Here I collect some quotes I like that I encounter over time.
Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people.
First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a socialist.
Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out— because I was not a trade unionist.
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for me—an...
Iedereen is een genie. Maar als een vis wordt beoordeeld op zijn vaardigheid om in bomen te klimmen, zal hij zichzelf zijn hele leven als een mislukkeling beschouwen.
The man who chases two rabbits, catches neither.
Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn't pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same.
Het doel van de staat is vrijheid.
Een goed leven is een leven dat betekenis heeft in het leven van anderen.
Truth sounds like hate to those who hate the truth.
Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity.
If we all think alike, no one is thinking.
Also, by George S. Patton:
If everyone is thinking alike, then somebody isn't thinking.
Totalitarianism can flourish where people systematically refuse to engage with reality, and are ready to replace reason with ideology and outright fiction.
Geloof hen die de waarheid zoeken, maar twijfel aan hen die haar gevonden hebben.
Never interrupt your enemy when he's making mistakes.
The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money.
If liberty means anything at all, it means the right to tell people what they do not want to hear.
Sometimes laughter is the most appropriate response to solemn irrationality.
Just because you're offended, doesn't mean you're right.
The truth will set you free, but first it will piss you off.
The greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance, it is the illusion of knowledge.
Opinions are like assholes. Everybody's got one and everyone thinks everyone else's stinks.
If you run into an asshole in the morning, you ran into an asshole. If you run into assholes all day, you're the asshole.
It's not the strongest species that survives, nor the most intelligent, but the one most adaptive to change.
It’s easier to fool people than to convince them that they’ve been fooled.
There are always flowers for those who want to see them.
Waar je talenten en de behoefte van de wereld elkaar kruizen, daar ligt je roeping.
Oh comforting solitude, how favorable thou art to original thought!
Those who love peace must learn to organize as effectively as those who love war.
Nationalism is an infantile disease. It is the measles of mankind.
Hoe wilt u de dood begrijpen? U begrijpt het leven nog niet eens.
Compassion is the basis of morality.
Anyone who can appease a man’s conscience can take his freedom away from him.
Maak dat je wegkomt, laatste woorden zijn voor idioten die nog niet genoeg gezegd hebben!
Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened.
If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said, 'faster horses'.
The virtue of a man ought to be measured, not by his extraordinary exertions, but by his everyday conduct.
I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work.
The problem with the world is that the intelligent people are full of doubts, while the stupid ones are full of confidence.
Without courage, wisdom bears no fruit.
First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out— Because I was not a Socialist. Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out— Because I was not a Trade Unionist. Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out— Because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me—and th...
Anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.
You must be the change you want to see in the world.
Gandhi may not have said this, no clear source.
Also (source unknown):
Be the person you want to meet.
I choose a lazy person to do a hard job. Because a lazy person will find an easy way to do it.