On the record
Expediency may be admirable in telling the statesmen what to do; but it does not explain the sources of his ultimate act, nor justify the thing finally done.
Said by
Harold J. Laski
Source
gutenberg.orgHarold J. Laski: “Expediency may be admirable in telling the statesmen what to do; but it does not explain the sources of his ultimate…”
Editor's note · Context
Laski points out that while expediency guides statesmen, it does not account for the deeper motivations behind their actions.
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More from Harold J. Laski
We grant it in religion to deny it in politics; we grant it in politics, to deny it in economic matters.
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.
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.
We grant toleration in one part of the field only to deny it in another.
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