Mark Twain

In religion and politics people’s beliefs and convictions are in almost every case gotten at second-hand, and without examination, from authorities who have not themselves examined the questions at issue but have taken them at second-hand from other non-examiners, whose opinions about them were not worth a brass farthing.

If man could be crossed with the cat, it would improve man but deteriorate the cat.

You believe in a book that has talking animals, wizards, witches, demons, sticks turning into snakes, burning bushes, food falling from the sky, people walking on water, and all sorts of magical, absurd and primitive stories, and you say that we are the ones that need help?

All you need to be a success is ignorance and self confidence.

The radical of one century is the conservative of the next. The radical invents the views. When he has worn them out, the conservative adopts them.

A round man cannot be expected to fit in a square hole right away. He must have time to modify his shape.

Know people for who they are rather than for what they are.

The best way is always the simplest. The attics of the world are cluttered up with complicated failures.

If two men agree on everything, you may be sure that one of them is doing the thinking.

To do more for the world than the world does for you – that is success.

I just want people to take a step back, take a deep breath and actually look at something with a different perspective. But most people will never do that.

Getting over a painful experience is much like crossing monkey bars. You have to let go at some point in order to move forward.

Time is what we want most, but what we use worst.

We are each a figment of our own imagination.

I think every parent, every generation has wanted their children to do better and have a higher standard of living. But I think there’s too much guilt.

I’m beginning to understand myself. But it would have been great to be able to understand myself when I was 20 rather than when I was 82.

People who consistently win have a clear and thoughtful strategy. They know what they need to do and when they need to do it. They write it down so they stay on course, and avoid any alternative that does not get them closer to the finish line.

A lot of people always question, ‘What else can she do, what else can she do?’ And I’m going to show you

No matter what side of the argument you are on, you always find people on your side that you wish were on the other.

The smart way to keep people passive and obedient is to strictly limit the spectrum of acceptable opinion, but allow very lively debate within that spectrum.

The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man.