“There are seasons in every country when noise and impudence pass current for worth; and in popular commotions especially, the clamors of interested and factious men are often mistaken for patriotism.”

— Alexander Hamilton

Last update June 3, 2021. History

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Alexander Hamilton 106

Founding Father of the United States 1757–1804

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“The romantic notions of chivalry appear to have lost their vigour towards the conclusion of the fifteenth century, especially in this country, where a continued series of intestine commotions employed the exertions of every man of property, and real battles afforded but little leisure to exercise the mockery of war.”

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“Unity is the great goal toward which humanity moves irresistibly. But it becomes fatal, destructive of the intelligence, the dignity, the well-being of individuals and peoples whenever it is formed without regard to liberty, either by violent means or under the authority of any theological, metaphysical, political, or even economic idea. That patriotism which tends toward unity without regard to liberty is an evil patriotism, always disastrous to the popular and real interests of the country it claims to exalt and serve. Often, without wishing to be so, it is a friend of reaction – an enemy of the revolution, i.e., the emancipation of nations and men.”

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“I am so completely convinced of the importance of this cause, as it is related to the solution of a problem no patriotic citizen should neglect, that I look upon every attempt to stimulate popular interest and activity in its behalf as a duty of citizenship.”

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“History has often proved the shortsightedness of the practical men and vindicated the "lazy" dreamers; it has also proved that the dreamers are often mistaken.”

George Sarton (1884–1956) American historian of science

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A History of Science Vol.1 Ancient Science Through the Golden Age of Greece (1952)
Context: Some men are abstract-minded, and they naturally think first of unity and God, of wholeness, of infinity and other such concepts, while the minds of other men are concrete and they cogitate about health and disease, profit and loss. They invent gadgets and remedies; they are less interested in knowing anything than in applying whatever knowledge... to practical problems... The first are called dreamers; the second kind are recognized as practical and useful. History has often proved the shortsightedness of the practical men and vindicated the "lazy" dreamers; it has also proved that the dreamers are often mistaken.

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Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826) 3rd President of the United States of America

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“It is not worth it to sacrifice the interest of the country for the sake of my son.”

Chiang Kai-shek (1887–1975) Chinese politician and military leader

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Chiang Kai Shek: China's Generalissimo and the Nation He Lost, Jonathan Fenby, 2005, Carroll & Graf Publishers, 205, 0786714840, 2010-06-28 http://books.google.com/books?id=YkREps9oGR4C&pg=PA205&dq=It+is+not+worth+it+to+sacrifice+the+interests+of+the+country+for+the+sake+of+my+son&hl=en&ei=MgW9TNvcKsP78Abztqi1Dw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=2&ved=0CCoQ6AEwAQ#v=onepage&q=It%20is%20not%20worth%20it%20to%20sacrifice%20the%20interests%20of%20the%20country%20for%20the%20sake%20of%20my%20son&f=false,

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David Hume book Essays, Moral, Political, and Literary

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Misattributed

“There are seasons in every country when noise and impudence pass current for worth; and in popular commotions especially, the clamors of interested and factious men are often mistaken for patriotism.”

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Alexander Hamilton 106

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