Pacifist Quotes

“Wise men are not pacifists; they are merely less likely to jump up and retaliate against their antagonizers. They know that needless antagonizers are virtually already insecure enough.”
― Criss Jami, Killosophy

“In the Second World War he took no public part, having escaped to a neutral country just before its outbreak. In private conversation he was wont to say that homicidal lunatics were well employed in killing each other, but that sensible men would keep out of their way while they were doing it. Fortunately this outlook, which is reminiscent of Bentham, has become rare in this age, which recognizes that heroism has a value independent of its utility. The Last Survivor of a Dead Epoch”
― Bertrand Russell

“One way or another, we all fight for what we believe in. Doesn't that give us some common ground?”
― Tom Clancy, 'The Cardinal Of The Kremlin'

“The autocorrect on my phone must be a pacifist. Every time I type ''going to war'', it changes it to ''going to eat.'' Either that or it's getting kickbacks from the local restaurants.”
― Stewart Stafford

“War is the currency of political power.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Iftar-e Insaniyat: The First Supper

“During the antiglobalization years at the turn of twenty-first century, I frequently found myself in baffling arguments about the use of "violence" in demonstrations with pacifists or others who self-described as adhering to a strict code of nonviolence. Many of the same folks who argued that we shouldn't do anything that could hurt someone else's property consistently yelled at their companions until they felt threatened, and engaged in intensely damaging emotional manipulations and passive-aggressive maneuvers in meetings and during demonstrations. Countless times, I saw "nonviolent" demonstrators physically hurt other protestors by attempting to drag them out of the streets for spray painting a wall or breaking a window.

Why do people feel justified in trying to pacify others--often with little context for one another? Such vehement attempts to try to contain other's rage and rebellion leads to an unnecessary escalation of conflict between those of us who should be able to struggle together instead of against one another. (Original Zine: Ain't no PC Gonna Fix it, Baby. 2013.
Featured in: A Critique of Ally Politics. Taking Sides.)”
― M.

“Being pacifist is being lethal to oneself, the only history that remains unchanged”
― P.S. Jagadeesh Kumar

“Thee knows. . .dying's only half of it. Any of us hear, I hope. . .is ready to die for what he believes. If it's asked of us and can be turned to good account. I'm not one for dying, willy-nilly, thee understands. . . .It's an awful final thing, and more often and not nobody's much discommoded by it, except thyself, but there are times when it's the only answer a man can give to certain questions. Then I'm for it. But thee's not been asked such a question, now. Thee can go out on the pike. . .and thee'll be . . .as dead and just as forgotten as if thee'd tied a stone round they neck and jumped off Clifty Falls. No, Josh, dying won't turn the trick. What thee'll be asked to do now - is kill.'

The word hung in the air. A fly circled the table, loudly and slowly, and still the sound of the word was there. . . .louder than the ugly humming. It hung in the air like an open wound. Kill. In the Quaker household the word was bare and stark. Bare as in Cain and Abel's time with none of the panoply of wars and regiments and campaigns to clothe it. Kill. Kill a man. Kill thy brother. . . .”
― Jessamyn West, The Friendly Persuasion

“For his enemies' sake, the good boy, the really dangerous man, fights to never fight again; whereas the bad boy, the proud man, fights that he might never fight again.”
― Criss Jami

“The Key to Peace: Stop blaming each other. Do better next time.”
― Signe Knutson, Lovolution 23: Poems and Songs

“War is the symptom,
patriotism is the disease.
Terrorists harbor patriotism,
Reformists harbor peace.”
― Abhijit Naskar, World War Human: 100 New Earthling Sonnets

“You know what distinguishes a reformist from a terrorist! The capacity to destroy the world, yet choosing not to.”
― Abhijit Naskar, World War Human: 100 New Earthling Sonnets

“Nationalism manufactures more widows and orphans than disease and disaster.”
― Abhijit Naskar, World War Human: 100 New Earthling Sonnets

“Cannot end cruelty with cruelty.”
― Abhijit Naskar, World War Human: 100 New Earthling Sonnets

“Nationalists mark borders by raising guns,
like dogs mark their territory by raising legs.
Monkeys seek refuge in archaic sovereignty,
Human am I, my refuge is the human race.”
― Abhijit Naskar, World War Human: 100 New Earthling Sonnets

“Soldiers are just government approved terrorists.”
― Abhijit Naskar, World War Human: 100 New Earthling Sonnets

“A bigot dying at a human's hand is far worse than a human dying at a bigot's hand.”
― Abhijit Naskar, World War Human: 100 New Earthling Sonnets

“Assassinating a bigot is easy,
Ending bigotry is the real objective.
Kill one chimp, ten more will take his place.
Render 'em irrelevant, 'n they're walking invalid.”
― Abhijit Naskar, World War Human: 100 New Earthling Sonnets

“Give me a pen, I'll give you peace (Sonnet)

One pen can defeat a thousand guns,
that's why books get banned, not guns.
There's nothing more dangerous than
books that radicalize you against war.

When you take away fear from the citizens,
you take away their initiative for war.
And when citizens no longer conform to war,
that's the biggest threat to political power.

You cannot ask citizens to pay for the bombs,
if they believe more in peace than paranoia.
Stupid taxpayers are the biggest sponsors of war,
patriotism is genocide, military is massacre.

I have zero tolerance for any civilian, politician
or scholar who takes pride in the military -
go back to the jungle, because that's where you
belong, with the rest of your animal society.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Azad Earth Army: When The World Cries Blood

“Patriotism is genocide, military is massacre.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Azad Earth Army: When The World Cries Blood

“Give me a pen, I'll give you peace. One pen can defeat a thousand guns, that's why books get banned, not guns.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Azad Earth Army: When The World Cries Blood

“Then came the summer of 1914, and suddenly everything looked different, inwardly and outwardly. It became evident that our former well-being had rested on insecure foundations, and accordingly there now began a period of misery, the great education. The so-called time of testing had come, and I cannot say that it found me better prepared, worthier, or superior to anyone else. What distinguished me from others at that time was only that I lacked the great compensation so many others possessed: enthusiasm.”
― Hermann Hesse, Autobiographical Writings

“I ignore it, Charlie. I'm a pacifist." He musters a slight shrug.
"Yeah? Cool. I'm not." Without much concern for my own well-being, I stride up to Gavin Davis, grip him from behind, and slam his broad back against the nearest locker, holding him there with my forearm across his beefy neck.”
― Carli J. Corson, It's a Love/Skate Relationship

“In the opera of war, peace is fugitive.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Iftar-e Insaniyat: The First Supper

“Military is not social service, military is the antithesis of society and service.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Iftar-e Insaniyat: The First Supper

“Military is the ultimate failure of education.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Iftar-e Insaniyat: The First Supper

“Ceasefire only postpones war, demilitarization plants peace.”
― Abhijit Naskar, World War Human: 100 New Earthling Sonnets

“Holocaust for holocaust leaves humanity in plaster cast.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Kral Fakir: When Calls The Kainat

“Ethnic cleansing doesn’t cure ethnic cleansing,”
― Abhijit Naskar, Kral Fakir: When Calls The Kainat

“In English we say:
if you want peace, prepare for war.
In Naskarian we say:
if you want peace, prepare for education.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Kral Fakir: When Calls The Kainat