Men Lived Like Fishes; The Great Ones

Machiavel, Discoursing On These Matters, Finds Virtue To Be So Essentially Necessary To The Establishment And Preservation Of Liberty, That He Thinks It Impossible For A Corrupted People To Set Up A Good Government, Or For A Tyranny To Be Introduced If They Be Virtuous; And Makes This Conclusion, 'that Where The Matter (that Is, The Body Of The People) Is Not Corrupted, Tumults And Disorders Do Not Hurt; And Where It Is Corrupted, Good Laws Do No Good:' Which Being Confirmed By Reason And Experience, I Think No Wise Man Has Ever Contradicted Him.

We Cannot Distinguish Truth From Falsehood, Right From Wrong, Or Know What Obedience We Owe To The Magistrate, Or What We May Justly Expect From Him, Unless We Know What He Is, Why He Is, And By Whom He Is Made To Be What He Is.... I Cannot Know How To Obey Unless I Know In What, And To Whom; Nor In What Unless I Know What Ought To Be Commanded; Nor What Ought To Be Commanded Unless I Understand The Original Right Of The Commander, Which Is The Great Arcanum.

It Is Not Necessary To Light A Candle To The Sun

Swords Were Given To Men, That None Might Be Slaves, But Such As Know Not How To Use Them.

[i]f Vice And Corruption Prevail, Liberty Cannot Subsist; But If Virtue Have The Advantage, Arbitrary Power Cannot Be Established.