WIST Quotations

Chesterfield (Lord) -- Letter to his son, #167 (29 Oct 1748)

Dave — Thu, 04 Mar 2021 18:29:41 +0000

Remember, that the wit, humor, and jokes of most mixed companies are local. They thrive in that particular soil, but will not often bear transplanting. Every company is differently circumstanced, has its particular cant, and jargon; which may give occasion to wit and mirth, within that circle, but would seem flat and insipid in any other, and therefore will not bear repeating.

Lord Chesterfield (1694-1773) English statesman, wit [Philip Dormer Stanhope]
Letter to his son, #167 (29 Oct 1748)
(Source)

Conant, James -- “Our Fighting Faith, Our Unique Heritage,” address, Harvard (20 Jun 1942)

Dave — Wed, 08 Jul 2015 13:30:49 +0000

Liberty, like charity, must begin at home.

James Bryant Conant (1893-1978) American chemist, academic, diplomat
“Our Fighting Faith, Our Unique Heritage,” address, Harvard (20 Jun 1942)

Roosevelt, Eleanor -- Speech, United Nations (27 Mar 1958)

Dave — Wed, 29 Apr 2015 11:52:03 +0000

Where after all do universal human rights begin? In small places, closes to home — so close and so small that they cannot be seen on any map of the world. Yet they are the world of the individual person: The neighborhood he lives in; the school or college he attends; the factory, farm or office where he works. Such are the places where every man, woman, and child seeks equal justice, equal opportunity, equal dignity without discrimination. Unless these rights have meaning there, they have little meaning anywhere. Without concerted citizen action to uphold them close to home, we shall look in vain for progress in the larger world.

Eleanor Roosevelt (1884–1962) First Lady of the US (1933–1945), politician, diplomat, activist
Speech, United Nations (27 Mar 1958)