WIST

I had hoped that the white moderate would understand that law and order exist for the purpose of establishing justice and that when they fail in this purpose they become the dangerously structured dams that block the flow of social progress. I had hoped that the white moderate would understand that the present tension in the South is a necessary phase of the transition from an obnoxious negative peace, in which the Negro passively accepted his unjust plight, to a substantive and positive peace, in which all men will respect the dignity and worth of human personality.

Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. (1929-1968) American clergyman and reformer
Letter from the Birmingham Jail (16 Apr 1963)

Full text.

Good character is not formed in a week or a month. It is created little by little, day by day. Protracted and patient effort is needed to develop good character.

Heraclitus (c.540-c.480 BC) Greek philosopher [also Heracleitus]
(Attributed)

A wife lasts only for the length of the marriage, but an ex-wife is there for the rest of your life.

Woody Allen (b. 1935) American comedian, writer, director [b. Allan Steward Konigsberg]
(Attributed)

I guess this is why I hate governments. It is always the rule, the fine print, carried out by the fine print men. There’s nothing to fight, no wall to hammer with frustrated fists.

John Steinbeck (1902-1968) American writer
Travels With Charley: In Search of America, Part 2 (1962)

My expectations were reduced to zero when I was 21. Everything since then has been a bonus.

Stephen Hawking (b. 1942) English physicist, author
“The Science of Second-Guessing”, interview by Deborah Solomon, New York Times (12 Dec 2004)