On the record
In the half-century after he wrote the men who dominated political life were, with the best intentions, moved by motives at most points unrelated to the national well-being.
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Harold J. Laski
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gutenberg.orgHarold J. Laski: “In the half-century after he wrote the men who dominated political life were, with the best intentions, moved by motives…”
Editor's note · Context
Laski reflects on the disconnect between political leaders' intentions and the national well-being in the years following Smith's writings.
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More from Harold J. Laski
If he stands alone, he has neither the knowledge nor the power to secure for himself proper protection.
But we cannot understand the eighteenth century, or its theories, unless we realize that its temper was still dominantly aristocratic.
The more equality there is in a State, the more use, in general, we can make of our freedom.
Montesquieu thus became the prophet of a new race of thinkers.
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