“The terror of society, which is the basis of morals, the terror of God, which is the secret of religion-these are the two things that govern us.”

— Oscar Wilde, book The Picture of Dorian Gray

Source: The Picture of Dorian Gray

Last update Sept. 27, 2023. History

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Oscar Wilde812

Irish writer and poet 1854–1900

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“Science frees us in many ways…from the bodily terror which the savage feels. But she replaces that, in the minds of many, by a moral terror which is far more overwhelming.”

Charles Kingsley (1819–1875) English clergyman, historian and novelist

Sermon, The Meteor Shower http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/etext04/wtlf10h.htm (November 26, 1866),

“lf the attribute of popular government in peace is virtue, the attribute of popular government in revolution is at one and the same time virtue and terror, virtue without which terror is fatal, terror without which virtue is impotent. The terror is nothing but justice, prompt, severe, inflexible; it is thus an emanation of virtue.”

Maximilien Robespierre (1758–1794) French revolutionary lawyer and politician

Speech to the National Convention, (5 February 1794), as quoted in The Bolshevik Revolution, 1917-1923, Vol. 1 (1951) by Edward Hallett Carr, p. 154 Variant translations: The attribute of popular government in a revolution is at one and the same time virtue and terror. Terror without virtue is fatal; virtue without terror is impotent. The terror is nothing but justice, prompt, severe, inflexible; it is thus an emanation of virtue. As quoted in Red Star Over Southern Africa (1988) by Morgan Norval, p. xvi If the mainspring of popular government in peace time is virtue, its resource during a revolution is at one and the same time virtue and terror; virtue, without which terror is merely terrible; terror, without which virtue is simply powerless. As quoted in Rousseau, Robespierre and English Romanticism (1999) by Gregory Dart Terror is nothing other than justice, prompt, severe, inflexible; it is therefore an emanation of virtue; it is not so much a special principle as it is a consequence of the general principle of democracy applied to our country's most urgent needs. Original French: La terreur n'est autre chose que la justice prompte, sévère, inflexible; elle est donc une émanation de la vertu ; elle est moins un principe particulier, qu’une conséquence du principe général de la démocratie, appliqué aux plus pressants besoins de la patrie. From Sur les principes de morale politique http://www.royet.org/nea1789-1794/archives/discours/robespierre_principes_morale_politique_05_02_94.htm

“If the mainspring of popular government in peacetime is virtue, the mainspring of popular government in revolution is both virtue and terror: virtue, without which terror is disastrous; terror, without which virtue is powerless. Terror is nothing but prompt, severe, inflexible justice; it is therefore an emanation of virtue; it is not so much a specific principle as a consequence of the general principle of democracy applied to our homeland’s most pressing needs.”

Maximilien Robespierre (1758–1794) French revolutionary lawyer and politician

"On the Principles of Political Morality that Should Guide the National Convention in the Domestic Administration of the Republic" (5 February 1784/18 Ploviôse Year 2)
"On the Principles of Political Morality"

“The basis of optimism is sheer terror.”

Oscar Wilde book The Picture of Dorian Gray

Source: The Picture of Dorian Gray

“No religion is responsible for terrorism — people are responsible for violence and terrorism.”

Barack Obama (1961) 44th President of the United States of America

At the White House Summit on Countering Violent Extremism http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2015/02/18/obama-white-house-summit-on-countering-violent-extremism-speech/23631625/ (18 February 2015) 2015

“There is a terrorism which threatens security, honour, property and the like; there is a cultural terrorism which tears human identity apart; there is an information terrorism which deprives man of his freedom to breathe in an unpolluted atmosphere.”

Mohammad-Ali Taskhiri (1948) Iranian ayatollah

“Terror is not now, if it ever was, something that comes to us from outside. It is a part of the society in which we live. Both liberals and neoconservatives believe terrorism can be dealt with by removing its causes. The truth is less reassuring. Al-Qaeda has mutated into a decentralised, often locally based type of apocalyptic terrorism and, in this new guise, seems to be acquiring a formidable momentum.”

John Gray (1948) British philosopher

"Look out for the enemy within," http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2005/jul/10/july7.terrorism The Observer (2005-07-10)

“Terrorism, which means killing civilians in whatever name or title, lacks morality, and nobody who lacks such principle will go to heaven.”

Mohammad Khatami (1943) Iranian prominent reformist politician, scholar and shiite faqih.

During a speech at Council on American-Islamic Relations http://www.ghazali.net/archives2006/html/khatmi_blasts.html (dead link). (8 September 2006) Attributed

“Terror is everywhere the beginning of religion.”

William Edward Hartpole Lecky (1838–1903) British politician

History of the Rise and Influence of the Spirit of Rationalism in Europe (1910)

“There is no such things as "Islamic terrorism," because terrorism differs from Islam. There's just terrorism, not Islamic terrorism. But the term "Islamic terrorism" has become widespread.”

Bashar al-Assad (1965) President of Syria

"If Sanctions Are Imposed on Syria, the Entire World Will Pay the Price" http://www.memritv.org/Transcript.asp?P1=958, MEMRI (Dec. 2005)

“The terror of society, which is the basis of morals, the terror of God, which is the secret of religion-these are the two things that govern us.”

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