--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Those words, temperate and moderate, are…" description: "\"Those words, temperate and moderate, are words either of political cowardice, or of cunning, or seduction. A thing, moderately good is not so good as i..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/818/thomas-paine-267_cowardice_those-words-temperate-and-moderate-are-w_2984038.png" --- # Those words, temperate and moderate, are words either of… ![“Those words, temperate and moderate, are words either of political cowardice, or of cunning, or seduction. A thing, moderately good is not so good as it ought to be. Moderation in temper, is always a virtue; but moderation in principle, is a species of vice.” quote by Thomas Paine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/818/thomas-paine-267_cowardice_those-words-temperate-and-moderate-are-w_2984038.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/818/thomas-paine-267_cowardice_those-words-temperate-and-moderate-are-w_2984038.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/818/thomas-paine-267_cowardice_those-words-temperate-and-moderate-are-w_2984038.png) > “Those words, temperate and moderate, are words either of political cowardice, or of cunning, or seduction. A thing, moderately good is not so good as it ought to be. Moderation in temper, is always a virtue; but moderation in principle, is a species of vice.” [Thomas Paine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-paine/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Political moderation can hide cowardice, manipulation, or seduction; true virtue lies in principled action, not half‑measures. **In simple terms:** Moderation in principle can be a vice. Key Takeaway Choose principled stance over half‑heartedness. Themes politics virtue principles courage Mood critical thoughtful Type philosophical political When to use this quote - campaign speeches - legislative debates - activist organizing - public policy debates Key Concepts ethical integrity political philosophy moral psychology Questions to Reflect On - Is moderation always a virtue? - When does compromise become betrayal? A Different Perspective Half‑measures may be seen as compromise but can also undermine progress. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cowardice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cowardice/) [Cunning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cunning/) [Moderate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moderate/) [Moderate Words](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moderate-words-4655912/) [Moderates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moderates/) [Moderation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moderation/) [Moderation Temper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moderation-temper-1204272/) [Ought](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ought/) [Pain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pain/) [Political](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Principles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/principles/) [Seduction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seduction/) [Species](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/species/) [Temper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/temper/) [Temper Virtue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/temper-virtue-1204273/) [Temperate Moderate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/temperate-moderate-4655913/) [Vices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vices/) [Virtue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/virtue/) ## Related quotes > [A thing moderately good is not so good as it ought to be. Moderation in temper is always a virtue; but moderation in principle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/a-thing-moderately-good-is-not-so-good-as-it-ought-to-be-moderation/) [Thomas Paine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-paine/) > [Moderation in temper is always a virtue; but moderation in principle is always a vice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/moderation-in-temper-is-always-a-virtue-but-moderation-in-principle/) [Thomas Paine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-paine/) > [To many men, moderate success is only another aspect of failure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-tomlinson/to-many-men-moderate-success-is-only-another-aspect-of-failure/) [Charles Tomlinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-tomlinson/) > [He that would have the perfection of pleasure must be moderate in the use of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-whichcote/he-that-would-have-the-perfection-of-pleasure-must-be-moderate-in-the/) [Benjamin Whichcote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-whichcote/) > [I think people recognize that I'm not a partisan Republican that I'm someone who is moderate, and that my views are progressive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitt-romney/i-think-people-recognize-that-i-m-not-a-partisan-republican-that-i-m/) [Mitt Romney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitt-romney/) > [ \[Mitt Romney is a\] Massachusetts moderate who, in fact, is pretty good at managing the decay." He's "given no evidence in his years in… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/newt-gingrich/mitt-romney-is-a-massachusetts-moderate-who-in-fact-is-pretty-good-at/) [Newt Gingrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/newt-gingrich/) > [What did John Ashcroft say about moderates, he said, quote, there are two things you find in the middle of the road, a moderate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ashcroft/what-did-john-ashcroft-say-about-moderates-he-said-quote-there-are/) [John Ashcroft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ashcroft/) > [Let all your views in life be directed to a solid, however moderate, independence; without it no man can be happy, nor even honest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/junius/let-all-your-views-in-life-be-directed-to-a-solid-however-moderate/) [Junius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/junius/) > [There is no moderate or immoderate Islam. Islam is Islam and that's it](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/recep-tayyip-erdogan/there-is-no-moderate-or-immoderate-islam-islam-is-islam-and-that-s-it/) [Recep Tayyip Erdogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/recep-tayyip-erdogan/) > [ Our \[former\] governor \[Pat McCrory\] was supposed to be a moderate, but he found himself beholden to people who have much more draconian ideas.… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-darnielle/our-former-governor-pat-mccrory-was-supposed-to-be-a-moderate-but-he/) [John Darnielle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-darnielle/) > [“In politics, everyone regards themselves as a moderate, because they know some other sumbitch who's twice as crazy as they are.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-b-tyson/in-politics-everyone-regards-themselves-as-a-moderate-because-they/) [Timothy B. Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-b-tyson/) > [It is the mark of a gentleman to be moderate in the use of wine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/athenaeus/it-is-the-mark-of-a-gentleman-to-be-moderate-in-the-use-of-wine/) [Athenaeus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/athenaeus/) > [I'm a moderate. I hang out in the middle. I vote against my party with some regularity and try to compromise. It doesn't appear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claire-mccaskill/i-m-a-moderate-i-hang-out-in-the-middle-i-vote-against-my-party-with/) [Claire McCaskill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-mccaskill/) > [All passions that suffer themselves to be relished and digested are but moderate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/all-passions-that-suffer-themselves-to-be-relished-and-digested-are/) [Michel de Montaigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/) > [Moderate Republicans are reverse Houdinis. They tie themselves up in knots and then tell you they can’t do anything because they’re tied up in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barney-frank/moderate-republicans-are-reverse-houdinis-they-tie-themselves-up-in/) [Barney Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barney-frank/) ## More by Thomas Paine > [“No man is prejudiced in favour of a thing, knowing it to be wrong. He is attached to it on the belief of its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/no-man-is-prejudiced-in-favour-of-a-thing-knowing-it-to-be-wrong-he/) [Thomas Paine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-paine/) > [“The laws of every country must be analogous to some common principle.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/the-laws-of-every-country-must-be-analogous-to-some-common-principle/) [Thomas Paine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-paine/) > [The book called the Bible has been voted by men, and decreed by human laws to be the word of God; and the disbelief…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/the-book-called-the-bible-has-been-voted-by-men-and-decreed-by-human/) [Thomas Paine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-paine/) > [To argue with a person who has renounced the use of reason is like administering medicine to the dead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/to-argue-with-a-person-who-has-renounced-the-use-of-reason-is-like/) [Thomas Paine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-paine/) > [One would think that a system loaded with such gross and vulgar absurdities as Scripture religion is could never have obtained credit; yet we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/one-would-think-that-a-system-loaded-with-such-gross-and-vulgar/) [Thomas Paine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-paine/) > [Commerce diminishes the spirit, both of patriotism and military defence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/commerce-diminishes-the-spirit-both-of-patriotism-and-military-defence/) [Thomas Paine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-paine/) > [What is it the Bible teaches us? - raping, cruelty, and murder. What is it the New Testament teaches us? - to believe that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/what-is-it-the-bible-teaches-us-raping-cruelty-and-murder-what-is-it/) [Thomas Paine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-paine/) > [Those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom must, like men, undergo the fatigue of supporting it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/those-who-expect-to-reap-the-blessings-of-freedom-must-like-men/) [Thomas Paine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-paine/) > [“It has been the practice of all Christian commentators on the Bible, and of all Christian priests and preachers, to impose the Bible on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/it-has-been-the-practice-of-all-christian-commentators-on-the-bible/) [Thomas Paine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-paine/) > [But there are times when men have serious thoughts, and it is at such times, when they begin to think, that they begin to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/but-there-are-times-when-men-have-serious-thoughts-and-it-is-at-such/) [Thomas Paine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-paine/) > [Wisdom is not the purchase of a day](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/wisdom-is-not-the-purchase-of-a-day/) [Thomas Paine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-paine/) > [Our citizenship in the United States is our national character. Our citizenship in any particular state is only our local distinction. By the latter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/our-citizenship-in-the-united-states-is-our-national-character-our/) [Thomas Paine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-paine/) > [Suspicion is the companion of mean souls, and the bane of all good society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/suspicion-is-the-companion-of-mean-souls-and-the-bane-of-all-good/) [Thomas Paine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-paine/) > [“To pass from the extremes of danger to safety-from the tumult of war to the tranquility of peace, though sweet in contemplation, requires a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/to-pass-from-the-extremes-of-danger-to-safety-from-the-tumult-of-war/) [Thomas Paine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-paine/) > [What more does man want to know than that the hand or power that made these things is divine, is omnipotent? Let him believe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/what-more-does-man-want-to-know-than-that-the-hand-or-power-that-made/) [Thomas Paine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-paine/) [Explore all 772 Thomas Paine quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-paine/) ## More Cowardice quotes > [“What is cowardice in the young is wisdom in the old, but all the same one can be ashamed of wisdom.