The worst evils which mankind has ever had to endure were inflicted by bad governments.
Sentiment: NEGATIVE
There are no necessary evils in government. Its evils exist only in its abuses.
Government, even in its best state, is but a necessary evil; in its worst state, an intolerable one.
The evils that arise to us from the structure of the material universe are neither trivial nor few, yet the history of political society sufficiently shows that man is, of all other beings, the most formidable enemy to man.
In my view, the most damaging evils that are perpetrated upon us are through some abstract notion about good, where we're willing to sacrifice individuals in the present for some great vision of an improved or perfect future.
As human beings we have the most extraordinary capacity for evil. We can perpetrate some of the most horrendous atrocities.
The worst government is often the most moral. One composed of cynics is often very tolerant and humane. But when fanatics are on top there is no limit to oppression.
The real evil with which we have to contend is not the physical evil of the Famine, but the moral evil of the selfish, perverse and turbulent character of the people.
I look back at history, and some of the worst governments we've ever had, you know one of the first things they ever did? They went after the trade unions.
The worst thing in this world, next to anarchy, is government.
That government is not a necessary good but an unavoidable evil.
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