Democracy Quotes - Page 37

The vulgar charge that the tendency of democracies is to leveling, meaning to drag all down to the level of the lowest, is singularly untrue; its real tendency being to elevate the depressed to a condition not unworthy of their manhood.

Democracy is now going forth on a crusade against imperialism.

If a man went simply by what he saw, he might be tempted to affirm that the essence of democracy is melodrama.

Democracy is always, by nature and constitution, the triumph of mediocrity.

If democracy were to be given any meaning, if it were to go beyond the limits of capitalism and nationalism, this would not come, if history were any guide, from the top. It would come through citizen's movements, educating, organizing, agitating, striking, boycotting, demonstrating, threatening those in power with disruption of the stability they needed.

Civil disobedience is not something outside the realm of democracy. Democracy requires civil disobedience. Without civil disobedience democracy does not exist.

Democracy is still a radical idea in a world where we often confuse images with realities, words with actions.

If our democracy is to flourish, it must have criticism; if our government is to function it must have dissent.

Monopolists who fear competition and who distrust democracy because it stands for equal opportunity would like to secure their position against small and energetic enterprise.

We in the press have a special role since there is no other institution in our society that can hold the President accountable. I do believe that our democracy can endure and prevail only if the American people are informed.

The doctrine that the cure for the evils of democracy is more democracy is like saying that the cure of crime is more crime.

Capitalism under democracy has a further advantage: its enemies, even when it is attacked, are scattered and weak, and it is usually easily able to array one half of them against the other half, and thus dispose of both.

Imagine the Creator as a low comedian, and at once the world becomes explicable.

Justice for all children is the high ideal in a democracy.

I sow; my successor reaps. This is the majesty of democracy.

I want the Iraqis to understand that we are with them and that they have to make tough decisions, and we'll help them make those tough decisions for this country, for this democracy to survive. And they've made some tough decisions.

We can speak of the triumph of capitalism in the world, but we cannot yet speak about the triumph of democracy. There is a serious mismatch between the political and the economic conditions that prevail in the world today.

Democratic institutions form a system of quarantine for tyrannical desires.

A serf-supporting and self-respecting democracy can plead no justification for the existence of child labor, no economic reason for chiseling workers' wages or stretching workers' hours.

Liberty has never lasted long in a democracy, nor has it ever ended in anything better than despotism.

Tyrants are always assassinated too late. That is their great excuse.

A nation that hates politics will not long survive as a democracy.

Patronage is almost a wicked word. By itself it could well-nigh defeat democracy.

Democracy is no solution - it's just 51% bossing the other 49% around. For God's sake, Hitler was democratically elected! Democracy is just mob rule dressed up in a coat and tie.

We can have democracy and a prosperous, just, and sustainable human future. Or we can have corporate rule. We cannot have both.