No government can be strong and flourishing while the national character is weak and degraded. A government must flourish and decay with its subjects; and, when a prince makes a law or performs an action which has a tendency to injure the character or prosperity of the nation, he injures himself.
Interpretation
A government's strength is tied to the character of its people, and harming that character ultimately harms the government itself.
The quote emphasizes the intrinsic connection between a government and the character of its citizens. It suggests that for a government to thrive, the moral and ethical standards of its populace must be strong. When leaders enact laws or take actions that detract from the national character, they not only jeopardize the wellbeing of their citizens but also threaten their own power and stability. Thus, a government is only as strong as the people it governs, highlighting the need for leaders to foster an environment that promotes virtue and strength among their subjects.
In practice
In a political speech discussing the importance of national integrity.
There are many causes why a people politically ignorant cannot be roused to action. Perfect political ignorance must be accompanied by indifference to the general interests of society, and thus one of the most powerful motives which can act on the human mind is totally destroyed.
Whatever may be the merits of a religious system, its effects upon the mass of mankind must depend in an important degree upon its teachers. All instruction and all truth, except simple mathematical truth, is modified by the medium through which it is conveyed.
Everybody counts in applying democracy. And there will never be a true democracy until every responsible and law-abiding adult in it, without regard to race, sex, color or creed has his or her own inalienable and unpurchasable voice in government.
I really feel that political will is born out of popular will.
We all deserve credit for this new surveillance state that we live in because we the people voted for the Patriot Act. Democrats and Republicans alike....We voted for the people who voted for it, and then voted for the people who reauthorized it, then voted for the people who re-re-authorize d it.
The ultimate test of the value of a political system is whether it helps that society to establish conditions which improve the standard of living for the majority of its people.
Long Island is shaped the way it is largely because of Robert Moses. Long Island is a perfect example of how political power shapes people's lives every day.
I've tried to say that I admire and respect Sen. Obama. He has accomplished great things, and he has motivated people, and so - and he loves his country, just as I do.
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