymond Geuss

Each party has a platform
a pre-fixed menu of beliefs making up its worldview. The candidate can choose one of the two platforms, but remember: no substitutions.
For example, do you support healthcare? Then you must also want a ban on assault weapons. Pro limited government? Congratulations, you are also anti-abortion.
Luckily, all human opinion falls neatly into one of the two clearly defined camps. Thus, the two-party system elegantly represents the bi-chromatic rainbow that is American political thought. ~ Jon Stewart

The decisive factor for the future of Europe - and before all things, for the 'restoration' of Europe - will be whether political thought and national feelings are influenced by the reality of internationalism. ~ Ellen Key

If, however, the success of a politician is to be measured by the degree in which he is able personally to influence the course of politics, and attach to himself a school of political thought, then Mr. Mill, in the best meaning of the words, has succeeded. ~ Millicent Fawcett

The Universal Declaration ... as a common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations ... it not only crystallizes the political thought of our times on these matters, but it has also influenced the thinking of legislators all over the world. ~ Dag Hammarskjold

The fundamental metaphor of National Socialism as it related to the world around it was the garden, not the wild forest. One of the most important Nazi ideologists, R.W. Darré, made clear the relationship between gardening and genocide: "He who leaves the plants in a garden to themselves will soon find to his surprise that the garden is overgrown by weeds and that even the basic character of the plants has changed. If therefore the garden is to remain the breeding ground for the plants, if, in other words, it is to lift itself above the harsh rule of natural forces, then the forming will of a gardener is necessary, a gardener who, by providing suitable conditions for growing, or by keeping harmful influences away, or by both together, carefully tends what needs tending and ruthlessly eliminates the weeds which would deprive the better plants of nutrition, air, light, and sun. . . . Thus we are facing the realization that questions of breeding are not trivial for political thought, but that they have to be at the center of all considerations, and that their answers must follow from the spiritual, from the ideological attitude of a people. We must even assert that a people can only reach spiritual and moral equilibrium if a well-conceived breeding plan stands at the very center of its culture. ~ Derrick Jensen

Our tradition of political thought had its definite beginning in the teachings of Plato and Aristotle. I believe it came to a no less definite end in the theories of Karl Marx. ~ Hannah Arendt

Nichts kommt von selbst. Und nur wenig ist von Dauer. Darum - besinnt Euch auf Eure Kraft und darauf, dass jede Zeit eigene Antworten will und man auf ihrer Höhe zu sein hat, wenn Gutes bewirkt werden soll."

("Nothing happens automatically. And only few things last. Therefore - be mindful of your strength, and of the fact that every era wants its own answers, and you have to be up to its speed in order to be able to do good.")

Message to the Socialist International Congress in Berlin, September 15, 1992 ~ Willy Brandt

For those under the age of 45 it seemed that world events had finally contrived a meaningful test of their capacity for conscientious political thought. Many of my acquaintances, I realized, had passed the last decade or two in a state of intellectual and psychic yearning for such a moment - or, if they hadn't, were able to quickly assemble an expert arguer's arsenal of thrusts and statistics and ripostes and gambits and examples and salient facts and rhetorical maneuvers. ~ Joseph O'Neill

Fear-addled minds swarm around conspiracies like flies around something foul. ~ Raul Ramos Y Sanchez

Another thing I don't want on my tombstone," Shane said.
You have others?" Claire asked.
He held up one finger. "I thought it wasn't loaded," Shane said. Second finger. "Hand me a match so I can check the gas tank." Third finger. "Killed over ice cream. Basically, any death that requires me to be stupid first. ~ Rachel Caine

Every lizard lies on its belly, so we cannot tell which has a belly-ache ~ Chinua Achebe

Promoting the human capacity to reason and make decisions: that is the purpose of whistle-blowing, of activism, of political journalism. ~ Glenn Greenwald

I started, obviously, doing theater, and I always thought that I would; in a way, I always thought that I'd be a theater actor. When I was starting out, I didn't really plan on making films, actually. ~ Chiwetel Ejiofor

