WIST Quotations

Roosevelt, Franklin Delano -- Message (1945-01-06) to Congress, Annual Message (State of the Union)

Dave — Wed, 22 Apr 2026 18:31:06 +0000

In the future world the misuse of power, as implied in the term “power politics,” must not be a controlling factor in international relations. That is the heart of the principles to which we have subscribed. We cannot deny that power is a factor in world politics any more than we can deny its existence as a factor in national politics. But in a democratic world, as in a democratic Nation, power must be linked with responsibility, and obliged to defend and justify itself within the framework of the general good.

Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1882–1945) American lawyer, politician, statesman, US President (1933–1945)
Message (1945-01-06) to Congress, Annual Message (State of the Union)
(Source)

Colton, Charles Caleb -- Lacon: Or, Many Things in Few Words, Vol. 1, § 411 (1820)

Dave — Fri, 27 Feb 2026 22:13:40 +0000

Of governments, that of the mob is the most sanguinary, that of soldiers the most expensive, and that of civilians the most vexatious.

Charles Caleb "C. C." Colton (1780-1832) English cleric, writer, aphorist
Lacon: Or, Many Things in Few Words, Vol. 1, § 411 (1820)
(Source)

Orwell, George -- Essay (1941-02-19), “The Lion and the Unicorn: Socialism and the English Genius,” Part 1 “England Your England,” sec. 2, The Searchlight Books [ed. Fyvel and Orwell]

Dave — Fri, 23 Jan 2026 16:21:54 +0000

Why is the goose-step not used in England? There are, heaven knows, plenty of army officers who would be only too glad to introduce some such thing. It is not used because the people in the street would laugh. Beyond a certain point, military display is only possible in countries where the common people dare not laugh at the army.

George Orwell (1903-1950) English journalist, essayist, writer [pseud. of Eric Arthur Blair]
Essay (1941-02-19), “The Lion and the Unicorn: Socialism and the English Genius,” Part 1 “England Your England,” sec. 2, The Searchlight Books [ed. Fyvel and Orwell]
(Source)

Part of Part 1, "England Your England" with the title "The Ruling Class" was previously published in Horizon (1940-12).

Orwell, George -- Essay (1941-02-19), “The Lion and the Unicorn: Socialism and the English Genius,” Part 1 “England Your England,” sec. 1, The Searchlight Books [ed. Fyvel and Orwell]

Dave — Fri, 09 Jan 2026 16:15:07 +0000

As I write, highly civilised human beings are flying overhead, trying to kill me.
They do not feel any enmity against me as an individual, nor I against them. They are “only doing their duty”, as the saying goes. Most of them, I have no doubt, are kind-hearted law-abiding men who would never dream of committing murder in private life. On the other hand, if one of them succeeds in blowing me to pieces with a well-placed bomb, he will never sleep any the worse for it. He is serving his country, which has the power to absolve him from evil.

George Orwell (1903-1950) English journalist, essayist, writer [pseud. of Eric Arthur Blair]
Essay (1941-02-19), “The Lion and the Unicorn: Socialism and the English Genius,” Part 1 “England Your England,” sec. 1, The Searchlight Books [ed. Fyvel and Orwell]
(Source)

Part of Part 1, "England Your England" with the title "The Ruling Class" was previously published in Horizon (1940-12).

Sevigne, Mme. -- Letter (1673-12-22) to Mme. de Grignan [ed. Hoyt and Ward (1896), No. 202]

Dave — Tue, 23 Dec 2025 01:09:18 +0000

Fortune is always on the side of the largest battalions.

[La fortune est toujours pour les gros bataillons]

Marie de Rabutin-Chantal, Marquise de Sévigné (1626-1696) French aristocrat, woman of letters [Madame de Sévigné, Mme de Sévigné]
Letter (1673-12-22) to Mme. de Grignan [ed. Hoyt and Ward (1896), No. 202]
(Source)

(Source (French), No. 118). Other translations:

Fortune generally declares in favor of numerous battalions.
[Source (1811), No. 274]

Providence is always on the side of the big battalions.
[Oxford Dict. of Proverbs]

Also attributed to her cousin Roger de Bussy-Rabutin ("God is usually on the side of the big squadrons against the small").

The phrase had become proverbial by at least the early 19th C. Other variants include:

God sides with the big battalions.
God sides with whichever side has the biggest battalions.

Berry, Wendell -- Speech (1968-02-10), “A Statement Against the War in Vietnam,” Kentucky Conference on the War and the Draft, University of Kentucky

Dave — Mon, 13 Oct 2025 18:15:36 +0000

We have come to depend obsessively on an enormous capability of violence — for security, for national self-esteem, even for economic stability.

