Sunday, May 9, 2010

Human nature: 1761

As to Government in general, it is no wonder, that it is so productive of evil, since its very nature consists of power trusted in the hands of such imperfect and vicious creatures as men, and exercised over others as imperfect and vicious as themselves; in which there must be pride, avarice, and cruelty on one side; envy ignorance, and obstinancy on the other; and injustice and self-interest on both. Its origin also arises from the same impure source of human imperfection; that is, men, being neither wise nor honest enough to pursue their common or mutual interests without compulsion, are obliged to submit to some, in order to secure their lives and properties from the depredations of all...
--From The Universal Magazine--

The only reason politicians talk about how "good" they think people are, or worry aloud about the "tone" of society, is because they want us to forget that they, like us, are jerks and shouldn't be trusted with any power whatsoever, let alone be trusted to solve problems.

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