One cannot reign innocently: the insanity of doing so is evident. Every king is a rebel and a usurper.
Louis Antoine De Saint-JustRead
Morality is stronger than tyrants.
Interpretation
Moral principles hold more power and influence than oppressive rulers.
This quote by Louis Antoine De Saint-Just emphasizes the idea that moral righteousness and ethical values can supersede the control and brutality of tyrants. It suggests that, despite the force and power wielded by authoritarian figures, the inherent strength of morality serves as a foundation for resistance and can ultimately lead to justice and liberation.
In practice
During a speech on human rights, one could use this quote to stress the importance of moral integrity in the face of oppression.
One cannot reign innocently: the insanity of doing so is evident. Every king is a rebel and a usurper.
Monarchy is an outrage which even the blind of an entire people cannot justify... all men hold from nature the secret mission to destroy wherever it my be found. No man can reign innocently. The folly is too evident. Every king is a rebel and a usurper. Do kings themselves treat otherwise those who seek to usurp their authority?
Everyone has three lives: a public life, a private life, and a secret life.
Our strength lies in spiritual concepts. It lies in public sensitivities to evil. Our greatest danger is not from invading armies. Our dangers are that we may commit suicide from within by complaisance with evil, or by public tolerance of scandalous behavior.
The present moment is the only moment available to us and it is the door to all other moments.
I am in the utmost perplexity, yand have wished a hundred times, that if there is a A God, nature would manifest him without ambiguity, and that if there is not, every imaginary sign of his existence might vanish : in short, let nature speak distinctly, or be totally silent, and I shall know what course to take.
There's something vile (and all the more vile because ridiculous) in the tendency of feeble men to make universal tragedies out of the sad comedies of their private woes.
Imaginary evils soon become real one by indulging our reflections on them.
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