I am not anti-gun. I’m pro-knife. Consider the merits of the knife. In the first place, you have to catch up with someone in order to stab him. A general substitution of knives for guns would promote physical fitness. We’d turn into a whole nation of great runners. Plus, knives don’t ricochet. And people are seldom killed while cleaning their knives.
Molly Ivins (1944-2007) American writer, political columnist [Mary Tyler Ivins]
“Get a Knife, Get a Dog, but Get Rid of Guns,” Fort Worth Star-Telegram (9 Mar 1993)
(Source)
Quotations about:
knife
Note not all quotations have been tagged, so Search may find additional quotes on this topic.
Oh the shark has pretty teeth, dear,
And he shows them pearly white.
Just a jack-knife has MacHeath, dea,r
And he keeps it out of sight.[Und der Haifisch, der had Zähne
Und die trägt er im Gesicht
Und MacHeath, der had ein Messer
Doch das Messer sieht man nicht.]Bertolt Brecht (1898-1956) German poet, playwright, director, dramaturgist
Die Dreigroschenoper [The Three-Penny Opera], Prologue, “The Ballad of Mackie the Knife” (1928)
English lyrics to "The Ballad of Mack the Knife" (Weill, Kurt / Berthold Brecht / Marc Blitzstein)
Alt: translation: "And the shark he has his teeth and / There they are for all to see / And MacHeath he has his knife but / No one knows where it may be."
A candor affected is a dagger concealed.
[ἐπιτήδευσις δὲ ἁπλότητος σκάλμη ἐστίν.]
Marcus Aurelius (AD 121-180) Roman emperor (161-180), Stoic philosopher
Meditations [To Himself; Τὰ εἰς ἑαυτόν], Book 11, ch. 15 (11.15) (AD 161-180) [tr. Staniforth (1964)]
(Source)
Depending on the source material, the weapon reference is either from a native Thracian (foreign) weapon (σκάλμη) -- thus translators who use "stiletto," etc. -- or a proverbial "crooked stick" (σκαμβή), referring to a Greek proverb "You can't make a crooked stick straight." See 1, 2, 3, 4 for more details.
(Source (Greek)). Alternate translations:But the affectation of simplicity is nowise laudable.
[tr. Casaubon (1634), 11.14]But on the other side, an Affectation of being Real, is an untoward pretence.
[tr. Collier (1701)]The ostentation of simplicity is like a dagger for insidious designs.
[tr. Hutcheson/Moor (1742)]In short, the affectation of simplicity is often a concealed dagger.
[tr. Graves (1792)]But the affectation of simplicity is like a crooked stick.
[tr. Long (1862)]An affectation of sincerity is a very dagger.
[tr. Collier/Zimmern (1887)]But the affectation of simpleness is a dagger in the sleeve.
[tr. Rendall (1898)]The ostentation of straightforwardness is the knife under the cloak.
[tr. Hutcheson/Chrystal (1902)]A calculated simplicity is a stiletto.
[tr. Haines (Loeb) (1916)]But the affectation of simplicity is like a razor.
[tr. Farquharson (1944)]But the mere pretence of simplicity is like an open blade.
[tr. Hard (1997 ed.), (2011 ed.)]But false straightforwardness is like a knife in the back.
[tr. Hays (2003)]Calculated honesty is a stiletto.
[tr. Hammond (2006)]A contrived simplicity is like a dagger.
[tr. Needleman/Piazza (2008)]
