Quotation Details

Quotation #1381 from Michael Moncur's (Cynical) Quotations:

Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.
Benjamin Franklin, Historical Review of Pennsylvania, 1759
US author, diplomat, inventor, physicist, politician, & printer (1706 - 1790)  

Notes about this Quotation

  • This is often misquoted as "They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety...". The version here is the correct one from the original source. (Corrected here 10/05/2006) [note by Michael Moncur, October 05, 2006]

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