Charles Edison Quotes

The Constitution is a document that should only be amended with great caution.

If by the statement that what the Constitution meant at the time of its adoption it means today, it is intended to say that the great clauses of the Constitution must be confined to the interpretation which the framers, with the conditions and outlook of their time would have placed upon them, the statement carries its own refutation. It was to guard against such a narrow conception that Chief Justice Marshall uttered a memorable warning— ‘We must never forget that it is a Constitution we are expounding ... a constitution intended to endure for ages to come, and consequently to be adapted to the various crises of human affairs.’

Legislation and adjudication must follow, and conform to, the progress of society.

We have gone about as far as good will and even good legislation will take us.

Human society cannot, be changed in a year.

Time and changes in the condition and constitution of society may require occasional and corresponding modifications

The people generally get accustomed to the established order of things and begin to tremble at the very idea of a change. It is this lethargical spirit that needs be replaced by the revolutionary spirit. Otherwise degeneration gains the upper hand and the whole humanity is led stray by the reactionary forces. Such a state of affairs leads to stagnation and paralysis in human progress. The spirit of Revolution should always permeate the soul of humanity, so that the reactionary forces may not accumulate to check its eternal onward march.

Governments never lead; they follow progress

Democracy is not a static thing. It is an everlasting march.

All progress and growth is a matter of change, but change must be growth within our social and government concepts if it should not destroy them.

I come from an academic background, and I have a genuine interest in social change.

I am unapologetic about the need for social change, greater inclusion, and equity.

Britain has moved on. It is a radically different country from that which shaped New Labour.

Creating deep and meaningful change in this country takes time - years and sometimes decades.

Society is changing constantly, and changing faster than we think.

If people are not patient and want radical change, it could set China back in a way to harm a lot of people. I advocate more freedom based on stability.

I always had a desire to see change and be part of it.

Especially in the sphere of social activism, I think we tend to unwittingly conceptualize progress or revolution as black and white and having a clear beginning and end.

We shall some day be heeded, and when we shall have our amendment to the Constitution of the United States, everybody will think it was always so, just exactly as many young people believe that all the privileges, all the freedom, all the enjoyments which woman now possesses always were hers. They have no idea of how every single inch of ground that she stands upon today has been gained by the hard work of some little handful of women of the past.

Agitation prevents rebellion, keeps the peace, and secures progress. Every step she gains is gained forever. Muskets are the weapons of animals. Agitation is the atmosphere of the brains.

Whilst so much is being done in the world, to ameliorate the condition of mankind, and the spirit of Freedom is marching with rapid strides and causing tyrants to tremble, may America awake from the apathy in which she has long slumbered.

Simply put, no society can truly flourish if it stifles the dreams and productivity of half its population. Happily, I see evidence all over the world that women are gaining social and economic power that they never had before. This is good news.

Is it possible that nobody has ever known that there never has been a completely civilized man, and won't be for another thousand years?

I am not an advocate for frequent changes in laws and constitutions, but laws and institutions must go hand in hand with the progress of the human mind.

Let's move forward and fix America's problems.