All power is inherent in the people.
Interpretation
The authority and strength of governance comes from the collective will of the citizens.
This quote by Thomas Jefferson emphasizes the foundational principle of democracy, that the ultimate source of political power lies with the people rather than a ruling elite. It suggests that the government should reflect the desires and needs of its citizens and that the individuals have the right to claim their power in shaping their own governance.
In practice
This quote can be used in a speech advocating for civic engagement and voter participation.
The firmness with which the (American) people have withstood the... abuses of the press, the discernment they have manifested between truth and falsehood, show that they may safely be trusted to hear everything true and false and to form a correct judgment between them.
I, place economy among the first & most important republican virtues, & public debt as the greatest of the dangers to be feared
βWe must make our choice between economy and liberty or confusion and servitude...If we run into such debts, we must be taxed in our meat and drink, in our necessities and comforts, in our labor and in our amusements...if we can prevent the government from wasting the labor of the people, under the pretense of caring for them, they will be happy.
Very many and very meritorious were the worthy patriots who assisted in bringing back our government to its republican tack. To preserve it in that, will require unremitting vigilance.
A nation, as a society, forms a moral person, and every member of it is personally responsible for his society.
Timid men prefer the calm of despotism to the tempestuous sea of liberty.
The question is not, "Do you know you are a sinner?" the question is this, "As you have heard me preach the Gospel, has God so worked in your life that the sin you once loved you now hate?"
An agnostic position is one that leaves open the question whether there exists a god or gods, professing to find such a question unanswered or unanswerable. For the atheist, the question has been answered, and in the negative.
I've tried to believe, but I don't, I can't, and there's no use pretending.
Necessity has the face of a dog.
I find it impossible to experience either pride or shame over accidents of genetics in which I had no active part. I'm not necessarily proud to be female. I am not even proud to be human β I only love to be so.
If we have no mercy toward others, that is one proof that we have never experienced God's mercy.
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