"Unlimited Power is apt to corrupt the minds of those who possess it."
by:
William Pitt, Sr.
(1708-1778) 1st Earl of Chatham, English Statesman, Orator
Date:
January 9, 1770
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Well, duh! This makes sense. : p
 -- Anonymous     
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    The corollary is also true, corrupt minds seek unlimited power. By way of example: the loss of habeas corpus.
     -- Mike, Norwalk     
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     -- Mike, Mount Holly, NC      
    True Unlimited Power is reserved for Our Maker. Those who believe they have unlimited power are sorely mistaken. And corrupt.
     -- me again     
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     -- Joe, Rochester, MI      
    So let's not keep centralizing power into fewer and fewer hands.
     -- E Archer, NYC     
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    To pass the buck to 'the creator' as the only one who really has unlimited power is such a cop out. Dealing with the GW's and the Idi Amins, the Hitlers and the Stalins, the death squands in Darfur, is the realm in which we witness the humanly relevant effects of unlimited power in the hands of mad men.Taking responsibility in the physical realm for the corruption associated with meglomania is the moral imperative of our time, not posturing that god has anything to do with it. If he did it would not exist.
     -- EGL, LA     
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    Good point, EGL. Who did Jesus say was the lord of this world? Not god... Render unto Caesar what is Caesar's -- whose side do you think the government is on anyway?! ;-)
     -- E Archer, NYC     
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    The demented abuse committed by totalitarians and sociopaths is not unlimited power. It is unbridled madness. No one here has abdicated responsibility for dealing with them, but neither have they exaggerated their powers.
     -- David L Rosenthal     
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    EGL, me again was absolutely correct. And what does your silly comment 'To pass the buck' mean. It is absolutely unrelated to what me again said. I guess your comment falls within the category of more godless liberal, prejudicial, anti-Christian, etc. rhetoric. Christians have a different perception of 'Unlimited Power' than others. Unlimited power to a Christian includes love, truth, creation, forgiveness, tolerance, etc. and all other things beyond the mere ability to destroy. AND FYI, Caesar was a reference to the ultimate sovereign, not the subordinate government (read the scripture just before your reference). In the de jure U.S., the individual of 'We The People" is Caesar. In the current de facto oligarchy, the individual is political fatter. The only reference to, other than the Father being lord (lower case 'L') to this world, that I'm aware of, was in the Garden. The adversary made that claim.
     -- Mike, Norwalk     
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    The whole thing is silly - well done ELG. Give me a break, there is no absolute power, period... If there is, he, she, it, God, Jesus, Buddha, Mohamed, sure have a funny sense of humor. Unlimited power to a christian also means killing - just look at their history. There are a few Christians that are truly nice people (like Liberals) but that is rare - like there are a few Republicans (like Liberals) that are really nice people.
     -- Robert, Sarasota     
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     -- Robert, Sarasota      
    I'm with EGL. Blaming anything on some creator is simply escaping responsibility. Such folks admit this god is unknowable, yet they have the audacity to claim they know just what he wants. How CAN they know? He's unknowable. Thank God, I'm an atheist. I don't have to worry about pleasing someone else. It's up to me to figure out what's right. I'll take the responsibility and the consequences I won't blame God.
     -- Jack, Gren, OH     
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    I know Christians will say they don't BLAME God for anything, but what do you call it when God has all the power? Mike is right, Christians have a different (and stranger) perception of 'Unlimited Power' than others
     -- Jack, Green, OH     
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    LOL Jack, me again said nothing of passing the buck or blaming someone else and it takes a giant leap of ????? to make that assumption. I guess that you're used to being wrong, and proud of it. Making false assumptions or accusations about Christians, and then trying to justify your existence by such falsehood(s) is the sign of a true atheist. By the way, I'm a Christian so that means I don't have to worry about pleasing someone else, especially God. I don't have to figure what's right, history and God have already done that. I'll take the responsibility and the consequences of obeying or denying natural law and that which history has shown to prosper the individual and society. One of the problems with most atheists (besides the consequences of their blinders, prejudice and intolerance) is they are doomed to relive history. You know, doing the same thing over and over again won't get different results and while you're trying to figure it out with the fair weather Saints and sunshine Christians, the rest of us suffer. In the vain of the quote, it might be said: Self limited spiritual realization eventually corrupts the mind.
     -- Mike, Norwalk     
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    Jack, thank you! For those who are pursuing a life harmonious with the Christ's teachings, different and strange are hopefully synonyms of peculiar in the finest tradition of Titus 2:14 and 1 Peter 2:9 of the New Testament. Such accusations are worn as a title of honor when offered by antagonists. Again, thank you.
     -- Mike, Norwalk     
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    For 40 years, Mike, I professed to be a Christian and I knew all the platitudes you do. I argued them in college as you do today. But when my kids were getting old enough to question those myths I could no longer defend them. I first decided I might be an agnostic, but soon I realized I didn't even have the doubts of an agnostic. I just didn't believe any of the dogma. The days of justifying Santa Claus were over and it was like a huge weight lifted off me. I spent these last 40 years admitting my true beliefs and felt so much better for it. Now I know where I'm going when I die (probably not too much longer, being I'm over 80) and that's nowhere. Pretty soon the lights will go out and I'll be back where I was before I was born. Try to describe where you'll be ...many years later, I hope. If it pleases you to think you'll be in a place called Heaven, more power to you. I couldn't accept that fate any longer.
     -- Jack, Green, OH     
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    Right on EGL.
     -- Anonymous, Reston, VA US     
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    Jack, thank you, that was honest and from the heart, no platitudes, no justification, no put downs - truth. It is fantastic to hear the truth. I, myself, for one, do more than profess to know the Christ. I have had many spiritual experiences (beyond the physical and/or intelectual) I can not deny. Most individuals professing to be Christians have no clue what that means beyond a life style, platitudes, the position it gets them in the community, etc. The lie, war, and hate mongers in political leadership positions in this country use the Lord's name in vane when trying to justify their immorality. Again, thak you Jack for your last comment, I love honesty.
     -- Mike, Norwalk     
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    Jack, I am happy for you as I am for Christians who believe in some celestial heaven. Though I am continually amazed by the hypocrisy of Christians who profess to have compassion and kindness and yet all I see are the comments of David and Mike, religious wars, their intolerance, their greed, it makes me confirm my position as jus a good fellow without the trappings of religion. If you wish to call me an Atheist or a Liberal that’s fine too; names are not what matter -- what matters is who you are, and I can see plainly from the above comments that I would rather side with the Atheist and Liberals than shout abuse in the temple.
     -- Robert, Sarasota      
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    Well said, Jack.
     -- E Archer, NYC     
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    If a man does by nature the things contained in the law, then the Fruits of the Spirit come forth. Conscience bears witness in the spirit, before the Spirit of Truth. There are nine fruits of the Spirit, that can be found in the ninth book of the NT, nine being the number of Covenant, DEAL. " But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance, against such there is no law. " Mike, Norwalk points out a Sum of things, which is very,very rare. Well said Mike, praise the Lord. God frustrates the Tokens of liars. let that sink in a while. " Incline your ear, and come unto me: hear, and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting Covenant with you, even the Sure mercies of David." Isaiah 55:3 KJB "This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord. I create the fruit of the lips; Peace, peace to him that is far off, and to him that is near, saith the Lord, and I will heal him. But the wicked are like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt. There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked. Truth is fallen in the street and equity cannot inter. Yea, truth faileth, and he that departeth from evil maketh himself a prey." People can discern the face of the weather, then it would be foolish indeed to say one cannot discern the Spirit that comes and goes like the wind. Twice have I heard power belongs to God. Semper Fi
     -- Ronw13, Oregon     
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    Unlimited power is not held by those who have been given the power, but by those who hide behind the curtain — Toto we need you, all is forgiven... Ever since I became an atheist I have been at peace with myself, my mind has been given a new lease of life; it has allowed me to see far more objectively.
     -- Robert Edwards, Somewhere in the USA     
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     -- jim k, Austin      
    In John 12:31-36, Jesus refers to Satan as "the ruler of this world."  I am not familiar with the interpretation of Caesar representing the sovereign individual, you'll have to explain that one.
     -- E Archer, NYC     
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    As a truth-seeker, and by necessity a truth-teller, I cannot call myself an atheist any more than I can call myself a theist.  You will have to define God in order for me to either accept or deny God. 

