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Some tribes [of monkeys] have taken to washing potatoes in the river before eating them, others have not. Sometimes migrating read more
Some tribes [of monkeys] have taken to washing potatoes in the river before eating them, others have not. Sometimes migrating groups of potato-washers meet non-washers, and the two groups watch each other's strange behavior with apparent bewilderment. But unlike the inhabitants of Lilliput, who fought holy crusades over the question at which end to break the egg, the potato-washing monkeys do not go to war with the non-washers, because the poor creatures have no language which would enable them to declare washing a diving commandment and eating unwashed potatoes a deadly heresy.
Conceal a flaw, and the world will imagine the worst.
Conceal a flaw, and the world will imagine the worst.
Please accept my resignation. I don't want to belong to any club
that will accept me as a member.
Please accept my resignation. I don't want to belong to any club
that will accept me as a member.
Never soar aloft on an enemy's pinions.
Never soar aloft on an enemy's pinions.
In a closed society where everybody's guilty, the only crime is getting caught. In a world of thieves, the only read more
In a closed society where everybody's guilty, the only crime is getting caught. In a world of thieves, the only final sin is stupidity.
Civilized ages inherit the human nature which was victorious in barbarous ages, and that nature is, in many respects, not read more
Civilized ages inherit the human nature which was victorious in barbarous ages, and that nature is, in many respects, not at all suited to civilized circumstances.
Custom, that unwritten law, By which the people keep even kings in awe.
Custom, that unwritten law, By which the people keep even kings in awe.
The instinct of nearly all societies is to lock up anybody who is
truly free. First, society begins by read more
The instinct of nearly all societies is to lock up anybody who is
truly free. First, society begins by trying to beat you up. If
this fails, they try to poison you. If this fails too, the
finish by loading honors on your head.
Civilization is unbearable, but it is less unbearable at the top.
Civilization is unbearable, but it is less unbearable at the top.