"Well, as I say, authority is always lawfully relinquished, but sometimes the legitimacy is acquired after the relinquishment. “You mean retroactively?” I mean that cause and effect are not always arranged in an ideal sequence. “In other words,” Filidor translated, “not only do victors write the histories, but usurpers also rewrite the rule book to justify the illicit seizure of office.” Perhaps not the most felicitous manner of putting it, but essentially correct. “I am surprised the people put up with such shenanigans. They should rise up.” Unwittingly, I am sure, you put your finger on the flaw in your own reasoning. “How so?” You said, “They should rise up,” not “We should rise up.” As long as it is a matter to be solved by others, it will not be."

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Added on April 10, 2026
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Original Language: English

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Chapter 4 (p. 301)

https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Matthew_Hughes_(writer)