The pretended rights of these theorists are all extremes; and in proportion as they are metaphysically true, they are morally and politically false.
Edmund Burke: “The pretended rights of these theorists are all extremes; and in proportion as they are metaphysically true, they are…”
Editor's note · Context
Burke criticizes the abstract rights proposed by theorists, asserting that their metaphysical truth often renders them morally and politically impractical.
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They come from one who has been no tool of power, no flatterer of greatness, and who in his last acts does not wish to belie the tenor of his life.
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