WIST Quotations

Colton, Charles Caleb -- Lacon: Or, Many Things in Few Words, Vol. 1, § 372 (1820)

Dave — Fri, 12 Sep 2025 16:04:13 +0000

If the weakness of the head were an admissible excuse for the malevolence of the heart, the one-half of mankind would be occupied in aggression, and the other half in forgiveness; but the interests of society peremptorily demand that things should not be so; for a fool is often as dangerous to deal with as a knave, and always more incorrigible.

Charles Caleb "C. C." Colton (1780–1832) English cleric, writer, aphorist
Lacon: Or, Many Things in Few Words, Vol. 1, § 372 (1820)
(Source)

For more about evil vs. stupidity, see also Camus (1947), Catton (1953), and Hanlon (1980).

Hoffer, Eric -- Passionate State of Mind, Aphorism 137 (1955)

Dave — Thu, 04 Sep 2025 17:05:14 +0000

A valid index by which to evaluate the influence other people have on us is by how much they increase or diminish our benevolence toward our fellow men.

Eric Hoffer (1902–1983) American writer, philosopher, longshoreman
Passionate State of Mind, Aphorism 137 (1955)
(Source)

Catton, Bruce -- A Stillness at Appomattox (1953)

Dave — Thu, 13 Jan 2022 16:06:58 +0000

A certain combination of incompetence and indifference can cause almost as much suffering as the most acute malevolence.

Bruce Catton (1899–1978) American historian and journalist
A Stillness at Appomattox (1953)
(Source)

Regarding prison camps during the US Civil War.

Adams, Douglas -- Last Chance to See, ch. 2 (1990) [with Mark Carwardine]

Dave — Mon, 13 Jul 2015 13:28:19 +0000

The villagers sold us some [coconuts] and split them open for us. They are almost perfectly designed. You first make a hole and drink the milk, and then you split open the nut with a machete and slice off a segment of the shell, which forms a perfect implement for scooping out the coconut flesh inside. What makes you wonder about the nature of this god character is that he creates something that is so perfectly designed to be of benefit to human beings and then hangs it twenty feet above their heads on a tree with no branches.

Douglas Adams (1952–2001) English author, humorist, screenwriter
Last Chance to See, ch. 2 (1990) [with Mark Carwardine]
(Source)

The source BBC Radio documentary (1989-11-01) can no longer be played at the BBC site.

Adams reading the 1992 audiobook can be heard here.