One of the advantages of being disorderly is that one is constantly making exciting discoveries.
A. A. Milne (1882-1956) English poet and playwright [Alan Alexander Milne]
Year In, Year Out, “July” (1952)
More about this quote: wist.info/milne-a-a/2854/
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There is no cure for birth and death save to enjoy the interval.
George Santayana (1863-1952) Spanish-American poet and philosopher [Jorge Agustín Nicolás Ruíz de Santayana y Borrás]
Essay (1916 ca.), “War Shrines,” Soliloquies in England, ch. 24 (1922)
More about this quote: wist.info/santayana-george/344…
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No one wants advice — only corroboration.
John Steinbeck (1902-1968) American writer
The Winter of Our Discontent, Part I, ch. 6 (1961)
More about this quote: wist.info/steinbeck-john/3714/
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A quotation from William Drummond
He, who will not reason, is a bigot; he, who cannot, is a fool; and he, who dares not, is a slave.
William Drummond of Logie-Almond (1770-1828) Scottish classical scholar, philosopher, diplomat, politician
Academical Questions, Preface (1805)
More about this quote: wist.info/drummond-william/273…
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He, who will not reason, is a bigot; he, who cannot, is a fool; and he, who dares not, is a slave. Sometimes misattributed to Byron.Dave (WIST Quotations)
A quotation from Bill Watterson
CALVIN: I think grown-ups just act like they know what they’re doing.
Bill Watterson (b. 1958) American cartoonist
Calvin and Hobbes (1991-02-18)
More about this quote: wist.info/watterson-bill/81972…
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CALVIN: I think grown-ups just act like they know what they're doing.Dave (WIST Quotations)
Halfway down the stairs
Is a stair
Where I sit.
There isn’t any
Other stair
Quite like
It.
I’m not at the bottom,
I’m not at the top;
So this is the stair
Where
I always
Stop.
A. A. Milne (1882-1956) English poet and playwright [Alan Alexander Milne]
When We Were Very Young, “Halfway Down,” st. 1 (1924)
More about this quote: wist.info/milne-a-a/81963/
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Halfway down the stairs Is a stair Where I sit. There isn't any Other stair Quite like It. I'm not at the bottom, I'm not at the top; So this is the stair Where I always Stop.Dave (WIST Quotations)
If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away.
Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862) American philosopher and writer
Walden; or, Life in the Woods, ch. 18 “Conclusion” (1854)
More about this quote: wist.info/thoreau-henry-david/…
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CALVIN: Isn’t it strange that evolution would give us a sense of humor? When you think about it, it’s weird that we have a physiological response to absurdity. We laugh at nonsense. We like it. We think it’s funny.Dave (WIST Quotations)
They're changing guard at Buckingham Palace -- Christopher Robin went down with Alice. They've great big parties inside the grounds. "I wouldn't be King for a hundred pounds," Says Alice.Dave (WIST Quotations)
Without deviation from the norm, progress is not possible.
Frank Zappa (1940-1993) American singer-songwriter
A Day with Frank Zappa, Part 5, documentary, dir. Roelof Kiers, VPRO-TV (1971-02-11)
More about this quote (and variants): wist.info/zappa-frank/4263/
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Without deviation from the norm, progress is not possible. Widely attributed to Zappa in various forms, but with very few actual citations. The Kiers documentary gave the quotation twice.Dave (WIST Quotations)
To be good, and to do good, is all We have to do.
John Adams (1735–1826) American lawyer, Founding Father, statesman, US President (1797–1801)
Letter (1777-03-17) to Nabby Adams (Abigail Adams 2d)
More about this quote: wist.info/adams-john/35639/
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How easy it is to make people believe a lie, and how hard it is to undo that work again!
Mark Twain (1835-1910) American writer [pseud. of Samuel Clemens]
Dictation (1906-12-02), The Autobiography of Mark Twain, Vol. 2 (2013)
More about this quote: wist.info/twain-mark/43956/
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A quotation from Franklin Roosevelt
We are a nation of many nationalities, many races, many religions — bound together by a single unity, the unity of freedom and equality. Whoever seeks to set one nationality against another, seeks to degrade all nationalities. Whoever seeks to set one race against another seeks to enslave all races. Whoever seeks to set one religion against another, seeks to destroy all religion.
