No ordinary man can discern the beginning of evil, but only the true statesman.
 Aristotle, Politics (4th century BC). copy citation

add
Author Aristotle
Source Politics
Topic evil ordinary
Date 4th century BC
Language English
Reference
Note Translated by Benjamin Jowett
Weblink http://classics.mit.edu/Aristotle/politics.html

Context

“He should endeavor too by help of the laws to control the contentions and quarrels of the notables, and to prevent those who have not hitherto taken part in them from catching the spirit of contention. No ordinary man can discern the beginning of evil, but only the true statesman. As to the change produced in oligarchies and constitutional governments by the alteration of the qualification, when this arises, not out of any variation in the qualification but only out of the increase of money, it is well to compare the general valuation of property with that of past years, annually in those cities in which the census is taken annually and in larger cities every third or fifth year.” source