‘Would they?’ said Masklin.
‘Oh, yes. Politics, you see.' (Truck)
Complete collection of Terry Pratchett quotes by subject and cross-referenced
'Goodness me, I can’t go around letting people believe I’ve been wrong all along, can I? The Abbots have been denying there is anything Outside for generations. I can’t suddenly say they were all wrong. People would think I've gone mad.’
‘Would they?’ said Masklin. ‘Oh, yes. Politics, you see.' (Truck)
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On the fifth day the Governor of the town called all the tribal chieftains to an audience in the market square, to hear their
grievances. He didn’t always do anything about them, but at least they got heard, and he nodded a lot, and everyone felt better about it at least until they got home. This is politics. (CP) And if the Patrician was anything, he was the political equivalent of the old lady who saves bits of string because you never know when they might come in handy. (J)
One of the hardest lessons of young Sam’s life had been finding out that the people in charge weren’t in charge.
It had been finding out that governments were not, on the whole, staffed by people who had a grip, and that plans were what people make instead of thinking. (NW) 'A wise ruler thinks twice before directing violence against someone because he does not approve of what they say.’
Once again, Vimes did not comment. He himself directed violence daily and with a certain amount of enthusiasm against people because he didn’t approve of them saying things like ‘Give me all your money’or ‘What are you going to do about it, copper?’ But perhaps rulers had to think differently. (Th) 'Listen, Peaches, trickery is what humans are all about,’ said the voice of Maurice. ‘They’re so keen on tricking one another all the time that they elect governments to do it for them.' (AM)
The Ephebians believed that every man should have the vote.*
*Provided that he wasn’t poor, foreign nor disqualified by reason of being mad, frivolous or a woman. (SG) Ankh-Morpork had dallied with many forms of government and had ended up with that form of democracy known as One Man, One Vote. The Patrician was the Man; he had the Vote. (M)
Verence was technically an absolute ruler and would continue to be so provided he didn’t make the mistake of repeatedly asking Lancrestrians to do anything they didn’t want to do. (CJ)
The people of Lancre wouldn’t dream of living in anything other than a monarchy. They’d done so for thousands of years and knew that it worked. But they’d also found that it didn’t do to pay too much attention to what the King wanted, because there was bound to be another king along in forty years or so and he’d be certain to want something different and so they’d have gone to all that trouble for nothing. In the meantime, his job as they saw it was to mostly stay in the palace, practice the waving, have enough sense to face the right way on coins and let them get on with the ploughing, sowing, growing and harvesting. It was, as they saw it, a social contract. They did what they always did, and he let them. (CJ)
Verence II was the most amiable monarch in the history of Lancre. His subjects regarded him with the sort of good-natured contempt that is the fate of all those who work quietly and conscientiously for the public good. (LL)
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