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1882-1945) American lawyer, politician, statesman, US President (1933-1945)
Speech (1940-11-01), Campaign Address, Brooklyn Academy of Music, New York
More about this quote: wist.info/roosevelt-franklin-d…
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We are a nation of many nationalities, many races, many religions -- bound together by a single unity, the unity of freedom and equality. Whoever seeks to set one nationality against another, seeks to degrade all nationalities.Dave (WIST Quotations)
A quotation from Douglas Adams
Isn’t it enough to see that a garden is beautiful without having to believe that there are fairies at the bottom of it too?
Douglas Adams (1952-2001) English author, humorist, screenwriter
Hitchhiker’s Guide No. 1, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, ch. 16 (1979)
More about this quote: wist.info/adams-douglas/37236/
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Isn't it enough to see that a garden is beautiful without having to believe that there are fairies at the bottom of it too? Musing by Ford Prefect as to Zaphod's overdramatization of their arrival at Magrathea.Dave (WIST Quotations)
A quotation from Bill Watterson
HOBBES: Van Gogh would’ve sold more than one painting if he’d put tigers in them.
Bill Watterson (b. 1958) American cartoonist
Calvin and Hobbes (1990-10-14)
More about this quote: wist.info/watterson-bill/81669…
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Waste no more time arguing what a good man should be. Be one. [Μηκέθ̓ ὅλως περὶ τοῦ οἷόν τινα εἶναι τὸν ἀγαθὸν ἄνδρα διαλέγεσθαι, ἀλλὰ εἶναι τοιοῦτον.] (Source (Greek)).Dave (WIST Quotations)
A quotation from Bill Watterson
CALVIN: I think nighttime is dark so you can imagine your fears with less distraction.
Bill Watterson (b. 1958) American cartoonist
Calvin and Hobbes (1989-04-23)
More about this quote: wist.info/watterson-bill/81539…
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So wherever I am, there’s always Pooh,
There’s always Pooh and Me.
“What would I do?” I said to Pooh,
“If it wasn’t for you,” and Pooh said: “True,
It isn’t much fun for One, but Two
Can stick together,” says Pooh, says he.
“That’s how it is,” says Pooh.
A. A. Milne (1882-1956) English poet and playwright [Alan Alexander Milne]
Now We Are Six, “Us Two,” st. 5 (1927)
More about this quote: wist.info/milne-a-a/2849/
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So wherever I am, there's always Pooh, There's always Pooh and Me. "What would I do?" I said to Pooh, "If it wasn't for you," and Pooh said: "True, It isn't much fun for One, but Two Can stick together," says Pooh, says he.Dave (WIST Quotations)
Never let yourself be persuaded that any one Great Man, any one leader, is necessary to the salvation of America. When America consists of one leader and 143,000,000 followers, it will no longer be America. Truly American leadership is not of any one man. It is of multitudes of men — and women.
Dwight David Eisenhower (1890-1969) American general, US President (1953-61)
Essay (1948-10), “An Open Letter to America’s Students,” Reader’s Digest
More about this quote: wist.info/eisenhower-dwight/55…
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Never let yourself be persuaded that any one Great Man, any one leader, is necessary to the salvation of America. When America consists of one leader and 143,000,000 followers, it will no longer be America.Dave (WIST Quotations)
There are few men, that would dare to publish the secret requests they make to God.
[Il est peu d’hommes qui ozassent mettre en evidence les requestes secrettes qu’ils font à Dieu.]
