Commonwealths Quotes
Said to have originated in the Cameroons.
Peace on Earth
The American Revolution was a trying time, not only militarily but in just about every other way as well. Washington was quite pessimistic in 1778 as this quotation demonstrates. But it was to get worse. See {624230}. And the rapacity even extended to war profiteering. {624227}.
Ireton was one of the leaders of the Parliament faction in the English Civil War. He was such an important figure that when King Charles II regained power after Ireton’s death, Charles II was so rabid that he had Ireton’s body dug up, along with that of Cromwell and John Bradshaw, and mutilated as the would have been had they been executed.
Friedman was commenting in particular about Egypt and other Arab societies.
Spinoza was one of the most feared intellectuals in human history—feared that is by the established power structures. He is the only known person who was excommunicated by the Catholics, the Jews and the Muslims. He was the enemy of authority and advocated personal reason as the guide for men.
Perhaps this quotation gives the best insight to the major difference between an Islamic perspective of law and the Western. The latter places the rights of the individual on a par with or even superior to that of the society as a whole. The former is more concerned with the effect and result on society as a whole than concern with the individual rights of single individuals.
While this is a common complaint in the American political dialogue at the beginning of the 21st century, it is interesting that this was the conclusion of a foreign political scholar studying that period—one who was generally a great admirer of America.
