Thomas Jefferson Quotes
I have so much confidence in the good sense of man, and his qualifications for self-government, that I am never afraid of the issue where reason is left free to exert her force.
Jefferson, Thomas. "To Comte Diodati." 3 Aug. 1789. The Papers of Thomas Jefferson, vol. 15, Princeton University Press, 1958, p. 326.
The great irony was that under the British, government of India, including the Pakistan area was quite good. However, after independence, India developed democratic government and is improving its governance to where it is almost good government. Pakistan, in marked contrast, had a democracy when Independence was attained and quickly fell into one dictatorship after another. And none of the governments came close to being good Government. Pakistan has a very corrupt and incompetent government—both military and civilian. However, at the time this quotation was made, the leaders of Pakistan were hopeful about and committed to good and democratic government. But neither ever happened.
Thomas Jefferson was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Father who served as the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He had previously served as the second vice president of the United States under John Adams between 1797 and 1801. The principal author of the Declaration of Independence, Jefferson was a proponent of democracy, republicanism, and individual rights, motivating American colonists to break from the Kingdom of Great Britain and form a new nation; he produced formative documents and decisions at both the state and national levels.
