“…the intolerable weight of taxes, rendered still more oppressive by the intricate or arbitrary modes of collection; the obscurity of numerous and contradictory laws; the tedious and expensive forms of judicial proceedings; the partial administration of justice; and the universal corruption, which increased the influence of the rich, and aggravated the misfortunes of the poor. “
Edward Gibbon, “Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire” Book III, Chapter 34
Um die Unabhängigkeit des Volkes zu bewahren, dürfen wir unserer Regierung nicht erlauben, uns mit ewigen Schulden zu belasten.
— Thomas Jefferson
