On the recordJanuary 1, 1791
The greatest condemnation that could be passed upon it would be a refutation.
Said by
Thomas Paine
Source
gutenberg.orgThomas Paine: “The greatest condemnation that could be passed upon it would be a refutation.”
Editor's note · Context
In "Rights of Man, Part Two," Paine argues that intellectual refutation is the only legitimate way to condemn a work.
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The Parliaments on their part insisted that they had not only a right to remonstrate, but to reject; and on this ground they were always supported by the nation.