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John Acton Quote

“The fate of every democracy, of every government based on the sovereignty of the people, depends on the choices it makes between these opposite principles, absolute power on the one hand, and on the other the restraints of legality and the authority of tradition.”

— John Acton

Source: Quotables — alvations/Quotables (CC0 1.0 dataset)

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Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.

— John Acton

Wisdom

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Liberty is the condition of duty, the guardian of conscience. It grows as conscience grows. The domains of both grow together. Liberty is safety from all hindrances, even sin. So that Liberty ends by being Free Will.

— John Acton

Education

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Save for the wild force of Nature, nothing moves in this world that is not Greek in its origin.

— John Acton

Life

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If the past has been an obstacle and a burden, knowledge of the past is the safest and the surest emancipation.

— John Acton

Education

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Liberty is the prevention of control by others.

— John Acton

Freedom

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The most certain test by which we judge whether a country is really free is the amount of security enjoyed by minorities.

— John Acton

Happiness

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