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/what-is-cowardice-in-the-young-is-wisdom-in-the-old-but-all-the-same/) [Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/) > [The unpreparedness of the educated classes, the lack of practical links between them and the mass of the people, their laziness, and, let it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frantz-fanon/the-unpreparedness-of-the-educated-classes-the-lack-of-practical/) [Frantz Fanon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frantz-fanon/) > [ \[D\]on't grow old. With age comes caution, which is another name for cowardice… Whatever else you do in life, don't cultivate a conscience. Without… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hesketh-pearson/d-on-t-grow-old-with-age-comes-caution-which-is-another-name-for/) [Hesketh Pearson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hesketh-pearson/) > [Heckling is an act of cowardice. If you want to speak, get up in front of the microphone and speak, don't sit in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-connolly/heckling-is-an-act-of-cowardice-if-you-want-to-speak-get-up-in-front/) [Billy Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-connolly/) > [“To stand at the very moment when all seems lost is the point of insanity for the coward, but it is the home of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-d-lounsbrough/to-stand-at-the-very-moment-when-all-seems-lost-is-the-point-of/) [Craig D. Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/) > [The biggest obstacles to our progress exist within our own lives in the form of cowardice and the tendency to give up. Breaking through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/senora-roy/the-biggest-obstacles-to-our-progress-exist-within-our-own-lives-in/) [Senora Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/senora-roy/) > [“I once knew a man who was heir to the throne of a great kingdom, he lived as a ranger and fought his destiny…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-joybell-c/i-once-knew-a-man-who-was-heir-to-the-throne-of-a-great-kingdom-he/) [C. JoyBell C](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-joybell-c/) > [Is there cowardice with the acknowledgement of fear?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-zusak/is-there-cowardice-with-the-acknowledgement-of-fear/) [Markus Zusak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-zusak/) > [Man alone mesures time. And because of this, man alone suffers a paralyzing fear that no other creature endures. A fear of time running…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/man-alone-mesures-time-and-because-of-this-man-alone-suffers-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [With how many things are we on the brink of becoming acquainted, if cowardice or carelessness did not restrain our inquiries.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/with-how-many-things-are-we-on-the-brink-of-becoming-acquainted-if/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“They are not brave, the days when we are twenty-one. They are full of little cowardices, little fears without foundation, and one is so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daphne-du-maurier/they-are-not-brave-the-days-when-we-are-twenty-one-they-are-full-of/) [Daphne du Maurier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daphne-du-maurier/) > [Survival, with honor, that outmoded and all-important word, is as difficult as ever and as all-important to a writer. Those who do not last…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/survival-with-honor-that-outmoded-and-all-important-word-is-as/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [“People run away from the love game because they know they won't win the race.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bassey-johnson/people-run-away-from-the-love-game-because-they-know-they-won-t-win/) [Michael Bassey Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bassey-johnson/) > [A man may be accused of cowardice for fleeing away from all manner of physical dangers but when things supernatural, insubstantial and inexplicable threaten…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-hill/a-man-may-be-accused-of-cowardice-for-fleeing-away-from-all-manner-of/) [Susan Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-hill/) > [“Preparation eradicates cowardice, which we define as the failure to act in the midst of fear…”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/four-from-divergent/preparation-eradicates-cowardice-which-we-define-as-the-failure-to/) [Four from Divergent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/four-from-divergent/) [Browse all 900 Cowardice quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cowardice/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Those words, temperate and moderate, are words either of political cowardice, or of cunning, or seduction. A thing, moderately good is not so good as it ought to be. Moderation in temper, is always a virtue; but moderation in principle, is a species of vice.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Thomas Paine" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/those-words-temperate-and-moderate-are-words-either-of-political/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Cowardice" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/those-words-temperate-and-moderate-are-words-either-of-political/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/818/thomas-paine-267_cowardice_those-words-temperate-and-moderate-are-w_2984038.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/818/thomas-paine-267_cowardice_those-words-temperate-and-moderate-are-w_2984038.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/818/thomas-paine-267_cowardice_those-words-temperate-and-moderate-are-w_2984038.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Those words, temperate and moderate, are words either of political cowardice, or of cunning, or seduction. A…” — Thomas Paine", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Thomas Paine", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-paine/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Those words, temperate and moderate, are...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/those-words-temperate-and-moderate-are-words-either-of-political/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/those-words-temperate-and-moderate-are-words-either-of-political/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```