Ambassadors Quote by Lysander Spooner
“The 'nations,' as they are called, with whom our pretended ambassadors, secretaries, presidents, and senators profess to make treaties, are as much myths as our own. On general principles of law and reason, there are no such 'nations.' ... Our pretended treaties, then, being made with no legitimate or bona fide nations, or representatives of nations, and being made, on our part, by persons who have no legitimate authority to act for us, have intrinsically no more validity than a pretended treaty made by the Man in the Moon with the king of the Pleiades.”
About This Quote
Source Essay: *No Treason* by Lysander Spooner, 1869
Sovereign entities are constructs; treaties with imagined nations lack legitimacy, similar to fanciful agreements with celestial beings.
In simple terms: Imagined nations make invalid treaties.
Key Takeaway
Question the legitimacy of authority.
Themes
politics
law
sovereignty
Mood
critical
philosophical
Type
political
skeptical
When to use this quote
- diplomatic negotiations
- policy making
- legal analysis
Key Concepts
legitimacy
authority
international law
Questions to Reflect On
- Do you accept authority without proof?
- What defines a legitimate nation?
A Different Perspective
Real‑world treaties involve recognized parties, making the analogy imperfect.
