Archive

Quotes

We have really everything in common with America nowadays, except, of course, language.

—Oscar Wilde, 1887

Our enemies are innovative and resourceful, and so are we. They never stop thinking about new ways to harm our country and our people, and neither do we.

—George W. Bush, 2004

No man has any natural authority over his fellow man.

—Jean-Jacques Rousseau, 1762

Do not do unto others as you would that they should do unto you. Their tastes may not be the same.

—George Bernard Shaw, 1903

By nature, men are nearly alike; by practice, they get to be wide apart.

—Confucius, c. 500 BC

One of the most time-consuming things is to have an enemy.

—E.B. White, 1958

It’s good to remember that in crises, natural crises, human beings forget for a while their ignorances, their biases, their prejudices. For a little while, neighbors help neighbors and strangers help strangers.

—Maya Angelou, 2011

Many need no other provocation to enmity than that they find themselves excelled.

—Samuel Johnson, 1751

In settling an island, the first building erected by a Spaniard will be a church, by a Frenchman a fort, by a Dutchman a warehouse, and by an Englishman an alehouse.

—Francis Grose, 1787

This is not a clash between civilizations. It is a clash about civilization.

—Tony Blair, 2006

I do desire we may be better strangers.

—William Shakespeare, 1600

Africa has her mysteries, and even a wise man cannot understand them. But a wise man respects them.

—Miriam Makeba, 1988

A criminal may improve and become a decent member of society. A foreigner cannot improve. Once a foreigner, always a foreigner. There is no way out for him.

—George Mikes, 1946