And then, when in this speculative way he has established, or thinks he has, the vices of the government, he conceives he has found a sufficient apology for his own crimes.
Edmund Burke: “And then, when in this speculative way he has established, or thinks he has, the vices of the government, he conceives…”
Editor's note · Context
Burke critiques a leader's attempt to justify their misdeeds by distancing themselves from the consequences of their actions.
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They will become flatterers instead of legislators,--the instruments, not the guides of the people.
Our people will find employment enough for a truly patriotic, free, and independent spirit, in guarding what they possess from violation.
If any of them should happen to propose a scheme of liberty soberly limited, and defined with proper qualifications, he will be immediately outbid by his competitors, who will produce something more splendidly popular.
Let us add, if we please, but let us preserve what they have left; and standing on the firm ground of the British Constitution, let us be satisfied to admire, rather than attempt to follow in their desperate flights, the aëronauts of…