Michel de Montaigne (1533-1592) French essayist
Essays, Book 1, ch. 56 (1.56), “Of Prayers [Des prieres]” (1572-1580) [tr. Florio (1603)]
More info about (and translations of) this quote: wist.info/montaigne-michel-de/…
#quote #quotes #quotation #qotd #montaigne #micheldemontaigne #petition #prayer #secret #shame #secrecy
There are few men, that would dare to publish the secret requests they make to God. [Il est peu d’hommes qui ozassent mettre en evidence les requestes secrettes qu’ils font à Dieu.] This passage was in the 1st (1580) edition. (Source (French)).Dave (WIST Quotations)
“How long does getting thin take?” Pooh asked anxiously.
A. A. Milne (1882-1956) English poet and playwright [Alan Alexander Milne]
Winnie-the-Pooh, ch. 2 “Pooh Goes Visiting” (1926)
More about this quote: wist.info/milne-a-a/81342/
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"How long does getting thin take?" Pooh asked anxiously. While stuck in Rabbit's hole.Dave (WIST Quotations)
A quotation from Robert Ingersoll
Love is the magician, the enchanter, that changes worthless things to joy, and makes right royal kings and queens of common clay. It is the perfume of that wondrous flower, the heart, and without that sacred passion, that divine swoon, we are less than beasts; but with it, earth is heaven, and we are gods.
Robert Green Ingersoll (1833-1899) American lawyer, freethinker, orator
Lecture (1884-01-20), “Orthodoxy,” Tabor Opera House, Denver, Colorado
More about this quote: wist.info/ingersoll-robert-gre…
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The intoxication of anger, like that of the grape, shows us to others, but hides us from ourselves; and we injure our own cause, in the opinion of the world, when we too passionately and eagerly defend it […] Neither will all men be disposed to view our quarrels precisely in the same light that we do; and a man’s blindness to his own defects will ever increase, in proportion as he is angry with others, or pleased with himself.
Charles Caleb "C. C." Colton (1780-1832) English cleric, writer, aphorist
Lacon: Or, Many Things in Few Words, Vol. 1, § 240 (1820)
More about this quote: wist.info/colton-charles-caleb…
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The intoxication of anger, like that of the grape, shows us to others, but hides us from ourselves; and we injure our own cause, in the opinion of the world, when we too passionately and eagerly defend it [...Dave (WIST Quotations)
Do your little bit of good where you are; it’s those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world.
Desmond Tutu (1931-2021) South African cleric, Anglican Archbishop of Cape Town, Nobel Laureate
(Attributed)
More about this quote: wist.info/tutu-desmond/33394/
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Do your little bit of good where you are; it's those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world. Widely attributed to Tutu, but I am unable to find a primary source or any sort of citation.Dave (WIST Quotations)
When plunder has become a way of life for a group of men living together in society, they create for themselves in the course of time a legal system that authorizes it and a moral code that glorifies it.
[Lorsque la Spoliation est devenue le moyen d’existence d’une agglomération d’hommes unis entre eux par le lien social, ils se font bientôt une loi qui la sanctionne, une morale qui la glorifie.]
Frédéric Bastiat (1801-1850) French philosopher, economist, politician
Economic Sophisms [Sophismes Économiques], 2nd Series, ch. 1 “Physiology of Plunder [Physiologie de la Spoliation]” (1848) [tr. Goddard (1964)]
More info about (and translations of) this quote: wist.info/bastiat-frederic/395…
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When plunder has become a way of life for a group of men living together in society, they create for themselves in the course of time a legal system that authorizes it and a moral code that glorifies it.Dave (WIST Quotations)
A man does not sin by commission only, but often by omission. [Ἀδικεῖ πολλάκις ὁ μὴ ποιῶν τι, οὐ μόνον ὁ ποιῶν τι.] (Source (Greek)). Alternate translations: Not he only that committeth, but he also that omitteth something, is oftentimes unjust. [tr.Dave (WIST Quotations)
A quotation from Bill Watterson
CALVIN: Everybody seeks happiness! Not me, though! That’s the difference between me and the rest of the world! Happiness isn’t good enough for me! I demand euphoria!