I thought what the military was doing was unconstitutional. ~ Fred Korematsu

When I was 11 years old, I thought, 'All I really wanna be able to do is my own comic book,' and I'm doing it. I don't have any other real ambitions. I have nothing to conquer at all. ~ Chris Ware

When we encounter personal problems, those things most deeply personal are the most difficult to bring out for our logic to scan. ~ Frank Herbert

You have to make entertaining movies. But like a good meal, it's nice to have a little food for thought after you walk out of the theater rather than just wiling away a couple of hours. ~ Michael Douglas

There is a social contract in "Fight Club" and in "Choke" where the protagonist has deceived a whole bunch of people. In "Choke" it's all of these people who think that they've saved his life, and really care about him because they've embraced him and they've been his saviors. In "Fight Club" it's all of these people who are dying of various diseases, and they thought that Edward Norton was also dying so they allowed him really strong pent-up emotions. ~ Chuck Palahniuk

I wrote the novel [Room], and then I thought, "This could work on film, and I want to be the one to do it." So I went ahead and drafted it. ~ Emma Donoghue

I thought it would be quieter here." [Anna] hadn't meant to say anything, but the noise startled her.
"The wind in the trees," Bran said. "And there are some birds that stay year-round. Sometimes when the wind is still and the cold is upon us, the quiet is so deep you can feel it in your bones. ~ Patricia Briggs

If he would just work with pure ideas like a proper mathematician he could go as fast as thought. As it happens, Alan has become fascinated by the incarnations of pure ideas in the physical world. The underlying math of the universe is like the light streaming in through the window. Alan is not satisfied with merely knowing that it streams in. He blows smoke into the air to make the light visible. He sits in meadows gazing at pine cones and flowers, tracing the mathematical patterns in their structure, and he dreams about electron winds blowing over the glowing filaments and screens of radio tubes, and, in their surges and eddies, capturing something of what is going on in his own brain. Turing is neither a mortal nor a god. He is Antaeus. That he bridges the mathematical and physical worlds is his strength and his weakness. ~ Neal Stephenson

Hymns of today that may be sung by people who know the thought of the age ... are not afraid that any truth of science will destroy Christianity, or any revolution will overthrow the Kingdom of Heaven. ~ Henry Van Dyke

Weak speakers look down at the floor, good speakers look up but scan the room, great speakers make eye contact selectively, and exceptional speakers deliver every complete thought directly to one person in the audience, making that person feel like the center of the room - and then they move on and do it again. ~ Adam Braun

Such planetary alignments are thought to lead to local miasmas: concentrations of fetid air and noxious vapors. These miasmas are then blown on the wind and enter men's and women's bodies through the pores of their skin. once inside they disrupt the balance of the 'humours (the substances believed to control the body's functions), and people fall sick. ~ Ian Mortimer

The fragment of coral, a tiny crinkle of pink like a sugar rosebud from a cake, rolled across the mat. How small, thought Winston, how small it always was! ~ George Orwell

Education, work, and access to health care for all are key elements for development and the just distribution of goods, for the attainment of social justice, for membership in society, and for free and responsible participation in political life. ~ Pope Francis

I call hellfire a threat," Natasha said, " and 'love thy neighbor' a value. But I believe in hell, or something close to it. I think hell is what we get right here on earth when people trade their spiritual and political values in on spiritual and political threats. ~ David James Duncan

We're going to destroy Cel-Romano. I wanted you to know that before you die," Stavros said. "You upstart infestation. You thought you could wipe out the terra indigene? It's your species that is going to wither - and you will be one of the things the survivors, if there are any, can thank for that." He released Scratch and floated a safe distance away as dozens of the Sharkgard rushed in to strike the enemy, consuming the human piece by piece. A foot. A hand. A forearm. A thigh. ~ Anne Bishop

Psychology, in fact, repre-
sents the juncture of two opposite directions of are still insufficient. In the science of human be- scientific thought that are dialectically comple-
mentary. It follows that the system of sciences
cannot be arranged in a linear order, as many
people beginning with Auguste Comte have at-
tempted to arrange them. ~ Jean Piaget

