Alexis de Tocqueville

The nations of our time cannot prevent the conditions of men from becoming equal; but it depends upon themselves whether the principle of equality is to lead them to servitude or freedom, to knowledge or barbarism, to prosperity or wretchedness.

The French, under the old monarchy, held it for a maxim that the king could do no wrong; and if he did do wrong, the blame was imputed to his advisers.

The English often commit great blunders, but they have a mysterious power that makes them always end by profiting from their mistakes.

The more I study the former state of the world, the more I consider the spectacle offered by France in our own times, the more I am convinced that there never was a period in which men were more alike.

In the United States, except for slaves, servants, and the paupers supported by the state, everyone has the vote, and this is an indirect contributor to universal prosperity.

The first duty imposed on those who now direct society is to educate democracy; to put, if possible, new life into its beliefs; to purify its morals; to control its actions.

It is not the exercise of power, or the habit of obedience that depraves men, but the exercise of a power which they consider illegitimate, and obedience to a power which they regard as usurped and oppressive.