On the record
These, which were for Burke merely the accidental excrescences of a noble ideal, were for them its inner essence; and where they could not reform they were willing to destroy.
Said by
Harold J. Laski
Source
gutenberg.orgHarold J. Laski: “These, which were for Burke merely the accidental excrescences of a noble ideal, were for them its inner essence; and…”
Editor's note · Context
Laski highlights the difference in perspective between Burke and those who sought to reform or destroy the existing system.
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More from Harold J. Laski
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.
When attacks on liberty are political or economic, it is their motive rather than their nature that changes.
It has been the historic character of persecution always to degrade the persecutor and to strengthen the persecuted by drawing attention to their claims.
He is able, accordingly, to indulge in the twofold luxury not only of preserving his own authority, but also of assisting the persons attacked to enter, if they so choose, the way of truth.
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