I think opinions should be judged of by their influences and effects; and if a man holds none that tend to make him less virtuous or more vicious, it may be concluded that he holds none that are dangerous, which I hope is the case with me.


Letter to his father, 13 April 1738, printed in Memoirs of Benjamin Franklin (Philadelphia, 1834), volume 1, p. 233. Also quoted in Benjamin Franklin: An American Life (2003) by Walter Isaacson - Epistles

Benjamin Franklin Quotes

I think opinions should be judged of by their influences and effects; and if a man holds none that tend to make him less virtuous or more vicious, it ...

I think opinions should be judged of by their influences and effects; and if a man holds none that tend to make him less virtuous or more vicious, it ...

I think opinions should be judged of by their influences and effects; and if a man holds none that tend to make him less virtuous or more vicious, it ...

I think opinions should be judged of by their influences and effects; and if a man holds none that tend to make him less virtuous or more vicious, it ...