There's so much you thought you could never face. The decision not to try to control your power, to let it be your demon. Too shameful to remember, so you let it eat your life up instead. But you're past it now, Scott. And all you had to defeat, all you had to let go of ... was you. You're free, my love. You're free. ~ Joss Whedon

I know you're just a click away and I'm happy at that thought.. But I'm also afraid to the possibility that I might lose you with just one click.. ~ C.A. Dimayuga

If it's a girl, I want to name her Grace."

"Okay, if it's a boy, I think we should name him Hamsel," I said, straight-faced.

"What?" Her tone was not nice.

"Yeah, I've always loved the name Hamsel, or we can name him Wilbur Jr. and just call him Junior for short." I finally had mercy when Mia's eyes were open as wide as they would go. "I'm kidding. What names do you like?"

"For a boy, hmm. I don't know; we'll have to think on it. I really like Birch or Branch, you know something earthy…maybe Webb." I laughed but she deadpanned, "What? I mean if you don't like those, I also really like Stream or Haze."

Oh my God, she's serious.

She tilted her head to the side, smiled, and cackled like a witch. "Ha, ha, Will. Two can play this game."

"Thank God, I thought you were serious. Shit."

She socked me in the chest ~ Renee Carlino

I thought you were good, but you are not good. You are just a lying old dirty birdie. ~ Stephen King

If there's a lot of fear that's going on, if there's a lot of anxiety, it's manifesting itself in your nocturnal world so that analyzing it can help open up basically thoughts about what you need to do during the day. So a lot of people who subscribe to the psychoanalysis, the Jungian thought will really focus a lot on dreams, the meaning, and how it can be used to help you during the day. ~ Shelby Harris

The strength of collective decision making and political responsibility is not only a question of recognizing other people's ability. It is also recognizing one's own limitations. ~ Aruna Roy

Normal, perhaps, but disgusting. He'd thought diapers were bad. The barfing was arguably worse. Maybe it was an early warning sign of alcoholism: the girl would chugalug an entire bottle at one sitting, and then she'd hurl - and then she'd pass out. ~ Judith Arnold

The first stair to failure is ignorance. Keep learning by leaning on the lap of information and you'll take the lead! ~ Israelmore Ayivor

He rose, offering his hand to Evanlyn to assist her. Even though she was lithe and athletic as a cat, she took it, enjoying the contact. She saw Horace's slight frown as she did so and smiled to herself. A girl can never have too many admirers, she thought. Will seemed unperturbed by the fact that she retained hold of Selethen's hand a little longer than politeness dictated. But then, Ranger's were trained to look imperturbable. He was probably seething with jealousy, she thought. ~ John Flanagan

Growing up in the Northwest, I did play in an all-girl band. I snuck into clubs. No one ever questioned or thought twice about it. ~ Meredith Brooks

Well, I think they make a charming couple."
"What?"
"The prince and Lady Kestrel."
Arin had known whom Tensen had meant.
"Their kiss was sweet," said the spymaster. "One would assume their marriage was just a political alliance--I certainly did, until I saw them kiss."
Arin stared.
"You must have missed it," Tensen said. "It was at the beginning of the ball. But of course you were late."
"Yes," Arin said finally. "I was. ~ Marie Rutkoski

The prime minister of Israel is welcome to speak in the United States, obviously. But we don't want to see this turned into some great political football ~ Benjamin Netanyahu

One of the prerogatives of American citizenship is the right to criticize public men and measures, and that means not only informed and responsible criticism but the freedom to speak foolishly and without moderation. ~ Felix Frankfurter Of The U.S. Supreme Court, 1944.

I'm always interested in hearing how other people read and react to my songs. I hadn't thought of it in just that way. ~ Zooey Deschanel

It wasn't that Henry was less of himself in English. He was less of himself out loud. His native language was thought. ~ Maggie Stiefvater