In religion and politics people's beliefs and convictions are in almost every case gotten at second-hand, and without examination, from authorities who have not themselves examined the questions at issue but have taken them at second-hand from other non-examiners, whose opinions about them were not worth a brass farthing.
- Autobiography of Mark Twain
The government of my country snubs honest simplicity, but fondles artistic villainy, and I think I might have developed into a very capable pickpocket if I had remained in the public service a year or two.
Twain, from: - Roughing It
Even if the entire legal structure (government)
collapsed and disappeared overnight,
good people would still do what good people do, and
bad people will still do what bad people do.
Mark Twain (paraphrased)
...and then, someone modified it as...
"With or without religion, good people would still do good things, and evil people would still do evil things.
But for good people to do evil things, that takes religion." (Prof. Steven Weinberg)
_http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080424091508AAk2HIQ
_http://www.twainquotes.com/Government.html
Some of Twain's most hilarious comments (to me, at least) come from his exasperation trying to learn the German language.
See here: _http://www.twainquotes.com/German.html
Note: I happen to like the German language as well as some aspects of German culture. My real mom and all her family were German immigrants from WWII, so I have a natural affinity, still, some of Twain's comments could provoke emotional reactions for the unwary, as he can be quite caustic.