The fate of the country does not depend on how you vote at the polls - the worst man is as strong as the best at that game; it does not depend on what kind of paper you drop into the ballot-box once a year, but on what kind of man you drop from your chamber into the street every morning.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- A country's fate depends not on voting but on the character of the people who act daily in the streets.
- In plain terms
- A nation's future rests on daily actions of its citizens, not just votes.
- What can you take from it?
- Cultivate good character in everyday life.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- How can daily actions shape national outcomes?
Another view
Voting still influences policy direction.
More from Henry David Thoreau
The law will never make men free; it is men who have got to make the law free.
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