It is a socialist idea that making profits is a vice; I consider the real vice is making losses.
Winston ChurchillRead
In handing over the Government of India to these so-called political classes, we are handing over to men of straw, of whom, in a few years, no trace will remain.
Interpretation
Churchill expresses skepticism about the capability of emerging political leaders in India.
Winston Churchill's quote reflects his doubts about the competence of the newly emerging political classes in India. He metaphorically describes them as 'men of straw,' suggesting that he views them as insubstantial and lacking the qualities necessary to effectively govern, implying that their influence and significance will fade quickly, leaving no lasting impact.
In practice
During a lecture on political history, this quote could illustrate the challenges faced by newly independent nations.
It is a socialist idea that making profits is a vice; I consider the real vice is making losses.
The United States is like a gigantic boiler. Once the fire is lit under it, there's no limit to the power it can generate.
Politics is almost as exciting as war, and quite as dangerous. In war you can only be killed once, but in politics many times.
I will not pretend that if I had to choose between communism and Nazism I would choose communism.
Mountaintops inspire leaders but valleys mature them.
True genius resides in the capacity for evaluation of uncertain, hazardous, and conflicting information.
Politics is the art of the next best.
Yet the basic fact remains: every regulation represents a restriction of liberty, every regulation has a cost. That is why, like marriage (in the Prayer Book's words), regulation should not "be enterprised, nor taken in hand, unadvisedly, lightly, or wantonly"
Now that the House of Commons is trying to become useful, it does a great deal of harm.
The corporations are powerful only because we have allowed them to be. In theory, it is we, not they, who mandate the state. But we have neglected our duty of citizenship, and they have taken advantage of our neglect to seize the reins of government.
To safeguard democracy the people must have a keen sense of independence, self-respect, and their oneness.
What is a democrat? One who believes that the republicans have ruined the country. What is a republican? One who believes that the democrats would ruin the country.
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