Quote#Desire
The spirit of resistance to government is so valuable on certain…
Quote byThomas Jefferson · 1743–1826
Commonly attributed — not confirmed in an authoritative edition. Cited on Wikiquote to: Letter to Abigail Smith Adams from Paris while a Minister to France (22 February 1787), referring to Shay's Rebellion. "Jefferson's Service to the New Nation," Library of Congress.
English (original)
The spirit of resistance to government is so valuable on certain occasions, that I wish it to be always kept alive. It will often be exercised when wrong, but better so than not to be exercised at all. I like a little rebellion now and then. It is like a storm in the atmosphere.
— Thomas Jefferson
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