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24. Political Theory / C. Ruling a State / 4. Changing the State / c. Revolution

[overthrow of the government by citizens]

18 ideas
Every state is more frightened of its own citizens than of external enemies [Spinoza]
Any obstruction to the operation of the legislature can be removed forcibly by the people [Locke]
Rebelling against an illegitimate power is no sin [Locke]
If legislators confiscate property, or enslave people, they are no longer owed obedience [Locke]
Revolutionaries usually confuse liberty with total freedom, and end up with heavier chains [Rousseau]
If inhabitants are widely dispersed, organising a revolt is much more difficult [Rousseau]
The state is not bound to leave civil authority to its leaders [Rousseau]
All revolutions result from spirit changing its categories, to achieve a deeper understanding [Hegel]
In moving from capitalism to communism a revolutionary dictatorship of the proletariat is needed [Marx]
The middle class gain freedom through property, but workers can only free all of humanity [Marx, by Singer]
Theory is as much a part of a revolution as material force is [Marx]
The French Revolution gave trusting Europe the false delusion of instant recovery [Nietzsche]
After a bloody revolution the group which already had the power comes to the fore [Weil]
Spontaneous movements are powerless against organised repression [Weil]
In Marxism the state will be superseded [Singer]
You can't condemn violent revolution without assessing the evils it prevents [Singer]
Passion for progress is always short-lived [Sandel]
Most good social changes are incremental, rather than revolutionary [Gopnik]