"Those who would wage war, should first eliminate all domestic enemies before proceeding to attack the external foe."

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Military and absolutist regimes are undoubtedly well fitted to get the jump on an unsuspecting or unprepared enemy; but the history of modern warfare proves that they cannot win over representative governments in the long run, provided that people behind those governments have the heart to sustain initial punishment, and both the will and the resources to fight back.

— Samuel Eliot Morison