Murray Rothbard Quotes

Every actual State is corrupt. Good men must not obey laws too well.

There is no justice in following unjust laws.

Over and over again, people had to disobey lawful authority to follow the voice of their conscience. This obedience to God and disobedience to the State has, over and over again, happened throughout history. It is time again to cry out against our 'leaders,' to question (since it is not for us to say that they are evil) whether or not they are sane.

Satyagraha means insistence on what one knows to be the truth. The insistence implies the exercise of free will as the need of social obligation. If one is content to know the truth himself, he does not become a votary of Satyagraha. A Satyagrahi should not only know the truth but should insist upon it in social relations. So Satyagraha is activation of truthfulness.

We have no more thought of using our own powers to escape the arm of authorities than had the Apostles of old. No more are we ready to keep silent at man's behest when God commands us to speak. For it is, and must remain, the case that we must obey God rather than man.

"Laws and conditions that tend to debase human personality - a God-given force - be they brought about by the State or other individuals, must be relentlessly opposed in the spirit of defiance shown by St. Peter when he said to the rulers of his day: "Shall we obey God or man?"

When you are faced with prejudice, logic and justice are impotent. Still, we may have an obligation to argue directly into the face of the prejudice, even though there is no chance to win.

If there is no final place for civil disobedience, then the government has been made autonomous, and as such, it has been put in the place of the living God.

There have been times throughout American history where what is right is not the same as what is legal. Sometimes to do the right thing you have to break the law.

One of the drawbacks to life is that it contains moments when one is compelled to tell the truth.

Those whose conscience demands that they defy authority in some ways that involve great consequences must be willing to accept some penalty.

Morality is either a social contract or you have to pay cash.

I became convinced that noncooperation with evil is as much a moral obligation as is cooperation with good.

Men must learn now with pity to dispense; For policy sits above conscience.

I would far rather that India perished than that she won Her freedom at the sacrifice of truth.

... true civil disobedience ... compels the state to resort to power.

It would be morally reprehensible not to tell the truth... Everything I have written has stood the test of time.

A priestess of Avalon does not lie. But I am cast out of Avalon, and for this, and unless it is all to be for nothing, I must lie, and lie well and quickly

An opinion, right or wrong, can never constitute a moral offense, nor be in itself a moral obligation. It may be mistaken; it may involve an absurdity, or a contradiction. It is a truth; or it is an error: it can never be a crime or a virtue.

My answer to your question'Does the writer have a social responsibility?' is NO.You owe me ten cents, sir.

Resistance to tyranny becomes the Christian and social duty of each individual… Continue steadfast and, with a proper sense of your dependence on God, nobly defend those rights which heaven gave, and no man ought to take from us.

My responsibility is to truth and beauty.

If you see something that is not right, not fair, not just, you have a moral obligation to do something about it.

Ignoring your conscience is the first violation of Truth.

Tell the truth as you understand it. If you're a writer, you have a moral obligation to do this. And it is a revolutionary act - truth is always subversive.