James Bovard Quote

"To blindly trust government is to automatically vest it with excessive power. To distrust government is simply to trust humanity - to trust in the ability of average people to peacefully, productively coexist without some official policing their every move. The State is merely another human institution - less creative than Microsoft, less reliable than Federal Express, less responsible than the average farmer husbanding his land, and less prudent than the average citizen spending his own paycheck."

by:	James Bovard (1956- ) American author, lecturer
Source:	Freedom in Chains, The Rise of the State and the Demise of the Citizen (St. Martin's Press), 2000
Rating:
Categories:	Apathy, Citizenship, Government, Ignorance, Power, Responsibility, Trust, Humanity
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The free enterprise system is the best that was ever invented;as long as it's free and available to all,  -- L. Hanson, Edmonton, Canada
To blindly trust billionaires, Wall Street, is to vest them with excessive power. To distrust your fellow man and those with whom you do business is the beginning of wisdom. The good thing about the state is we are all free to investigate it, complain about it and fix it. We have no such rights as concerns other human institutions.  -- Waffler, Smith      1
Perfect.  -- Justin, Elkland      1
Waffler loves government like a moth loves fire.  -- Justin, Elkland      2
Waffler thinks big goverrnment is a like a benevolent dictator. The truth is big government has the same motives of greed for money and power. Worse it has the ability to expand its greed and influence over the individual to a greater degree than any other entity.  -- J Allen, Arlington, Va      2
Only a stupid person would blindly trust government.. However, the lefties infesting our government now can be trusted to raise taxes even more and ruin the economy completely. The ruining of our economy was a bipartisan effort . Nancy, Ralph and the gang had plenty of help from Republicans.  -- jim k, Austin,Tx      2
I'm always amazed at just how stupid, how brainwashed some people are. Wall Street and Corrupt Government are one and the same. We need to get back to the Constitution, put Government on a leash, and indict and severely punish all forms of graft and corruption.  -- J Carlton, Calgary      2
The threads of trade and commerce with which we live and operate in. At the till is where the burden lies. Control your patronage , fight back with creativity, which we as Americans are known for. Hydrogen generators, let the cat out of the bag ! the ability to get the current power base and over weight government off our back. Enough is enough !  -- Ron, Salem
I'm with J finally on this one. Audit and verify everything, both personal and private, and all governments.  -- Waffler, Smith
To blindly trust government is to automatically vest it with excessive power; is a self evident truth. To distrust government is simply to trust humanity - to trust in the ability of average people to peacefully, productively coexist without some official policing their every move; thus the lack of policing departments until the war between the States was lost. The State is merely another human institution - less creative than Microsoft, less reliable than Federal Express, less responsible than the average farmer husbanding his land, and less prudent than the average citizen spending his own paycheck is another self evident truth.  -- Mike, Norwalk      2
I love this quote.  -- John Pettitt, va      2
It is the duty of every free citizen to distrust the government and keep it small because bad government arises from too much government.  -- Publius, USA      3
-- Roland, Bonner's Ferry
-- jim k, Austin
James Bovard has eloquently stated an absolute truth.  -- Mary, MI      1
Succinctly put!  This is the quintessential argument for a republican form of government.  -- E Archer, NYC      1

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