What men value in this world is not rights but privileges.
Interpretation
The quote emphasizes that people often prioritize special benefits over their basic rights.
H. L. Mencken's quote suggests that in society, individuals tend to value privileges—special advantages or entitlements—more than their fundamental rights, which are meant to be guaranteed for all. This implies a critical view of human nature and societal values, where the pursuit of personal benefits overshadows the importance of universal justice and equality.
In practice
In a discussion about social justice, this quote can illustrate how privileges can sometimes overshadow the recognition of basic rights.
I know a good many men of great learning-that is, men born with an extraordinary eagerness and capacity to acquire knowledge. One and all, they tell me that they can't recall learning anything of any value in school. All that schoolmasters managed to accomplish with them was to test and determine the amount of knowledge that they had already acquired independently-and not infrequently the determination was made clumsily and inaccurately.
It takes a long while for a naturally trustful person to reconcile himself to the idea that after all God will not help him
It is the theory of all modern civilized governments that they protect and foster the liberty of the citizen; it is the practice of all of them to limit its exercise, and sometimes very narrowly.
The central belief of every moron is that he is the victim of a mysterious conspiracy against his common rights and true deserts.
The cure for the evils of democracy is more democracy.
It is my conviction that no normal man ever fell in love, within the ordinary meaning of the term, after the age of thirty.
In each human heart are a tiger, a pig, an ass and a nightingale. Diversity of character is due to their unequal activity.
We tell stories to talk out the trouble in our lives, trouble otherwise so often so unspeakable. It is one of our main ways of making our lives sensible. Trying to live without stories can make us crazy. They help us recognize what we believe to be most valuable in the world, and help us identify what we hold demonic.
how can one respect, let alone adopt, the values of a people who do not, on any level whatever, live the way they say they do, or the way they say they should?
God hath work to do in this world; and to desert it because of its difficulties and entanglements, is to cast off His authority. It is not enough that we be just, that we be righteous, and walk with God in holiness; but we must also serve our generation, as David did before he fell asleep. God hath a work to do; and not to help Him is to oppose Him.
We strain to hear. But instead of hearing an answer we catch sight of God himself scraped and torn. Through our tears we see the tears of God
The idea of redemption is always good news, even if it means sacrifice or some difficult times.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.