Give a man a fish, and you'll feed him for a day. Give him a religion, and he'll starve to read more

Give a man a fish, and you'll feed him for a day. Give him a religion, and he'll starve to death while praying for a fish.

He too serves a certain purpose who only stands and cheers.

He too serves a certain purpose who only stands and cheers.

It's a sad and stupid thing to have to proclaim yourself a revolutionary just to be a decent man.

It's a sad and stupid thing to have to proclaim yourself a revolutionary just to be a decent man.

A religious life is a struggle and not a hymn.

A religious life is a struggle and not a hymn.

I wonder how many of the people who profess to believe in the leveling ideas of collectivism and egalitarianism really read more

I wonder how many of the people who profess to believe in the leveling ideas of collectivism and egalitarianism really just believe that they themselves are good for nothing. I mean, how many leftists are animated by a quite reasonable self-loathing? In their hearts they know that they are not going to become scholars or inventors or industrialists or even ordinary good kind people. So they need a way to achieve that smugness for which the left is so justifiably famous. They need a way to achieve self-esteem without merit. Well, there is politics. In an egalitarian world everything will be controlled by politics, and politics requires no merit.

The first duty of society is to give each of its members the possibility of fulfilling his destiny. When it read more

The first duty of society is to give each of its members the possibility of fulfilling his destiny. When it becomes incapable of performing this duty it must be transformed. - Reflections on Life.

You better take advantage of the good cigars. You don't get much else in that job.

You better take advantage of the good cigars. You don't get much else in that job.

"What freedom does a starving man have?" The answer is that starvation is a tragic human condition- perhaps more tragic read more

"What freedom does a starving man have?" The answer is that starvation is a tragic human condition- perhaps more tragic than loss of freedom. That does not prevent these from being two different things.

For Americans war is almost all of the time a nuisance, and military skill is a luxury like Mah-Jongg. But read more

For Americans war is almost all of the time a nuisance, and military skill is a luxury like Mah-Jongg. But when the issue is brought home to them, war becomes as important, for the necessary period, as business or sport. And it is hard to decide which is likely to be the more ominous for the Axis -- an American decision that this is sport, or that it is business. - The American Character.