That rifle on the wall of the labourer’s cottage or working class flat is the symbol of democracy. It is our job to see that it stays there.
George Orwell
[I slightly disagree. It is a symbol of the ultimate power residing in the hands of the general population rather than solely in the hands of the despot or the well connected. Those that seek and exercise power to their own advantage will always exist and will always take advantage of those that are less powerful. But the rifle on the wall creates limits such that truly epic injustice is unlikely to occur because of the fear by the powerful and their thugs that their reign of terror will be ended by a bullet. And if it does occur the rifle guarantees it will not long continue.—Joe]
I like the Orwell quote because it can be taken four ways: first, that the job of politicians is to protect the rights of the governed. Then, that the job of politicians includes making sure that the worker doesn’t have cause to take the gun off the wall: to defend himself against crime, to defend his country against foreign invaders, or in revolution.
Not to pimp my own work too hard, but I like it: http://www.wallsofthecity.net/2011/04/and-it-will-stay-there.html 🙂
There are times when I think Orwell was an optimist.