George Orwell Quotes

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Quote in Context

If there are certain pages of Mr Bertrand Russell's book, Power, which seem rather empty, that is merely to say that we have now sunk to a depth at which the restatement of the obvious is the first duty of intelligent men. It is not merely that at present the rule of naked force obtains almost everywhere. Probably that has always been the case. Where this age differs from those immediately preceding it is that a liberal intelligentsia is lacking. Bully-worship, under various disguises, has become a universal religion, and such truisms as that a machine-gun is still a machine-gun even when a "good" man is squeezing the trigger — and that in effect is what Mr Russell is saying — have turned into heresies which it is actually becoming dangerous to utter.
• Review of Power: A New Social Analysis by Bertrand Russell in The Adelphi (January 1939); Paraphrased variant: Sometimes the first duty of intelligent men is the restatement of the obvious.

Quote Source Information

• Source: Wikiquote: "George Orwell" (Quotes)

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Name: MFtatebritain1

Summary: Click on a date/time to view the file as it appeared at that time.

Description: English: Security is no replacement for liberty... digital projection by Martin Firrell, Tate Britain, 2006

Date: 21 August 2007 (original upload date)

Source: Transferred from en.wikipedia to Commons by IngerAlHaosului using CommonsHelper.

Author: The original uploader was Steinman at English Wikipedia.

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