Lincoln–The Duty to Think Anew

Abraham Lincoln (1862)

We can succeed only by concert. It is not “can any of us imagine better?” but, “can we all do better?” The dogmas of the quiet past are inadequate to the stormy present. The occasion is piled high with difficulty, and we must rise — with the occasion. As our case is new, so we must think anew, and act anew. We must disenthrall ourselves, and then we shall save our country.

–Abraham Lincoln, Annual Message to Congress, Dec. 1, 1862 in: Abraham Lincoln: Speeches and Writings 1859-1865, pp. 414-15 (Libaray of America ed. 1989)