'Society in every state is a blessing, but government even in its best state is but a necessary evil; in its worst state an intolerable one.' The opening of Common Sense can be read as a gloss on Locke's Second Treatise, without the references to God.
ON HIS BIRTHDAY (FEBRUARY 9), QUOTE THOMAS PAINE, WHO FORESAW 250 YEARS AGO JUST WHERE THE UNITED STATES COULD GO WRONG: "Government, even in its best state, is but a necessary evil; in its worst state, an intolerable one".
More oddly, last month guns including an AK47 assault rifle and an Uzi sub-machine gun were allegedly found at the home of a parish councillor in a Suffolk village.England's worst state schools are no longer concentrated in big cities, either.
In fact, Alabama (the worst state) received an F- because there is an evolution disclaimer in the preface of the standards, no treatment of human evolution, and only limited mention of the "e-word" (Mead and Mates [2009]).
Despite a few weak promises, legislators concluded their business in Albany this summer without making a single improvement in the worst state campaign finance system in the country.
Last week the chief inspector of prisons Nick Hardwick said that UK prisons are in their worst state for a decade, describing some jails as 'places of violence, squalor and idleness'.Meanwhile, under this government the picture is increasingly bleak for society's most vulnerable children.
It's not hard to see how a reduction in staff combined with an increased sense of institutionalisation has led to jails in England and Wales being in their worst state for a decade, with rises in violence, self-harm and staff attacks, according to the chief inspector's report in July.
Each item is rated on a four-point scale (0-3) where a score of 3 represents the worst state of anxiety or depression.
Using the same measures, California is the worst state to be a driver also by far.
"This is, like, the absolute worst state to own a gun in," he added, before politely ending the conversation.
