“Internationalism is in any case hostile to democracy….The only purely popular government is local, and founded on local knowledge. The citizens can rule the city because they know the city; but it will always be an exceptional sort of citizen who has or claims the right to rule over ten cities, and these remote and altogether alien cities…To make all politics cosmopolitan is to create an aristocracy of globe-trotters. If your political outlook really takes in the Cannibal Islands, you depend of necessity upon a superior and picked minority of the people who have been to the Cannibal Islands; or rather of the still smaller and more select minority who have come back.”

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About G.K. Chesterton

English writer and philosopher of the early 20th century, G.K. Chesterton is best known for his witty, paradoxical essays and novels that explore faith, tradition, and the human condition. His works often blend humor with deep philosophical inquiry, making complex ideas accessible and thought-provoking.

More from G.K. Chesterton (260 quotes) →
"Internationalism is in any case hostile to democracy….The only purely…" — G.K. Chesterton | Daily Quotes