On the record
It does not recognize him at all as a human being, having any rights whatever of his own, but only as an instrument, a weapon, or a machine, to be used in killing other men.
Said by
Lysander Spooner
Source
gutenberg.orgLysander Spooner: “It does not recognize him at all as a human being, having any rights whatever of his own, but only as an instrument, a…”
Editor's note · Context
Spooner claims that the government reduces individuals to mere instruments for violence.
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More from Lysander Spooner
They do not carry their heads high, above all other men, and demand our reverence and admiration, as statesmen, patriots, and benefactors.
They do not tell us that all liberty and order would be destroyed, that society itself would go to pieces, and man go back to barbarism, if it were not for the care, and supervision, and protection, they lavish upon us.
In short, they acknowledge themselves hostes humani generis: enemies of the human race.
On the contrary, they acknowledge themselves robbers, murderers, and villains, pure and simple.