    Ever since I treated the Bible stories as allegories rather than historical fact, those scriptures make more sense.  Dogma is a prison for the mind, Truth frees it.  Let's face it, the origin of the universe, the source of Life, is a profound mystery.  The Bible and other age-old texts were written to make sense of this ever-present mystery.  We ponder the writings of ancient philosophers and study the history of the world, and we end up here and now with our ideas about it all, and we interact with the world accordingly.

    Rejecting dogma as truth is a good first step.  Understanding the profound meaning of the allegories that have stood the test of time is better. 

    Notice that the typical liberal atheist clamors for government to perform all the tasks of churches and their congregations.  Notice that liberals talk about compassion, while Christians wish to promote love.  Liberals want to feed the poor and clothe the naked — this has been the tenet of Christianity for centuries.  Liberals want to forcibly take your earnings to pay for their compassion, while churches voluntarily raise money for their missions.  Liberals want free health care for all.  Count the number of hospitals founded by religious orders!

    And finally, rejecting the teachings of Christ because some Christians do not follow them is a bogus argument.  Atheists have no more moral high ground than anyone else — they are as fallible as Christians (which BTW Christians profess that they are far from perfect, unlike liberals).  Leftists are full of hate for those that reject their authoritarianism — far from their claims of tolerance and compassion.  The last 3 months of leftist hate has been on display for all the world to see.  This is the promise of socialism.

    Socialism is essentially a religion of the god of Power.  They have a twisted sense of responsibility in that they are responsible for me but not themselves.  Perpetual victims (and pawns, I might add).

     -- E Archer, NYC     
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