The tendency of democracies is, in all things, to mediocrity.
—James Fenimore Cooper, 1838
Archive
Quotes
Courage and grace is a formidable mixture. The only place to see it is in the bullring.
—Marlene Dietrich, 1962At the start there’s always energy.
—Suzan-Lori Parks, 2006I shall curse you with book and bell and candle.
—Thomas Malory, c. 1470It is impossible to please all the world and one’s father.
—Jean de La Fontaine, 1668Casting lots causes contentions to cease, and keeps the mighty apart.
—Book of Proverbs, c. 350 BCThe worship of opinion is, at this day, the established religion of the United States.
—Harriet Martineau, 1839Any city, however small, is in fact divided into two, one the city of the poor, the other of the rich; these are at war with one another.
—Plato, c. 378 BCMan’s capacity for justice makes democracy possible, but man’s inclination to injustice makes democracy necessary.
—Reinhold Niebuhr, 1944How to gain, how to keep, how to recover happiness is in fact for most men at all times the secret motive of all they do.
—William James, 1902All men recognize the right of revolution, that is, the right to refuse allegiance to, and to resist, the government, when its tyranny or its inefficiency are great and unendurable.
—Henry David Thoreau, 1849I don’t try to describe the future. I try to prevent it.
—Ray Bradbury, 1992After all, crime is only a left-handed form of human endeavor.
—John Huston, 1950