Jean Giraudoux on Mediocrity
“Only the mediocre are always at their best.” Jean Giraudoux French diplomat, dramatist, & novelist (1882 – 1944)
Pope John Paul II on War
“Humanity should question itself, once more, about the absurd and always unfair phenomenon of war, on whose stage of death and pain only remain standing the negotiating table that could and should have prevented it.” Pope John Paul II
James Thurber on Art
“He knows all about art, but he doesn’t know what he likes.” James Thurber US author, cartoonist, humorist, & satirist (1894 – 1961)
Mark Twain on Arguments
“Never argue with a fool, onlookers may not be able to tell the difference.” Mark Twain
David Allan Coe on Equality
“All men are created equal, it is only men themselves who place themselves above equality.” David Allan Coe
Samuel Butler on Trouble
“Genius might be described as a supreme capacity for getting its possessors into trouble of all kinds.” Samuel Butler English composer, novelist, & satiric author (1835 – 1902)
Sidney J. Harris on Regret
“Regret for the things we did can be tempered by time; it is regret for the things we did not do that is inconsolable.” Sidney J. Harris
Jimmy Carter on Nature
“Like music and art, love of nature is a common language that can transcend political or social boundaries.” Jimmy Carter
Miguel de Cervantes on Truth
“Facts are the enemy of truth.” Miguel de Cervantes, Man of La Mancha Spanish adventurer, author, & poet (1547 – 1616)
Robert G. Ingersoll on Happiness
“The way to be happy is to make someone happy.” Robert G. Ingersoll
Warren Beatty on Success
“You’ve achieved success in your field when you don’t know whether what you’re doing is work or play.” Warren Beatty US movie actor, director, & producer (1937 – )
Carl Sagan on Intelligence
“The fact that some geniuses were laughed at does not imply that all who are laughed at are geniuses. They laughed at Columbus, they laughed at Fulton, they laughed at the Wright brothers. But they also laughed at Bozo the Clown.” Carl Sagan US astronomer & popularizer of astronomy (1934 – 1996)
Bob Hope on Money
“A bank is a place that will lend you money if you can prove that you don’t need it.” Bob Hope
Helen Rowland on Life
“The follies which a man regrets most, in his life, are those which he didn’t commit when he had the opportunity.” Helen Rowland, A Guide to Men, 1922 (1876 – 1950)
Will Rogers on Doctors
“The best doctor in the world is the veterinarian. He can’t ask his patients what is the matter-he’s got to just know.” Will Rogers US humorist & showman (1879 – 1935)
W. Lee Grant on Laughter
“Shared laughter creates a bond of friendships. When people laugh together, they cease to be young and old, teacher and pupils, worker and boss. They become a single group of human beings.” W. Lee Grant
Marilyn Monroe on Hollywood
“Hollywood is a place where they’ll pay you a thousand dollars for a kiss and fifty cents for your soul.” Marilyn Monroe US actress (1926 – 1962)
Publius Tacitus on Laws
“The more numerous the laws, the more corrupt the government.” Publius Tacitus, Annals (117 AD) (Corruptissima re publica plurimae leges)
Josh Billings on Experience
“There is nothing so easy to learn as experience and nothing so hard to apply.” Josh Billings
Isaac Newton on Science
“If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.” Isaac Newton, Letter to Robert Hooke, February 5, 1675 English mathematician & physicist (1642 – 1727)
William Goldman on Life
“Life isn’t fair. It’s just fairer than death, that’s all.” William Goldman, “The Princess Bride”
Mark Twain on Desire
“A human being has a natural desire to have more of a good thing than he needs.” Mark Twain, Following the Equator US humorist, novelist, short story author, & wit (1835 – 1910)
Winston Churchill on Democracy
“It has been said that democracy is the worst form of government except all the others that have been tried.” Sir Winston Churchill British politician (1874 – 1965)
Indira Gandhi on Peace
“You cannot shake hands with a clenched fist.” Indira Gandhi Indian politician (1917 – 1984)
John F. Kennedy on Liberty and Learning
“Liberty without learning is always in peril; learning without liberty is always in vain.” John F. Kennedy 35th president of US 1961-1963 (1917 – 1963)
George Orwell on Truth
“In a time of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act.” George Orwell English essayist, novelist, & satirist (1903 – 1950)
Alfred Hitchcock on Media
“Seeing a murder on television… can help work off one’s antagonisms. And if you haven’t any antagonisms, the commercials will give you some.” Alfred Hitchcock British movie director (1899 – 1980)
Saint Augustine on Hope
“Hope has two beautiful daughters; their names are Anger and Courage. Anger at the way things are, and Courage to see that they do not remain as they are.” Saint Augustine
Frank Herbert on Science Fiction
