Henry David Thoreau Quotes
The community has no bribe that will tempt a wise man.
Thoreau, Henry David. "Life Without Principle." The Atlantic Monthly, vol. 12, no. 72, Ticknor and Fields, Oct. 1863, p. 488.
See {640733} for an English political leader’s similar view.
Samuel Langhorne Clemens, 1835-1910. From the point of view of the person or company that bribes or gives campaign contributions to legislators, there has often been a problem that when the heat is on the legislator might begin to refrain from voting as was expected. Twain was joking in this quotation by using the world “morality” to describe the obligation of the legislator to vote for the interest of the briber or campaign contributor. However, there were several major businessmen who actually saw the bribed legislator as having a moral and ethical duty to continue to protect the interest of the briber.
Henry David Thoreau was an American naturalist, essayist, poet, and philosopher. A leading transcendentalist, he is best known for his book Walden, a reflection upon simple living in natural surroundings, and his essay "Civil Disobedience" (originally published as "Resistance to Civil Government"), an argument for disobedience to an unjust state.
