Politics Quotes

"The minimal state emerges naturally from a commitment to rights."

"Modern capitalism has no place for genuine virtues."

"We cannot evaluate modern society without invoking standards from outside itself."

"Modern institutions often corrupt rather than sustain genuine practices."

"The intellectual must use their privilege to illuminate the structures of oppression in society."

"The intellectual class has betrayed its purpose when it becomes comfortable with the status quo."

"Laws and institutions must be reformed however good, if they injure the people."

"Political legitimacy derives from principles that free and equal persons would agree to."

"Public reason requires citizens to justify political coercion in terms acceptable to all."

"Citizens have a duty to support just institutions and obey just laws."

"Political power must be exercised in accordance with a constitution that citizens can reasonably accept."

"Political legitimacy requires that coercive laws be justifiable to those subject to them."

"There is no justified answer to the question of what the state should do, only what individuals have the right to do."

"A minimal state, limited to the narrow functions of protection against force, theft, and fraud, is justified."

"The minimal state is morally justified, while all larger states are unjustified."

"The night-watchman state respects individual rights while maintaining minimal order."

"The state lacks legitimate authority beyond protecting individuals from rights violations."

"The state is not morally obligated to maximize social welfare or minimize inequality."

"The state exceeds its authority when it aims at distributive justice beyond rectification."

"The minimal state arises naturally from moral principles respecting individual rights."

"The state that does more than protect rights systematically violates them."

"The minimal state is the only legitimate form of political organization."

"Happiness cannot be a serious political aim. It is not a fit aim for either a man or a state."

"The open society is one that allows criticism."

"Political commitment is the only form of authenticity."

"Class consciousness is a form of false consciousness."

"Ideologies are systems that deny human freedom."

"The notion of the common good has become largely unintelligible in modern times."

"Politics is the art of managing competing human interests."

"Political legitimacy rests on the consent of free and equal citizens."