--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I believe in only one thing and that…" description: "\"I believe in only one thing and that thing is human liberty.\" — H. L. Mencken" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aef/h-l-mencken-245_believe_i-believe-in-only-one-thing-and-that-thi_422150.png" --- # I believe in only one thing and that thing is human liberty. ![“I believe in only one thing and that thing is human liberty.” quote by H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aef/h-l-mencken-245_believe_i-believe-in-only-one-thing-and-that-thi_422150.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aef/h-l-mencken-245_believe_i-believe-in-only-one-thing-and-that-thi_422150.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aef/h-l-mencken-245_believe_i-believe-in-only-one-thing-and-that-thi_422150.png) > “I believe in only one thing and that thing is human liberty.” [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human liberty is the fundamental value above all else. **In simple terms:** Freedom is the top priority. Key Takeaway Prioritize protecting freedom. Themes freedom individualism politics Mood defiant assertive Type political philosophical When to use this quote - activism - legal reform - personal decision-making Key Concepts libertarianism civil rights Questions to Reflect On - What freedoms are non‑negotiable for you? - How do you balance liberty with responsibility? A Different Perspective Liberty can clash with collective security. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Freedom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Liberty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/liberty/) ## Related quotes > [The image is one thing and the human being is another...it's very hard to live up to an image.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elvis-presley/the-image-is-one-thing-and-the-human-being-is-another-it-s-very-hard/) [Elvis Presley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elvis-presley/) > [I believe in only one thing and that thing is human liberty. If ever a man is to achieve anything like dignity, it can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/i-believe-in-only-one-thing-and-that-thing-is-human-liberty-if-ever-a/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [I believe in only one thing: liberty; but I do not believe in liberty enough to want to force it upon anyone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/i-believe-in-only-one-thing-liberty-but-i-do-not-believe-in-liberty/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [I stand on this rostrum with a sense of deep humility and great pride - humility in the weight of those great American architects…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-macarthur/i-stand-on-this-rostrum-with-a-sense-of-deep-humility-and-great-pride/) [Douglas MacArthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-macarthur/) > [“One of the bravest, grandest champions of human liberty the world has ever seen. {Darrow on the great Robert Ingersoll }”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-darrow/one-of-the-bravest-grandest-champions-of-human-liberty-the-world-has/) [Clarence Darrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-darrow/) > [“thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viktor-e-frankl/thing-the-last-of-the-human-freedoms-to-choose-one-s-attitude-in-any/) [Viktor E. Frankl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viktor-e-frankl/) > [Smell is the closest thing human beings have to a time machine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caryl-rivers/smell-is-the-closest-thing-human-beings-have-to-a-time-machine/) [Caryl Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caryl-rivers/) > [“Fighting is not a man thing, it's a human thing.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronda-rousey/fighting-is-not-a-man-thing-it-s-a-human-thing/) [Ronda Rousey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronda-rousey/) > [“You get the picture. The marvelous thing about the human ego is that each one is slightly different. Deep inside you, there’s an enormously…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-bing/you-get-the-picture-the-marvelous-thing-about-the-human-ego-is-that/) [Stanley Bing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-bing/) > [When you always want the next thing, every human being becomes a means to an end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/when-you-always-want-the-next-thing-every-human-being-becomes-a-means/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [Happiness is the most elusive thing for human beings to find.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/happiness-is-the-most-elusive-thing-for-human-beings-to-find/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [Technology has brought us further than man could ever imagine, and it makes all information available. But it might not do the same exact…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-grazer/technology-has-brought-us-further-than-man-could-ever-imagine-and-it/) [Brian Grazer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-grazer/) > [When I was about eight, I decided that the most wonderful thing, next to a human being, was a book.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-walker/when-i-was-about-eight-i-decided-that-the-most-wonderful-thing-next/) [Margaret Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-walker/) > [Reading is another thing that has made me more human by exposing me to worlds I might never have entered and people I might…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/reading-is-another-thing-that-has-made-me-more-human-by-exposing-me/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [The courage to be is the most difficult thing for any human being.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/the-courage-to-be-is-the-most-difficult-thing-for-any-human-being/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) ## More by H. L. Mencken > [Alimony - the ransom that the happy pay to the devil.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/alimony-the-ransom-that-the-happy-pay-to-the-devil/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [A bad artist almost always tries to conceal his incompetence by whooping up a new formula.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/a-bad-artist-almost-always-tries-to-conceal-his-incompetence-by/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [ By profession a biologist, \[Thomas Henry Huxley\] covered in fact the whole field of the exact sciences, and then bulged through its four fences.… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/by-profession-a-biologist-thomas-henry-huxley-covered-in-fact-the/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [So few men are really worth knowing, that it seems a shameful waste to let an anthropoid prejudice stand in the way of free…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/so-few-men-are-really-worth-knowing-that-it-seems-a-shameful-waste-to/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [Man's objection to love is that it dies hard; woman's, that when it is dead, it stays dead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/man-s-objection-to-love-is-that-it-dies-hard-woman-s-that-when-it-is/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [The lunatic fringe wags the underdog.