Socialism is a wonderful idea. It is only as a reality that it has been disastrous. Among people of every race, color, and creed, all around the world, socialism has led to hunger in countries that used to have surplus food to export. Nevertheless, for many of those who deal primarily in ideas, socialism remains an attractive idea; in fact, seductive. Its every failure is explained away as due to the inadequacies of particular leaders. ~Thomas Sowell
#quotes #thomas-sowell #socialism
quotistI do get a lot of mail. I get a lot of foreign mail because my mail gets mixed with Emilio Estevez. ~Erik Estrada
#quotes #erik-estrada #emilio-estevez #mail
He who fears to suffer, suffers from fear. ~French Proverb
#proverbs #french-proverbs #fear #suffering
proverbiosI feel very strongly that the Democratic Party has, in the past, been the party of the future. I think when you look at Social Security and Medicare, when you look at the civil rights movement, the women's movement, I think the Democratic Party has always been in the forefront of change. ~Richard Lamm
#quotes #richard-lamm #democrat #politics
In his eyes shone the reflection of the most beautiful planet in the Universe; a planet that is not too hot and not too cold; that has liquid water on the surface and where the gravity is just right for human beings and the atmosphere is perfect for them to breathe; where there are mountains and deserts and oceans and islands and forests and trees and birds and plants and animals and insects and people; lots and lots of people. Where there is life. Some of it, possibly, intelligent. ~Stephen Hawking
#quotes #stephen-hawking #life #beauty #earth
The problem I have with socialist utopias is there's some kind of committees trying to soften outcomes for people. I think that imposes models of outcomes for other people's lives. So in a spiritual sense there's some bit of libertarian in me. But the critical thing for me is moderation. And if you let that go far you do end up with a winner-take-all society that ultimately crushes everybody even worse. ~Jaron Lanier
#quotes #jaron-lanier #thinking #society #socialism
I think that it is expansive for the mind, for the fantasy of children and grownups alike, to understand that the world is huge. There is so much in the world to experience, and the odds are so essential to life. ~Jessye Norman
#quotes #jessye-norman #mind #experience #world
Yeah, I think there are a lot of things about Cleveland that I miss. Los Angeles is a funny place to live. ~Monica Potter
#quotes #monica-potter #los-angeles #cleveland
Even the Soviet Union, with its huge nuclear arsenal, was a threat that could be deterred by the prospect of retaliation. But suicide bombers cannot be deterred. They can only be annihilated; preemptively and unilaterally, if necessary. ~Thomas Sowell
#quotes #thomas-sowell #nuclear #bombing #terrorism
The fear among economists across the political spectrum was that we were rapidly plummeting toward a second Great Depression. So in the weeks and months that followed, we undertook a series of difficult steps to prevent that outcome. And we were forced to take those steps, largely without the help of an opposition party, which, unfortunately, after having presided over the decision-making that had led to the crisis, decided to hand it over to others to solve. ~Barack Obama
#quotes #barack-obama #government #economy
All human joys are swift of wing. For heaven doth so allot it. That when you get an easy thing, you find you haven't got it ~Eugene Field
#quotes #eugene-field #happiness #hardship
Under capitalism, man exploits man; under socialism, the reverse is true. ~Polish Proverb
#proverbs #polish-proverbs #government #capitalism #socialism
I note that some whom I greatly love and esteem, who are, in my judgment, among the very choicest of God's people, nevertheless, travel most of the way to heaven by night. ~Charles Spurgeon
#quotes #charles-spurgeon #people #god
In today's world, it is shortsighted to think that infectious diseases cannot cross borders. By allowing developing countries access to generic drugs, we not only help improve health in those nations, we also help ourselves control these debilitating and often deadly diseases. ~Ron Wyden
#quotes #ron-wyden #medicine #poverty
Sometimes you need to distance yourself to see things clearly. ~John Spence
#quotes #john-spence #vision
The morning after my high-school graduation found me up early job hunting. The dream of college I put on the back burner. ~Martha Reeves
#quotes #martha-reeves
But the first published thing I did was a detective story, detective novel, and I did that on my own. ~Peter Shaffer
#quotes #peter-shaffer #writing #novels
U.S. exports to China have more than quintupled since China entered the WTO and have grown more quickly than imports. In fact, China is America's fastest-growing export market. ~Henry Paulson
#quotes #henry-paulson #economy #united-states #china
The right of freely examining public characters and measures, and of free communication among the people thereon... has ever been justly deemed the only effectual guardian of every other right. ~James Madison
#quotes #james-madison #communication #free-speech
We have different forms assigned to us in the school of life, different gifts imparted. All is not attractive that is good. Iron is useful, though it does not sparkle like the diamond. Gold has not the fragrance of a flower. So different persons have various modes of excellence, and we must have an eye to all. ~William Wilberforce
#quotes #william-wilberforce #personality
I think there's a side of me that's trying to compete with Lucas and Spielberg. I don't usually admit this publicly, because I tend to think that they only go so far, and their view of the world is rather simplistic. What I want to do is take whatever cinema is considered normal or successful at a particular time and play around with it, to use it as a way of luring audiences in. ~Terry Gilliam
#quotes #terry-gilliam #movies
I have resolved never to start an unjust war, but never to end a legitimate one except by defeating my enemies. ~Charles XII of Sweden
#quotes #charles-xii-of-sweden #war #military
"But" is a fence over which few leap. ~German Proverb
#proverbs #german-proverbs #reason
It is true that traditional Christianity is losing some of its appeal among Americans, but that is a religious, not political, matter. It is worth remembering that the Jeffersonian "wall of separation" between church and state has always been intended to protect the church from the state as much as the state from the church. ~Jon Meacham
#quotes #jon-meacham #religious #christianity #politics #united-states