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“I heartily accept the motto, "That government is best which governs least"; and I should like to see it acted up to more rapidly and systematically. Carried out, it finally amounts to this, which also I believe — "That government is best which governs not at all"; and when men are prepared for it, that will be the kind of government which they will have. Government is at best but an expedient; but most governments are usually, and all governments are sometimes, inexpedient.”
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“And I am sure that I never read any memorable news in a newspaper. If we read of one man robbed, or murdered, or killed by accident, or one house burned, or one vessel wrecked, or one steamboat blown up, or one cow run over on the Western Railroad, or one mad dog killed, or one lot of grasshoppers in the winter, - we need never read of another. One is enough. If you are acquainted with the principle, what do you care for a myriad instances and applications?”
― Walden: Or, Life in the Woods
― Walden: Or, Life in the Woods
“If you would convince a man that he does wrong, do right. But do not care to convince him. Men will believe what they see. Let them see.”
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“All voting is a sort of gaming, like checkers or back gammon, with a slight moral tinge to it, a playing with right and wrong, with moral questions; and betting naturally accompanies it. The character of the voters is not staked. I cast my vote, perchance, as I think right; but I am not vitally concerned that that right should prevail. I am willing to leave it to the majority. Its obligation, therefore, never exceeds that of expediency. Even voting for the right is doing nothing for it. It is only expressing to men feebly your desire that it should prevail. A wise man will not leave the right to the mercy of chance, nor wish it to prevail through the power of the majority.”
― On the Duty of Civil Disobedience
― On the Duty of Civil Disobedience
Beth’s 2025 Year in Books
Take a look at Beth’s Year in Books, including some fun facts about their reading.
2,705 books
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120 friends
1,168 books
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50 friends
228 books
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391 friends
372 books
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28 friends
1 book
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2 friends
19 books
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32 friends
739 books
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21 friends
3 books
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114 friends
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