postmodern putin’s Reviews > The Republic > Status Update

A democratic society in its thirst for liberty goes on to abuse as servile and contemptible those who obey the authorities and reserves its approval for rulers who behave like subjects and subjects who behave like rulers. In such a society the principle of liberty is bound to go to extremes. You find that the minds of the citizens become so sensitive that the least vestige of restraint is resented as intolerable.

When Greek fights barbarian or barbarian Greek we shall say they are at war and are natural enemies and that their quarrel is properly called a 'war'; but when Greek fights Greek we shall say that they are naturally friends, but that Greece is sick and torn by faction, and that the quarrel should be called 'civil strife'.