Quote of the day by Benjamin Franklin: 'Those who would give up essential liberty, to purchase a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety' and a lesson on whether to choose freedom or control

Quote of the day by Benjamin Franklin. A statement that Benjamin Franklin said on a specific issue became a memorable quote over the years. The founding father of America wrote a letter on behalf of the Pennsylvania Assembly to the colony's governor in 1755. It was meant to be an economic and political statement about tax sovereignty. During the French and Indian War, the Pennsylvania Assembly wanted to tax the massive landholdings of the colony's proprietors (the Penn family) to fund defense on the frontier. The Penn family offered to pay a small lump sum for defense, provided the Assembly agreed to waive its right to tax their lands in the future.The Assembly refused the offer. In Franklin's mind, accepting a temporary handout ("a little temporary safety") in exchange for giving up the legislature's fundamental constitutional right to pass tax legislation ("essential liberty") was a dangerous trade.He wrote: 'Those who would give up essential liberty, to purchase a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety'But the quote became a memorable saying on the danger of trading fundamental rights for short-term comfort.The quote implies that if you surrender core freedo...