Written laws are like spiders' webs, and
Written laws are like spiders' webs, and will, like them, only entangle and hold the poor and weak, while the rich and powerful will easily break through them.
Kill a man, and you are an assassin.
Kill a man, and you are an assassin. Kill millions of men, and you are a conqueror. Kill everyone, and you are a God.
When you are younger you get blamed for
When you are younger you get blamed for crimes you never committed and when you're older you begin to get credit for virtues you never possessed. It evens itself out.
The thoughts of a prisoner - they're not
The thoughts of a prisoner - they're not free either. They keep returning to the same things.
Hard cases, it is said, make bad law.
Hard cases, it is said, make bad law.
Hanging was the worst use a man could be
Hanging was the worst use a man could be put to.
What is crime amongst the multitude, is
What is crime amongst the multitude, is only vice among the few.
I don't like being famous - it is like a
I don't like being famous - it is like a prison. And driving for Ferrari would make it far worse.
By noiselessly going to a prison a
By noiselessly going to a prison a civil-resister ensures a calm atmosphere.
The world itself is but a large prison,
The world itself is but a large prison, out of which some are daily led to execution.
It is true you cannot eat freedom and
It is true you cannot eat freedom and you cannot power machinery with democracy. But then neither can political prisoners turn on the light in the cells of a dictatorship.
Experts and the educated elite have
Experts and the educated elite have replaced what worked with what sounded good. Society was far more civilized before they took over our schools, prisons, welfare programs, police departments and courts. It's high time we ran these people out of our lives and went back to common sense.
Pardon is the virtue of victory.
Pardon is the virtue of victory.
I never told a victim story about my
I never told a victim story about my imprisonment. Instead, I told a transformation story - about how prison changed my outlook, about how I saw that communication, truth, and trust are at the heart of power.
I wrote a million words in the first
I wrote a million words in the first year, and I could never have done that outside of prison.
Wherever any one is against his will,
Wherever any one is against his will, that is to him a prison.
When the Nazis came for the communists,
When the Nazis came for the communists, I remained silent; I was not a communist. When they locked up the social democrats, I remained silent; I was not a social democrat. When they came for the trade unionists, I did not speak out; I was not a trade unionist. When they came for me, there was no one left to speak out.
Two men look out the same prison bars;
Two men look out the same prison bars; one sees mud and the other stars.
Do not lay on the multitude the blame
Do not lay on the multitude the blame that is due to a few.
Man is condemned to be free.
Man is condemned to be free.
Those magistrates who can prevent crime,
Those magistrates who can prevent crime, and do not, in effect encourage it.
Mere factual innocence is no reason not
Mere factual innocence is no reason not to carry out a death sentence properly reached.
One crime has to be concealed by
One crime has to be concealed by another.
The refined punishments of the spiritual
The refined punishments of the spiritual mode are usually much more indecent and dangerous than a good smack.
The object of punishment is prevention
The object of punishment is prevention from evil; it never can be made impulsive to good.
