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Which do you believe most likely to enter an insane convention, a body of English gentlemen honoured by the favour of their Sovereign and the confidence of their fellow-subjects, managing your affairs for five years, I hope with prudence, and not altogether without success, or a sophistical rhetorician, inebriated with the exuberance of his own verbosity, and gifted with an egotistical imagination that can at all times command an interminable and inconsistent series of arguments to malign an opponent and to glorify himself?

Benjamin Disraeli#65

PoliticsPowerLeadershipIntegrityRhetoric

About this quote

What does it mean?
Disraeli criticizes self-serving politicians who use verbose arguments to attack others and praise themselves, contrasting them with responsible government officials.
In plain terms
He prefers trusted leaders over boastful speakers who twist words for personal gain.
What can you take from it?
Be wary of leaders who prioritize self-glory over public service.

Where it applies

  • political debates
  • leadership evaluations
  • public discourse

Putting it to work

  • evaluate leaders by actions not words
  • identify self-serving rhetoric
  • demand accountability

Questions to consider

  • How do you distinguish true service from political theater?
  • What traits signal a leader's sincerity?

Another view

The quote assumes the 'English gentlemen' are inherently trustworthy.

More from Benjamin Disraeli

  1. Lord Salisbury and myself have brought you back peace, but a peace, I hope, with honour which may satisfy our Sovereign, and tend to the welfare of the country.

    Permalink to quote #64
  2. The harebrained chatter of irresponsible frivolity.

    Permalink to quote #66
  3. We have brought a peace, and we trust we have brought a peace with honour, and I trust that that will now be followed by the prosperity of the country.

    Permalink to quote #63

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