Wendell Berry (b. 1934) American farmer, educator, poet, conservationist
Speech (1968-02-10), “A Statement Against the War in Vietnam,” Kentucky Conference on the War and the Draft, University of Kentucky
(Source)

Collected in The Long-Legged House, Part 2 (1969).

James, William -- Essay (1910-02), “The Moral Equivalent of War,” Popular Science Monthly, Vol. 77 (1910-10)

Dave — Sat, 27 Sep 2025 20:03:49 +0000

“Peace” in military mouths today is a synonym for “war expected.” The word has become a pure provocative, and no government wishing peace sincerely should allow it ever to be printed in a newspaper. Every up-to-date dictionary should say that “peace” and “war” mean the same thing, now in posse, now in actu. It may even reasonably be said that the intensely sharp preparation for war by the nations is the real war, permanent, unceasing; and that the battles are only a sort of public verification of the mastery gained during the “peace”-interval.

William James (1842-1910) American psychologist and philosopher
Essay (1910-02), “The Moral Equivalent of War,” Popular Science Monthly, Vol. 77 (1910-10)
(Source)

Pratchett, Terry -- Discworld No. 29, Night Watch (2002)

Dave — Fri, 24 May 2024 17:33:42 +0000

When he was a boy, he’d read books about great military campaigns, and visited museums and had looked with patriotic pride at the paintings of famous cavalry charges, last stands, and glorious victories. It had come as rather a shock, when he later began to participate in some of these, to find that the painters had unaccountably left out the intestines. Perhaps they just weren’t very good at them.

Terry Pratchett (1948-2015) English author
Discworld No. 29, Night Watch (2002)
(Source)

Jacobs, Jane -- “No Virtue in Meek Conformity” (1952)

Dave — Tue, 16 Jan 2024 00:05:08 +0000

I do not think military readiness, in itself, will defeat Communism. I do not think we can consider the job finished with that. I think it buys us time to do the bigger job. We must demonstrate that it is possible to overcome poverty, misery and decay by democratic means, and that we must ourselves believe, and must show others, that our American tradition of the dignity and liberty of the individual is not a luxury for easy times but is the basic source of strength and security of a successful society.

Jane Jacobs (1916-2006) American-Canadian journalist, author, urban theorist, activist
“No Virtue in Meek Conformity” (1952)
(Source)

Foreword to her response to a State Department Loyalty Security Board interrogatory (1952-03-25). Reprinted in Vital Little Plans (2016).

Russell, Bertrand -- Interview by Woodrow Wyatt, BBC TV (1959)

Dave — Wed, 15 Nov 2023 19:35:54 +0000

In fact the state is primarily an organization for killing foreigners, that’s its main purpose. There are, of course, other things they do. They do a certain amount of educating, but, in the course of educating you, try very hard to make the young think it is a grand thing to kill foreigners.

Bertrand Russell (1872-1970) English mathematician and philosopher
Interview by Woodrow Wyatt, BBC TV (1959)

Collected in Bertrand Russell's BBC Interviews (1959) [UK] and Bertrand Russell Speaks His Mind (1960) [US].

Joubert, Joseph -- Pensées [Thoughts], 1806 [tr. Auster (1983)]

Dave — Tue, 18 Jul 2023 14:48:10 +0000

History. We want to find moral lessons in it, but its only lessons are of politics, military art, etc.

Joseph Joubert (1754-1824) French moralist, philosopher, essayist, poet
Pensées [Thoughts], 1806 [tr. Auster (1983)]
(Source)

I have been unable to find an analog in other translations, or in the original French.

Durant, William James -- The Lessons of History, ch. 10 (1968) [with Ariel Durant]

Dave — Tue, 01 Mar 2022 23:42:11 +0000

But if war continues to absorb and dominate it, or if the itch to rule the world requires large military establishment and appropriation, the freedom of democracy may one by one succumb to the discipline of arms and strife. If race or class war divides us into hostile camps, changing political argument into blind hate, one side or the other may overturn the hustings with the rule of the sword. If our economy of freedom fails to distribute wealth as ably as it has created it, the road to dictatorship will be open to any man who can persuasively promise security to all; and a martial government, under whatever charming phrases, will engulf the democratic world.

