On the recordJanuary 1, 1776
We had no other law than a kind of moderated passion; no other civil power than an honest mob; and no other protection than the temporary attachment of one man to another.
Said by
Thomas Paine
Source
gutenberg.orgThomas Paine: “We had no other law than a kind of moderated passion; no other civil power than an honest mob; and no other protection…”
Editor's note · Context
Paine describes the precarious state of civil order in the colonies before independence, highlighting the lack of established law and power.
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Jan 1, 1791
But as religion is very improperly made a political machine, and the reality of it is thereby destroyed, I will conclude this work with stating in what light religion appears to me.
Jan 1, 1791
Reason and discussion, persuasion and conviction, become the weapons in the contest, and it is only when those are attempted to be suppressed that recourse is had to violence.
Jan 1, 1791
As to what are called national religions, we may, with as much propriety, talk of national Gods.
Jan 1, 1791
Discussion and the general will arbitrates the question, and to this, private opinion yields with a good grace, and order is preserved uninterrupted.