"Public opinion reigns in society because stupidity reigns amongst the stupid."

Nicolas Chamfort Politics See all quotes by Nicolas Chamfort →

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“A man begins every stage of his life as a novice.”

“I asked M.—why he'd turned down the offer of a particular post. “I didn't want a post where the office is more important than the holder of it,” he replied.”

“Someone was talking about the respect we owe the public. “Yes,” said M...., “It's a question of prudence. Nobody has a high opinion of fishwives but who would dare offend them while walking through the fish market.”

“Every day I add to the list of things I refuse to discuss. The wiser the man, the longer the list.”

“In the world you have three sorts of friends: your friends who love you, your friends who do not care about you and your friends who hate you.”

“Anyone placed at exactly the same distance between yourself and your enemy will always appear closer to your enemy.”

Resonant Thoughts

"So the gay community said, "He's comparing gay sex to incest and polygamy, how dare he do this," and they have gone out on a, I would argue, jihad against Rick Santorum since then."

— Rick Santorum

Politics1958

#society

"To a gentleman, who, at the close of a fierce dispute with Porson, exclaimed, "My opinion of you is most contemptible, Sir"; he retorted, "I never knew an opinion of yours that was not contemptible."

— Richard Porson

Literature1759–1808

#humor

"I don't like the nonsense that passes for rational discourse so often in our society. I am very much bothered by the inaccuracies, ambiguities, code words, slogans, catch phrases, public relation devi…"

— Serge Lang

Mathematics1927–2005

#Human Nature

"The real alternative to co-EXistence is co-REsistance. Experts in the field have been saying for years that Communism does not have to be tolerated. It has no moral, economic or political excuse for e…"

— W. Cleon Skousen

Literature1913–2006

#peace