Civilization exists by geological consent, subject to change without notice.

History is mostly guessing; the rest is prejudice.

When liberty destroys order the hunger for order will destroy liberty.

To his alert mind and ears, every experience was education.

Woe to him who teaches men faster than they can learn.

As to harmonizing the theory of evolution with the Biblical account of creation, I do not believe it can be done, and I do not see why it should be. The story of Genesis is beautiful, and profoundly significant as symbolism: there is no good reason to torture it into conformity with modern theory.

I came to think of myself, not as a dance and chaos of molecules, but as a brief and minute portion of that majestic process.

Tired mothers find that spanking takes less time than reasoning and penetrates sooner to the seat of the memory.

When those who must do the fighting have the right to decide between war and peace, history will no longer be written in blood.

If we have never been amazed by the very fact that we exist, we are squandering the greatest fact of all.

If you do not want to commit suicide always have something to do. -Voltaire.

Every science begins as philosophy and ends as art.

Inquiry is fatal to certainty.

Nobody loves a policeman until he needs one.

Civilization is not inherited; it has to be learned and earned by each generation anew.

In the last analysis civilization is based upon the food supply.

The most interesting thing in the world is another human being who wonders, suffers and raises the questions that have bothered him to the last day of his life, knowing he will never get the answers.

Forget mistakes. Forget failure. Forget everything except what you're going to do now and do it. Today is your lucky day.

The love we have in our youth is superficial compared to the love that an old man has for his old wife.

He does not admire the merely contemplative life; like Goethe he scorns knowledge that does not lead to action: men ought to know that in the theatre of human life it is only for Gods and angels to be spectators.