On the record
From no accusation were its statesmen more anxious to be free than from that of a belief in democratic government.
Said by
Harold J. Laski
Source
gutenberg.orgHarold J. Laski: “From no accusation were its statesmen more anxious to be free than from that of a belief in democratic government.”
Editor's note · Context
Laski points out that statesmen of the eighteenth century were eager to distance themselves from the idea of democratic governance.
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More from Harold J. Laski
Each age makes some idol in its own image and sacrifices upon its altar the freedom of those who refuse it worship.
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.
To deny novelty or grievance a right of expression is a certain, if, indeed, an ultimate, validation of the truth they contain.
When attacks on liberty are political or economic, it is their motive rather than their nature that changes.
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