William James (Will) Durant (1885-1981) American historian, teacher, philosopher
The Lessons of History, ch. 10 (1968) [with Ariel Durant]
(Source)

Commager, Henry Steele -- Essay (1947-09), “Who Is Loyal to America?” sec. 3, Harper’s Magazine, Vol. 195, No. 1168

Dave — Wed, 05 Jan 2022 15:25:55 +0000

Who are those who are really disloyal? Those who inflame racial hatreds, who sow religious and class dissensions. Those who subvert the Constitution by violating the freedom of the ballot box. Those who make a mockery of majority rule by the use of the filibuster. Those who impair democracy by denying equal educational facilities. Those who frustrate justice by lynch law or by making a farce of jury trials. Those who deny freedom of speech and of the press and of assembly. Those who press for special favors against the interest of the commonwealth. Those who regard public office as a source of private gain. Those who would exalt the military over the civil. Those who for selfish and private purposes stir up national antagonisms and expose the world to the ruin of war.

Henry Steele Commager (1902-1998) American historian, writer, activist
Essay (1947-09), “Who Is Loyal to America?” sec. 3, Harper’s Magazine, Vol. 195, No. 1168
(Source)

Regarding disloyalty tests and loyalty oaths. Reprinted in Freedom, Loyalty, Dissent (1954).

Nightingale, Florence -- Letter to Lord Edward Geoffrey Stanley (17 May 1857)

Dave — Thu, 05 Aug 2021 16:36:10 +0000

I agree as to the doubtful value of competitive examination. The qualities which you really want, viz., self-control, self-reliance, habits of accurate thought, integrity and what you generally call trustworthiness, are not decided by competitive examination, which test little else than the memory.

Florence Nightingale (1820-1910) English social reformer, statistician, founder of modern nursing
Letter to Lord Edward Geoffrey Stanley (17 May 1857)
(Source)

Regarding selection processes for military officers. This was undergoing reform during the period, including the radical proposal to prevent people from buying their way into lower officer ranks.

Fussell, Paul -- “Chickenshit: An Anatomy,” Wartime: Understanding and Behavior in the Second World War (1989)

Dave — Thu, 05 Aug 2021 01:28:50 +0000

Chickenshit refers to behavior that makes military life worse than it need be: petty harassment of the weak by the strong; open scrimmage for power and authority and prestige; sadism thinly disguised as necessary discipline; a constant “paying off of old scores”; and insistence on the letter rather than the spirit of ordinances. Chickenshit is so called — instead of horse- or bull- or elephant-shit — because it is small-minded and ignoble and takes the trivial seriously. Chickenshit can be recognized instantly because it never has anything to do with winning the war.

Paul Fussell (1924-2012) American cultural and literary historian, author, academic
“Chickenshit: An Anatomy,” Wartime: Understanding and Behavior in the Second World War (1989)
(Source)

Sometimes misattributed to historian Stephen Ambrose, who used part of it (with attribution) in his Band of Brothers (1992).

Taylor, A. J. P. -- The First World War: A Illustrated History, ch. 1 (1963)

Dave — Mon, 26 Jul 2021 15:06:15 +0000

The great armies, accumulated to provide security and preserve the peace, carried the nations to war by their own weight.

A. J. P. Taylor (1906-1990) British historian, journalist, broadcaster [Alan John Percivale Taylor]
The First World War: A Illustrated History, ch. 1 (1963)
(Source)

Forester, C S -- Hornblower and the Hotspur (1962)

Dave — Wed, 14 Jul 2021 23:10:18 +0000

There was a price to be paid; the dominion of the seas was not given freely by destiny. The Channel Fleet paid in blood, in lives, as well as in the sacrifice of the freedom and leisure of every officer and man on board. There was a constant petty drain. Ordinary sickness took only small toll; among men in the prime of life isolated from the rest of the world illnesses were few, although it was noticeable that after the arrival of victualling ships from England epidemics of colds would sweep through the fleet, while rheumatism — the sailor’s disease — was always present. The losses were mainly due to other causes. There were men who, in a moment of carelessness or inattention, fell from the yard. There were the men who ruptured themselves, and they were many, for despite the ingenuity of blocks and tackles there were heavy weights to haul about by sheer manpower. There were crushed fingers and crushed feet when ponderous casks of salted provisions were lowered into boats from the storeships and hauled up on to the decks of the fighting ships. And frequently a lacerated limb would end — despite all the care of the surgeons — in gangrene, in amputation, and death. There were the careless men who, during target practice with the cannon, lost their arms by ramming a cartridge into an improperly sponged gun, or who did not remove themselves from the line of recoil. Three times that year there were men who died in quarrels, when boredom changed to hysteria and knives were drawn; and on each of those occasions another life was lost, a life for a life, a hanging with the other ships clustered round and the crews lining the sides to learn what happened when a man lost his temper. And once the crews manned the sides to see what happened when a wretched young seaman paid the price for a crime worse even than murder — for raising his fist to his superior officer. Incidents of that sort were inevitable as the ships beat back and forth monotonously, over the eternal grey inhospitable sea.

