Association Quote by Jean-Jacques Rousseau

What, then is law [government]? It is the collective organization of the individual right to lawful defense.

— Frederic Bastiat

Government is instituted to protect property of every sort; as well that which lies in the various rights of individuals, as that which the…

— James Madison

A government is an institution that holds a monopoly on the legitimate use of violence.

— Max Weber

Government, in it's last analysis, is organized force.

— Woodrow Wilson

Government is, or ought to be instituted for the common benefit, protection, and security of the people, nation, or community; of all the various…

— George Mason

All government, in its essence, is a conspiracy against the superior man: it's one permanent object is to oppress him and cripple him… One…

— H. L. Mencken

To possess ourselves of a clear idea of what government is, or ought to be, we must trace it to its origin.

— Thomas Paine

"Government" is the name we give to the things we choose to do together.

— Deval Patrick

Ideally, government is the means by which all the individual wills are assured complete freedom of moral choice and at the same time prevented…

— W. H. Auden

A government which uses force to maintain its rule teaches the oppressed to use force to oppose it.

— Nelson Mandela

It is the theory of all modern civilized governments that they protect and foster the liberty of the citizen; it is the practice of…

— H. L. Mencken

What, then, is the government? An intermediary body established between the subjects and the sovereign for their mutual communication, and charged with the execution…

— Jean-Jacques Rousseau