Monday, October 03, 2005

A quote from Daniel Webster

On Sunday, I wrote a blog entry that referenced Daniel Webster, who was born in the town where I grew up. Here is a quote from Mr. Webster.

"I apprehend no danger to our country from a foreign foe . . . Our destruction, should it come at all, will be from another quarter. From the inattention of the people to the concerns of their government, from their carelessness and negligence, I must confess that I do apprehend some danger. I fear that they may place too implicit a confidence in their public servants, and fail properly to scrutinize their conduct; that in this way they may be made the dupes of designing men, and become the instruments of their own undoing. Make them intelligent, and they will be vigilant; give them the means of detecting the wrong, and they will apply the remedy."

Sometimes I wonder if that last sentence is true any more. I hope so. The rest of the quote is certainly happening before our eyes.

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