◊ “The only freedom which deserves the name,

is that of pursuing our own good in our own way, lso long as we do not attempt to deprive others of theirs, or impede their efforts to obtain it.”

—John Stuart Mill

◊ “Those who remove our troubles,

dispel our doubts, and bestow peace are true teachers.  They perform a Godlike work.  Their opposites  (those who increase our doubts and difficulties) are harmful to us and should be avoided like poison.”

—Swami Sri Yukteswar

◊ “In proportion as anger comes,

sense departs.”

—Turkish Proverb

◊ “If you want to create change,

you have to do it wisely and carefully…you cannot burn all the bridges behind you.”

—Sherin Khanken, female (!) imam in Denmark

◊ ” By treating all people equally

you ignore what they objectively need or deserve.”

              —Source unknown

◊ “…the blind spot in Silicone Valley

is the idea that technology isn’t responsible for anything…”

                —Tim Wu

◊ “In politics,

being deceived is no excuse.

                —Leszek Kolakowski

◊ ” ‘Community’

is a hell of a euphemism for a database.”

               —Wisecrack by unidentified person during Mark Zuckerberg’s testimony

◊ “It is well enough

that the people of the nation do not understand our banking and monetary system, for if they did, I believe there would be a revolution before tomorrow morning.”

                —Henry Ford

◊ “Seek not happiness too greedily,

and be not fearful of unhappiness.

               —Lao Tzu

◊ “The Constitution doesn’t guarantee happiness,

only the pursuit of it.  You have to catch up with it yourself.”

                —Benjamin Franklin

◊ “Only power

can check power.”

                —Montesquieu

◊ “The horizon

is not all there is; it’s just the present limit of our sight.”

                —Source unknown

 “One of the best arguments against a democratic form of government

is a five-minute conversation with the average voter.”

                 —Sir Winston Churchill

◊ “If there is righteousness in the heart

there will be beauty in the character.  If there is beauty in the character there will be harmony in the family home.  If there is harmony in the family home there will be order in the nation.  If there is order in the nation there will be peace in the world.”

                 —Chinese Proverb

◊ “We must love them both

those whose opinions we share and those whose opinions we reject, for both have labored in the search for truth, and both have helped us in finding it.”

                  —St. Thomas Aquinas

◊ “History doesn’t repeat itself

but it often rhymes.”

                  —Mark Twain

◊ “Self-confidence…

is both father and mother of courage.”

                  —Source unknown

◊ “The best way…

to get something done is to begin.”

                  —Source unknown

◊ “Anyone…

who has made no mistakes hasn’t made anything.”

                  —Source unknown

◊ “It is only when the rich are sick…

that they fully feel the impotence of wealth.”

                   —Benjamin Franklin

◊ Really?

The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing.

                   —Seen on a T shirt in Hawaii

◊ “It Is Difficult…

to get a man to understand something when his salary depends on his not understanding it.”

                   —Upton Sinclair

◊ Smoke & Mirrors

“The more we indulge in selfishness, the more we conceal our true nature.”

                   —Source unknown

◊ “Poverty…

is the mother of crime.”

                  —Marcus Aurelius, 2nd century AD Roman emperor

◊ “Justice…

is the constant and perpetual will to render to others what is due to them.”

                   —Justinian, 6th century AD Byzantine emperor

◊ Deception

“You can fool some of the people all the time, and all of the people some of the time.  But you can’t fool all of the people all of the time.”

                   —Abraham Lincoln

“Keep digging!  Somebody somewhere knows the truth!”

                    — Big Sign On A Newsroom Wall

◊ Material Success

“When the game ends the king and the pawn go back in the same box.”

              —  Central American Proverb

◊”Contentment

is as good a goal as any.”

                —Source unknown

◊ Bravery – Two definitions

Aggressive self-assertion.

Absolute self-control.

◊ Moderation

“Do all things in moderation—including moderation.”

                    —A  Buddhist monk at an interfaith conference

◊ Faith & Imagination

“Imagination and faith can cause and remove diseases. Confidence in the virtue of amulets is the whole secret of their efficacy.  It is from faith that imagination draws its power.  Anyone who believes in the secret resources of Nature receives from Nature according to his own faith;  let the object of your faith be real or imaginary, you will in equal degree obtain the same results.”

                     —Paracelsus

◊ Five Sources of Wisdom

In nature.      In silence and solitude.     From the wise.     In ourselves.     From reflecting on the nature of life and death.

                  —Numerous Religious Traditions Throughout All History

◊ Connections

“All are but part of one stupendous whole.  Whose body nature is and God the soul.”

                  —Alexander Pope