I think I cannot open my address more.appropriately than by stating my experience in my.long connection with the reform movement..It was during the great railroad strike of 1877 that.I first became interested in what is known as the.“Labor Question.”^1 I then thought as many thousands.of earnest, sincere people think, that the aggregate.power operating in human society, known as.government, could be made an instrument in the.hands of the oppressed to alleviate their sufferings..But a closer study of the origin, history and tendency.of governments convinced me that this was a mistake..I came to understand how organized governments.used their concentrated power to retard progress by.their ever-ready means of silencing the voice of.discontent if raised in vigorous protest against the.machinations of the scheming few, who always did,.always will and always must rule in the councils of.nations where majority rule is recognized as the only.means of adjusting the affairs of the people..I came to understand that such concentrated.power can be always wielded in the interest of the few.and at the expense of the many. Government in its.last analysis is this power reduced to a science..Governments never lead; they follow progress. When.the prison, stake or scaffold can no longer silence the.voice of the protesting minority, progress moves on a.step, but not until then..I will state this contention in another way: I.learned by close study that it made no difference what.fair promises a political party, out of power, might.make to the people in order to secure their.confidence, when once securely established in control.of the affairs of society; that they were after all but.human with all the human attributes of the politician..Among these are: First, to remain in power at all.hazards; if not individually, then those holding.essentially the same views as the administration must.be kept in control. Second, in order to keep in power,.it is necessary to build up a powerful machine; one.strong enough to crush all opposition and silence all.vigorous murmurs of discontent, or the party.machine might be smashed and the party thereby lose.control..When I came to realize the faults, failings,.shortcomings, aspirations and ambitions of fallible.man, I concluded that it would not be the safest nor.best policy for society, as a whole, to entrust the.management of all its affairs, with all their manifold.deviations and ramifications in the hands of finite.man, to be managed by the party which happened to.come into power, and therefore was the majority.party, nor did it then, nor does it now make one.particle of difference to me what a party out of power.may promise; it does not tend to allay my fears of.[what] a party, when entrenched and securely seated.in power might do to crush opposition, and silence.the voice of the minority, and thus retard the onward.step of progress..My mind is appalled at the thought of a political.party having control of all the details that go to make.up the sum total of our lives. Think of it for an.instant, that the party in power shall have all.authority to dictate the kind of books that shall be.used in our schools and universities; government.officials editing, printing, and circulating our.literature, histories, magazines and press, to say.nothing of the thousand and one activities of life that.a people engage in, in a civilized society..To my mind, the struggle for liberty is too great.and the few steps we have gained have been won at.too great a sacrifice, for the great mass of the people.of this twentieth century to consent to turn over to.any political party the management of our social and.industrial affairs. For all who are at all familiar with.history know that men will abuse power when they.possess it. For these and other reasons, I, after careful.study, and not through sentiment, turned from a.sincere, earnest, political Socialist^2 to the non-.political phase of Socialism—Anarchism^3 —because.in its philosophy I believe I can find the proper.conditions for the fullest development of the.individual units in society, which can never be the.case under government restrictions..(^1) The question of how to preserve the rights of the worker in an.industrial society.(^2) One who espouses a belief that the production and distribution of.goods should be controlled by the government.(^3) A belief that opposes any form of authority in societyQ: It can reasonably be inferred from the passage that Parsons thinks positive social change will take place only when Answer Choices: (A)masses of people are well versed in political history. (B)political parties become committed to reform. (C)fewer political parties are competing for people’s votes. (D)vocal individuals compel governments to address their concerns.
A: Among A through D, the answer is
(A)masses of people are well versed in political history.
(B)political parties become committed to reform.
(C)fewer political parties are competing for people’s votes.
(D)vocal individuals compel governments to address their concerns.
Answer: 3