Political Quotes

Harold J. Laski: “It is evident from our experience that to limit the expression of opinion in wartime to opinion which does not hinder…”

On the record
It is evident from our experience that to limit the expression of opinion in wartime to opinion which does not hinder its prosecution is, in fact, to give the executive an entirely free hand, whatever its policy, and to assume that, while the armies are in the field, an absolute moral moratorium is imperative.
Said by
Harold J. Laski

Editor's note · Context

Laski warns that limiting wartime opinions grants unchecked power to the government.

Share

More from Harold J. Laski

We grant toleration in one part of the field only to deny it in another.

gutenberg.org

Ultimately, that denial is always made upon the same ground: it is insisted that the doctrines or practices attacked are subversive of the civil order.

gutenberg.org

The only way to deal with novelty is to understand it, and the only way to deal with grievance is to seek a remedy for the complaint it embodies.

gutenberg.org

Each age finds that the incidence of freedom is significant at some special point, and there, once more, the lesson of freedom has to be learned.

gutenberg.org

Other voices in this conversation