Matthew > Matthew's Quotes

“The moment you realize you are not present, you are present.”
― Eckhart Tolle, Practicing the Power of Now: Essential Teachings, Meditations, and Exercises from the Power of Now

“We cannot solve life's problems except by solving them.”
― M. Scott Peck, The Road Less Traveled: A New Psychology of Love, Traditional Values and Spiritual Growth

“I want to see my wife and children every day, I want to see my grass and blossoms and corn ... But above all, except the wife and children, I want to see my books.”
― John Adams

“... I tried to end our little duel. I called out pacifying words; I entreated; I finally surrendered. Still Clyde came, my pirate costume so great a success that it had apparently convinced him that we were back in the golden days of romantic old New Orleans when gentlemen decided matters of hot dog honor at twenty paces”
― John Kennedy Toole, A Confederacy of Dunces

“And liberty cannot be preserved without a general knowledge among the people who have a right from the frame of their nature to knowledge...”
― John Adams, The works of John Adams,: Second President of the United States

“Laws for the liberal education of youth, especially of the lower class of people, are so extremely wise and useful, that, to a humane and generous mind, no expense for this purpose would be thought extravagant.”
― John Adams

“When legislature is corrupted, the people are undone.”
― John Adams

“As in the past, the costs and risks of the coming phases of the industrial economy were to be socialized, with eventual profits privatized ...”
― Noam Chomsky, Failed States: The Abuse of Power and the Assault on Democracy

“The truth knocks on the door and you say, "Go away, I'm looking for the truth," and so it goes away. Puzzling.”
― Robert M. Pirsig, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: An Inquiry Into Values

“The freedom of birds is an insult to me.”
― Cormac McCarthy

“Every one suspects himself of at least one of the cardinal virtues, and this is mine: I am one of the few honest people that I have ever known.”
― F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby

“Without acquainting me with the language or the literature or the oral family histories which my ancestors had loved, they volunteered to make me ignorant and rootless as proof of their patriotism.”
― Kurt Vonnegut

“The horse jumped over the fucking fence.”
― Kurt Vonnegut

“The fact remains that I am stuck with the risk of being me. I am compelled, therefor, to spread the risk around a little, if I can.”
― Kurt Vonnegut

“If you want to kind of try what I do, take life seriously but none of the people in it.”
― Kurt Vonnegut

“When things go well for days on end, it is an hilarious accident.”
― Kurt Vonnegut, Letters

“Anyone you can fool isn't worth loving.”
― Alexander Maksik, You Deserve Nothing

“We identify arrogant ignorance by its willingness to work on too big a scale, and thus to put too much at risk.”
― Wendell Berry

“The earth is not our prisoner, our patient, our machine, or, indeed, our monster. It is our entire world. And the solution to global warming is not to fix the world, it is to fix ourselves.”
― Naomi Klein

“What conceivable reason could one have for seeking after righteousness in a world which so hated righteousness?”
― Sinclair Lewis, It Can't Happen Here

“What is this life if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.”
― W.H. Davies, Common Joys and Other Poems

“Hip-hop is a perfect mix between poetry and boxing.”
― Jay-Z, Decoded

“Electing a black man named Barack Obama President in the same country that elected George W. Bush - twice! - is as far-fetched as a hustler from Marcy performing at that President's inauguration. But it happened.”
― Jay-Z, Decoded

“We never forgive those we’ve wronged.”
― Ken Follett, Whiteout