On the record
They cannot see that men will not accept the state as the appointed conscience of the nation unless they conceive themselves to possess a full share of its benefits.
Said by
Harold J. Laski
Source
gutenberg.orgHarold J. Laski: “They cannot see that men will not accept the state as the appointed conscience of the nation unless they conceive…”
Editor's note · Context
He argues that people will not accept the state as their moral authority unless they feel they benefit from it.
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More from Harold J. Laski
It has been the historic character of persecution always to degrade the persecutor and to strengthen the persecuted by drawing attention to their claims.
Each age makes some idol in its own image and sacrifices upon its altar the freedom of those who refuse it worship.
The intolerance may be Catholic, when it insists that a unity of outlook is essential for the preservation of society; or it may be Protestant when, as with Calvin and the Socinians, it holds that the blasphemous nature of the belief…
The essence of the persecuting position is always that the persecutor has hold of truth and that he would betray its service by allowing it to be questioned.
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