Quote

To argue with a man who has renounced the use and authority of reason, and whose philosophy consists in holding humanity in contempt, is like administering medicine to the dead, or endeavoring to convert an atheist by scripture.

Thomas Paine

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Thomas Paine
Age: 72 †
Born: 1737
Born: January 29
Died: 1809
Died: June 8
Author
Entrepreneur
Journalist
Opinion Journalist
Philosopher
Politician
Prosaist
Writer
Thetford
Norfolk
Philosophy
Holding
Administering
Humanity
Arguing
Endeavoring
Use
Scripture
Renounced
Reason
Atheist
Stubbornness
Men
Medicine
Convert
Like
Authority
Argue
Whose
Contempt
Dead
Consists

More quotes by Thomas Paine

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Man did not make the earth, and though he had a natural right to occupy it, he had no right to locate as his property in perpetuity, any part of it.
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But such is the irresistable nature of truth, that all it asks, and all it wants is the liberty of appearing.
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Titles are like a magicians wand which circumscribe human facility and prevent us from living the lives of man.
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I am sensible that he who means to do mankind a real service must set down with the determination of putting up, and bearing with all their faults, follies, prejudices and mistakes until he can convince them that he is right.
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The countries the most famous and the most respected of antiquity are those which distinguished themselves by promoting and patronizing science, and on the contrary those which neglected or discouraged it are universally denominated rude and barbarous.
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I know not whether taxes are raised to fight wars, or wars are fought in order to raise taxes.
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It is important that we should never lose sight of this distinction. We must not confuse the peoples with their governments.
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Europe, and not England, is the parent country of America. This new world hath been the asylum for the persecuted lovers of civil and religious liberty from every part of Europe.
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Suspicion is the companion of mean souls, and the bane of all good society.
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In the progress of politics, as in the common occurrences of life, we are not only apt to forget the ground we have travelled over, but frequently neglect to gather up experiences as we go.
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Men did not make the earth... It is the value of the improvements only, and not the earth itself, that is individual property. ... Every proprietor owes to the community a ground rent for the land which he holds.
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Reason obeys itself and ignorance submits to whatever is dictated to it.
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Is it more probable that nature should go out of her course, or that a man should tell a lie? We have never seen, in our time, nature go out of her course but we have good reason to believe that millions of lies have been told in the same time.
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It is from our enemies that we often gain excellent maxims, and are frequently surprised into reason by their mistakes.
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Wisdom is not the purchase of a day, and it is no wonder that we should err at the first setting off.
Thomas Paine
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Mingling religion with politics may be disavowed and reprobated by every inhabitant of America.
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A share in two revolutions is living to some purpose.
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A man may write himself out of reputation when nobody else can do it.
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The right of voting for representatives , is the primary right by which other rights are protected.
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It is error only, and not truth, that shrinks from inquiry.
Thomas Paine