His face is livid, gaunt his whole body, his breath is green with gall; his tongue drips poison.
John Quincy AdamsRead
Nip the shoots of arbitrary power in the bud, is the only maxim which can ever preserve the liberties of any people.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote emphasizes the importance of preventing unjust authority before it takes root to protect people's freedoms.
John Quincy Adams warns against allowing arbitrary power to gain influence, advocating for vigilance in safeguarding liberty. By addressing potential abuses of power at their inception, societies can maintain freedom and prevent tyranny. This perspective highlights the significance of proactive measures in governance and civil rights.
Themes
LibertyPowerFreedomGovernanceVigilance
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used in a speech about civil rights to stress the necessity of defending freedoms.
More from John Quincy Adams
All quotes →Always vote for principle, though you may vote alone, and you may cherish the sweetest reflection that your vote is never lost.
John Quincy AdamsRead
It is among the evils of slavery that it taints the very sources of moral principle. It establishes false estimates of virtue and vice: for what can be more false and heartless than this doctrine which makes the first and holiest rights of humanity to depend upon the color of the skin?
John Quincy AdamsRead
The highest glory of the American Revolution was this: it connected in one indissoluble bond the principles of civil government with the principles of Christianity.
John Quincy AdamsRead
I have no predilection for unpopularity as such, but I hold it much preferable to the popularity of a day, which perishes with the transient topic upon which it is grounded.
John Quincy AdamsRead
According to the Stoics, all vice was resolvable into folly: according to the Christian principle, it is all the effect of weakness.
John Quincy AdamsRead
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