Politeness is the slow poison of collaboration.
—Edwin H. Land (American Inventor)
An enlightened person raises the level of the consciousness of the entire community.
—Phyllis Theroux (American Journalist, Author)
Costs do not exist to be calculated. Costs exist to be reduced.
—Taiichi Ohno (Japanese Manufacturing Engineer)
The key to the behavior of subjects lies not in pent-up anger or aggression, but in the nature of their relationship to authority. They have given themselves to the authority; they see themselves as instruments for the execution of his wishes; once so defined, they are unable to break free.
—Stanley Milgram (American Psychologist)
There is no one envious enough to harm another that is not first a torment to himself.
—Augustine of Hippo (Roman-African Christian Philosopher)
Labor to keep alive that little spark of celestial fire, called conscience.
—George Washington (American Head of State)
I have always been delighted at the prospect of a new day, a fresh try, one more start, with perhaps a bit of magic waiting somewhere behind the morning.
—J. B. Priestley (British Novelist, Playwright, Essayist)
Jealousy is not at all low, but it catches us humbled and bowed down, at first sight. For it is the only suffering that we endure without ever becoming used to it.
—Colette (French Novelist, Performer)
Hard to put things right. You don’t often get that chance. Sometimes all you can do is not get caught.
—Donna Tartt (American Novelist)
Stealing isn’t so easy, often it’s hard work, otherwise we’d all be doing it.
—Elfriede Jelinek (Austrian Author)
Rashness is the faithful but unhappy parent of misfortune.
—Thomas Fuller (English Cleric, Historian)
You should look into a mirror: if you look fine, do fine things; if you look ugly, correct by nobility the defect of your nature.
—Bias of Priene (Greek Orator)
When you visualized a man or woman carefully, you could always begin to feel pity—that was a quality God’s image carried with it. When you saw the lines at the corners of the eyes, the shape of the mouth, how the hair grew, it was impossible to hate. Hate was just a failure of imagination.
—Graham Greene (British Novelist)