“The function of science fiction is not always to predict the future but sometimes to prevent it.” Frank Herbert US science fiction novelist (1920 – 1986)
Walt Disney on Movies
“Movies can and do have tremendous influence in shaping young lives in the realm of entertainment towards the ideals and objectives of normal adulthood.” Walt Disney
Henry David Thoreau on Success
“Success usually comes to those who are too busy to be looking for it.” Henry David Thoreau US Transcendentalist author (1817 – 1862)
Alfred North Whitehead on Dogs and Cats
“If a dog jumps in your lap, it is because he is fond of you; but if a cat does the same thing, it is because your lap is warmer.” Alfred North Whitehead English mathematician & philosopher (1861 – 1947)
Epictetus on Difficulty
“The greater the difficulty, the more glory in surmounting it.” Epictetus
E. F. Schumacher on Innovation
“Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius — and a lot of courage — to move in the opposite direction.” E. F. Schumacher
Alfred North Whitehead’s Cynical Quote
“Everything of importance has been said before by somebody who did not discover it.” Alfred North Whitehead English mathematician & philosopher (1861 – 1947)
Floyd Dell on Idleness
“Idleness is not doing nothing. Idleness is being free to do anything.” Floyd Dell
Mark Twain on Life
“Don’t go around saying the world owes you a living. The world owes you nothing. It was here first.” Mark Twain
Will Rogers on Direction
“Even if you’re on the right track, you’ll get run over if you just sit there.” Will Rogers US humorist & showman (1879 – 1935)
Pablo Picasso on Imagination
“I paint objects as I think them, not as I see them.” Pablo Picasso
The Bible on Money
“Give up trying so hard to get rich. Your money flies away before you know it, just like an eagle suddenly taking off.” The Bible Proverbs 23:4-5
Ernest Hemingway on Character
“A man can be destroyed but not defeated.” Ernest Hemingway
Thomas Jefferson on Luck
“I’m a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work the more I have of it.” Thomas Jefferson, (attributed) 3rd president of US (1743 – 1826)
Alec Bourne on Education
“It is possible to store the mind with a million facts and still be entirely uneducated.” Alec Bourne
Rene Char on Poetry
“A poet must leave traces of his passage, not proof.” Rene Char
Samuel Johnson on Knowledge
“Mankind have a great aversion to intellectual labor; but even supposing knowledge to be easily attainable, more people would be content to be ignorant than would take even a little trouble to acquire it.” Samuel Johnson, quoted in Boswell’s Life of Johnson English author, critic, & lexicographer (1709 – 1784)
G.K. Chesterton on Modernism
“He who marries the spirit of the times will soon find himself a widower.” Gilbert K. Chesterton English author & mystery novelist (1874 – 1936)
Mohandas K. Gandhi on Money
“Capital as such is not evil; it is its wrong use that is evil. Capital in some form or other will always be needed.” Mohandas K. Gandhi
Isaac Asimov on Computers
“I do not fear computers. I fear the lack of them.” Isaac Asimov
Winston Churchill on Learning
“Personally I’m always ready to learn, although I do not always like being taught.” Sir Winston Churchill British politician (1874 – 1965)
Scott Adams on Business
“Informed decision-making comes from a long tradition of guessing and then blaming others for inadequate results.” Scott Adams
Charles de Gaulle on History
“I have tried to lift France out of the mud. But she will return to her errors and vomitings. I cannot prevent the French from being French.” Charles de Gaulle
Nancy Astor on Change
“The main dangers in this life are the people who want to change everything – or nothing.” Nancy Astor British politician (1879 – 1964)
Thomas Sowell on Truth
“There are only two ways of telling the complete truth–anonymously and posthumously.” Thomas Sowell (1930 – )
Mark Twain on Education
“In the first place, God made idiots. That was for practice. Then he made school boards.” Mark Twain
Robert H. Schuller on Character
“Tough times never last, but tough people do.” Robert H. Schuller
Doug Larson on Aging
“The aging process has you firmly in its grasp if you never get the urge to throw a snowball.” Doug Larson
Andre Gide on Discovery
“Man cannot discover new oceans until he has courage to lose sight of the shore.” Andre Gide
John Elliot on Dreams
“You will not do incredible things without an incredible dream.” John Elliot
Marlene Dietrich on Wisdom
“I love quotations because it is a joy to find thoughts one might have, beautifully expressed with much authority by someone recognized wiser than oneself.” Marlene Dietrich German movie actress (1901 – 1992)
Philip G. Hamerton on Quotations
“Have you ever observed that we pay much more attention to a wise passage when it is quoted than when we read it in the original author?” Philip G. Hamerton, “The Intellectual Life”
