Quotes Library

April 26, 2025

It’s better to debate a question without settling it than to settle a question without debating it.

Joseph Joubert (1754-1824), French essayist, moralist, attributed, Jay p.200

Which do you prefer?

He’s right. Dictators can do the latter anytime. Democracy is so slow a form of government because seemingly unending debate is often the norm…and sometimes saves the day.


More Quotes

April 8, 2025
Idealism increases in direct proportion to one’s distance from the problem.
January 16, 2025
[On Friedrich Hayek’s Road to Serfdom] A plan to resist all planning may be better than its opposite, but it belongs to the same style of politics.
July 28, 2025
I always voted at my party’s call, And I never thought of thinking for myself at all.
Page 3 of 122