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/the-lunatic-fringe-wags-the-underdog/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [For it is an absurdity to call a country civilized in which a decent and industrious man, laboriously mastering a trade which is valuble…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/for-it-is-an-absurdity-to-call-a-country-civilized-in-which-a-decent/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [Women have simple tastes. They get pleasure out of the conversation of children in arms and men in love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/women-have-simple-tastes-they-get-pleasure-out-of-the-conversation-of/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [The critic, to interpret his artist, even to understand his artist, must be able to get into the mind of his artist; he must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/the-critic-to-interpret-his-artist-even-to-understand-his-artist-must/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [There is, in fact, nothing about religious opinions that entitles them to any more respect than other opinions get. On the contrary, they tend…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/there-is-in-fact-nothing-about-religious-opinions-that-entitles-them/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [Don't overestimate the decency of the human race.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/don-t-overestimate-the-decency-of-the-human-race/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [Liberty ... was a two-headed boon. There was first, the liberty of the people as a whole to determine the forms of their own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/liberty-was-a-two-headed-boon-there-was-first-the-liberty-of-the/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [To the extent that I am genuinely educated, I am suspicious of all the things that the average citizen believes and the average pedagogue…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/to-the-extent-that-i-am-genuinely-educated-i-am-suspicious-of-all-the/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [Philosophy first constructs a scheme of happiness and then tries to fit the world to it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/philosophy-first-constructs-a-scheme-of-happiness-and-then-tries-to/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [For it is the natural tendency of the ignorant to believe what is not true. In order to overcome that tendency it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/for-it-is-the-natural-tendency-of-the-ignorant-to-believe-what-is-not/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) [Explore all 827 H. L. Mencken quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) ## More Believe quotes > [I actually think acting is a form of self-hypnosis. You have to be hyper, hyper aware of what's going on around you. You have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianne-moore/i-actually-think-acting-is-a-form-of-self-hypnosis-you-have-to-be/) [Julianne Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianne-moore/) > [Some people still believe you should just fall in line with what's going on - and that's scary. It makes a mockery of freedom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-robison/some-people-still-believe-you-should-just-fall-in-line-with-what-s/) [Emily Robison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-robison/) > [The truth seems to be that propaganda on its own cannot force its way into unwilling minds; neither can it inculcate something wholly new;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/the-truth-seems-to-be-that-propaganda-on-its-own-cannot-force-its-way/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [Resist discouragement by speaking His Word over your future. Keep standing. Keep hoping; keep believing because He is working behind the scenes. He's going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-osteen/resist-discouragement-by-speaking-his-word-over-your-future-keep/) [Joel Osteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-osteen/) > [I can't believe that I'm sitting in meetings with Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks, and Annette Bening. I want to take on that responsibility to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ross-williams/i-can-t-believe-that-i-m-sitting-in-meetings-with-steven-spielberg/) [Roger Ross Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ross-williams/) > [There is no such word as item girl in the dictionary. People have created this word and I don't believe that I am an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shefali-zariwala/there-is-no-such-word-as-item-girl-in-the-dictionary-people-have/) [Shefali Zariwala](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shefali-zariwala/) > [I understand that it's the music that keeps me alive... That's my lifeblood. And to give that up for, like, the TV, the cars,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/i-understand-that-it-s-the-music-that-keeps-me-alive-that-s-my/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > [I don't really like too much credit. I know nobody's going to believe this, but I'd rather be able to score goals and nobody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bradley-wright-phillips/i-don-t-really-like-too-much-credit-i-know-nobody-s-going-to-believe/) [Bradley Wright-Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bradley-wright-phillips/) > [“What I have a problem with is not so much religion or god, but faith. When you say you believe something in your heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penn-jillette/what-i-have-a-problem-with-is-not-so-much-religion-or-god-but-faith/) [Penn Jillette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penn-jillette/) > [Bush reiterated his stand to conservatives opposing his decision on stem cell research. He said today he believes life begins at conception and ends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-leno/bush-reiterated-his-stand-to-conservatives-opposing-his-decision-on/) [Jay Leno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-leno/) > [Never underestimate the power of the human mind to believe what it wants to believe, no matter the conflicting evidence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-herbert/never-underestimate-the-power-of-the-human-mind-to-believe-what-it/) [Brian Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-herbert/) > [To believe in love, to be ready to give up anything for it, to be willing to risk your life for it, is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-dicaprio/to-believe-in-love-to-be-ready-to-give-up-anything-for-it-to-be/) [Leonardo DiCaprio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-dicaprio/) > [That's why I don't generally talk about endorsements because I don't believe we have to tell people who to vote for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-iii/that-s-why-i-don-t-generally-talk-about-endorsements-because-i-don-t/) [Martin Luther King III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-iii/) > [Mankind have been slow to believe that order reigns in the universe-that the world is a cosmos and a chaos.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-garfield/mankind-have-been-slow-to-believe-that-order-reigns-in-the-universe/) [James A. Garfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-garfield/) > [We instantly believe everything we think. Isn't that insane? It's good for us to explore the depravity of our minds, so we know we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/krishna-das/we-instantly-believe-everything-we-think-isn-t-that-insane-it-s-good/) [Krishna Das](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/krishna-das/) Browse all 47,704 Believe quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I believe in only one thing and that thing is human liberty.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "H. L. 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