"Governments have never learned anything from history, or acted on principles deducted from it"
- Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel
About this Quote
The text suggests that governments do not acquire understanding or insight from previous events or utilize this knowledge to make decisions or act on basic principles. To put it simply, history does not form government actions or decision-making. This implies a criticism of federal government's lack of foresight or insight, potentially causing repeated mistakes and failures.
"A lawyer without history or literature is a mechanic, a mere working mason; if he possesses some knowledge of these, he may venture to call himself an architect"
"We have our own history, our own language, our own culture. But our destiny is also tied up with the destinies of other people - history has made us all South Africans"
"It is humiliating to remain with our hands folded while others write history. It matters little who wins. To make a people great it is necessary to send them to battle even if you have to kick them in the pants. That is what I shall do"
