Sep 01

Do party divisions hurt democracy?

"The greatest good we can do our country is to heal its party divisions and make them one people." - Thomas Jefferson to John Dickinson, 1801.

Aug 25

Is responsibility for wartime decisions shared fairly?

"Conduct it ever so wisely, [the management of the War Department] will be a sacrifice of [the person accepting it]. Were an angel from heaven to undertake that office, all our miscarriages would be ascribed to him." - Thomas Jefferson to James Monroe, 1815.

Aug 18

Does compulsory military service make countries stronger?

"The Greeks and Romans had no standing armies, yet they defended themselves. Their system was to make every man a soldier and oblige him to repair to the standard of his country whenever that was reared. This made them invincible; and the same remedy will make us so." - Thomas Jefferson to Thomas Cooper, 1814.

Aug 11

Should we hold leaders responsible for outcomes?

"We can only be answerable for the orders we give and not for the execution. If they are disobeyed from obstinacy of spirit, or want of coercion in the laws, it is not our fault." -Thomas Jefferson to General Steuben, 1781.

Aug 04

How has war changed in the last 200 years, and how is it the same?

"It is unfortunate that the efforts of mankind to recover the freedom of which they have been so long deprived, will be accompanied with violence, with errors, and even with crimes. But while we weep over the means, we must pray for the end." - Thomas Jefferson to Francois D'Ivernois, 1795.

Jul 28

Should modern interpretations of the Constitution be backward-looking?

"On every question of construction, carry ourselves back to the time when the Constitution was adopted, recollect the spirit manifested in the debates, and instead of trying what meaning may be squeezed out of the text, or invented against it, conform to the probable one in which it was passed." -Thomas Jefferson to William Johnson, 1823

Jul 21

What are today's experiments in government?

"This I hope will be the age of experiments in government, and that their basis will be founded in principles of honesty, not of mere force." - Thomas Jefferson to John Adams, 1796.

Jul 14

What constitutes just cause for war?

"If ever there was a holy war, it was that which saved our liberties and gave us independence." - Thomas Jefferson to John Wayles Eppes, 1813.

Jul 07

If resistance is morality, is silence immoral?

"When wrongs are pressed because it is believed they will be borne, resistance becomes morality." -Thomas Jefferson to Madame de Stael, 1807.

Jun 30

Can American democracy thrive in foreign soil?

"The flames kindled on the Fourth of July, 1776, have spread over too much of the globe to be extinguished by the feeble engines of despotism; on the contrary, they will consume these engines and all who work them." - Thomas Jefferson to John Adams, 1821.