Bill Watterson (b. 1958) American cartoonist
Calvin and Hobbes (1993-10-20)
More about this quote: wist.info/watterson-bill/81218…
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CALVIN: Everybody seeks happiness! Not me, though! That's the difference between me and the rest of the world! Happiness isn't good enough for me! I demand euphoria!Dave (WIST Quotations)
A quotation from Judith Martin
It is far more impressive when others discover your good qualities without your help.
Judith Martin (b. 1938) American author, journalist, etiquette expert [a.k.a. Miss Manners]
(Attributed)
More about this quote: wist.info/martin-judith/32074/
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It is far more impressive when others discover your good qualities without your help. Widely attributed to Martin, but no citeable source found. Some sources point to Reader's Digest which, on research, was not helpful.Dave (WIST Quotations)
A quotation from Fran Lebowitz
The best fame is a writer’s fame. It’s enough to get a table at a good restaurant, but not enough that you get interrupted when you eat.
Fran Lebowitz (b. 1950) American journalist, essayist
Panel Discussion (1993-05-24), “Fame in the 20th Century,” Clive James (moderator), Joseph Papp Public Theater, New York City
More about this quote: wist.info/lebowitz-fran/26284/
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The best fame is a writer's fame. It's enough to get a table at a good restaurant, but not enough that you get interrupted when you eat. Reported in William Grimes, "The New Fame, or, How a Nobody Can Be Somebody," New York Times (1993-05-26).Dave (WIST Quotations)
A quotation from Bill Watterson
CALVIN: As you can see, I have memorized this utterly useless piece of information long enough to pass a test question. I now intend to forget it forever. You’ve taught me nothing except how to cynically manipulate the system. Congratulations.
Bill Watterson (b. 1958) American cartoonist
Calvin and Hobbes (1994-01-27)
More about this quote: wist.info/watterson-bill/81087…
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“Hallo, Rabbit,” he said, “is that you?”
“Let’s pretend it isn’t,” said Rabbit, “and see what happens.”
A. A. Milne (1882-1956) English poet and playwright [Alan Alexander Milne]
Winnie-the-Pooh, ch. 8 “Christopher Robin Leads an Expotition” (1926)
More about this quote: wist.info/milne-a-a/81076/
#quote #quotes #quotation #qotd #aamilne #winniethepooh #pooh #poohbear #greeting #identity #meeting #pretending
"Hallo, Rabbit," he said, "is that you?" "Let's pretend it isn't," said Rabbit, "and see what happens."Dave (WIST Quotations)
A quotation from Bill Watterson
CALVIN: This whole Santa Claus thing just doesn’t make sense. Why all the secrecy? Why all the mystery? If the guy exists, why doesn’t he ever show himself and prove it? And if he doesn’t exist, what’s the meaning of all this?
HOBBES: I dunno … isn’t this a religious holiday?
CALVIN: Yeah, but actually, I’ve got the same questions about God.
Bill Watterson (b. 1958) American cartoonist
Calvin and Hobbes (1987-12-21)
More about this quote: wist.info/watterson-bill/81011…
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CALVIN: This whole Santa Claus thing just doesn't make sense. Why all the secrecy? Why all the mystery? If the guy exists, why doesn't he ever show himself and prove it? And if he doesn't exist, what's the meaning of all this? HOBBES: I dunno ...Dave (WIST Quotations)
A quotation from Douglas Adams
SLARTIBARTFAST: Perhaps I’m old and tired, but I always think that the chances of finding out what really is going on are so absurdly remote that the only thing to do is say hang the sense of it and just keep yourself occupied.
Douglas Adams (1952-2001) English author, humourist, screenwriter
Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Phase 1, “Fit the 4th” (BBC Radio) (1978-03-29)
More about this quote: wist.info/adams-douglas/34927/
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Old minds are like old horses; you must exercise them if you wish to keep them in working order.
John Adams (1735-1826) American lawyer, Founding Father, statesman, US President (1797-1801)
(Attributed)
More about this quote: wist.info/adams-john/35981/
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Old minds are like old horses; you must exercise them if you wish to keep them in working order. Attributed by Josiah Quincy III, as described anecdotally in L.Dave (WIST Quotations)
