From a letter from Thomas Jefferson dated November 24, 1808, at a time when he was nearing the end of his second term as President, directed to the man’s grandson, then aged sixteen, who was also named Thomas:
Be a listener only, keep within yourself, and endeavor to establish with yourself the habit of silence, especially in politics. In the fevered state of our country, no good can ever result from any attempt to set one of these fiery zealots to rights, either in fact or principle. They are determined as to the facts that they will believe and the opinions on which they will act. Get by them, therefore, as you would by an angry bull: It is not for a man of sense to dispute the road with such an animal.