C. S. Forester (1899-1966) English novelist [Cecil Scott Forester, pen name for Cecil Louis Troughton Smith]
Hornblower and the Hotspur (1962)
(Source)

Filkins, Dexter -- “The Moral Logic of Humanitarian Intervention,” New Yorker (16 Sep 2019)

Dave — Fri, 02 Jul 2021 20:37:22 +0000

The moral case for intervention is only as strong as the practicality of the mission itself. There is no moral case for doing something you’re not capable of doing.

Dexter Filkins (b. 1961) American journalist
“The Moral Logic of Humanitarian Intervention,” New Yorker (16 Sep 2019)
(Source)

Biden, Joe -- Inaugural Address (20 Jan 2021)

Dave — Wed, 17 Mar 2021 19:13:54 +0000

We will lead not merely by the example of our power but by the power of our example.

Joe Biden (b. 1942) American politician, US President (2021- ) [Joseph Robinette Biden Jr.]
Inaugural Address (20 Jan 2021)
(Source)

Regarding American foreign relations.

Thoreau, Henry David -- Essay (1849-05), “Resistance to Civil Government [On the Duty of Civil Disobedience],” Æsthetic Papers, No. 1, Article 10

Dave — Tue, 16 Feb 2021 21:01:36 +0000

Law never made men a whit more just; and, by means of their respect for it, even the well-disposed are daily made the agents of injustice. A common and natural result of an undue respect for the law is, that you may see a file of soldiers, colonel, captain, corporal, privates, powder-monkeys and all, marching in admirable order over hill and dale to the wars, against their wills, aye, against their common sense and consciences, which makes it very steep marching indeed, and produces a palpitation of the heart. They have no doubt that it is a damnable business in which they are concerned; they are all peaceably inclined. Now, what are they? Men at all? or small movable forts and magazines, at the service of some unscrupulous man in power?

Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862) American philosopher and writer
Essay (1849-05), “Resistance to Civil Government [On the Duty of Civil Disobedience],” Æsthetic Papers, No. 1, Article 10
(Source)

Based on an 1848 lecture at the Concord Lyceum.

Cicero, Marcus Tullius -- De Officiis [On Duties; On Moral Duty; The Offices], Book 1, ch. 22 (1.22) / sec. 76 (44 BC) [tr. Miller (1913)]

Dave — Mon, 15 Feb 2021 15:10:17 +0000

For arms are of little value in the field unless there is wise counsel at home.

[Parvi enim sunt foris arma, nisi est consilium domi.]

Marcus Tullius Cicero (106-43 BC) Roman orator, statesman, philosopher
De Officiis [On Duties; On Moral Duty; The Offices], Book 1, ch. 22 (1.22) / sec. 76 (44 BC) [tr. Miller (1913)]
(Source)

Peabody comments, "A verse, quoted probably from some lost comedy, the measure being one employed by the comic poets." None of the other translators call this out or show the text as separate except Peabody.

(Source (Latin)). Alternate translations:

For armies can signify but little abroad, unless there be counsel and wise management at home.
[tr. Cockman (1699)]

Armies abroad avail little, unless there be wisdom at home.
[tr. McCartney (1798)]

An army abroad is but of small service unless there be a wise administration at home.
[tr. Edmonds (1865)]

Valor abroad is naught, unless at home be wisdom.
[tr. Peabody (1883)]

An army in the field is nothing without wisdom at home.
[tr. Gardiner (1899)]

For weapons have small value abroad unless there is good advice at home.
[tr. Edinger (1974)]

Homer -- The Iliad [Ἰλιάς], Book 15, l. 494ff (15.494) [Hector] (c. 750 BC) [tr. Fagles (1990), l. 574ff]

Dave — Wed, 27 Jan 2021 17:42:04 +0000

And that comrade
who meets his death and destiny, speared or stabbed,
let him die! He dies fighting for fatherland —
no dishonor there!

[ὃς δέ κεν ὑμέων
βλήμενος ἠὲ τυπεὶς θάνατον καὶ πότμον ἐπίσπῃ
τεθνάτω: οὔ οἱ ἀεικὲς ἀμυνομένῳ περὶ πάτρης
τεθνάμεν.]

Homer (fl. 7th-8th C. BC) Greek author
The Iliad [Ἰλιάς], Book 15, l. 494ff (15.494) [Hector] (c. 750 BC) [tr. Fagles (1990), l. 574ff]
(Source)

Original Greek. Alternate translations:

If any bravely buy
His fame or fate with wounds or death, in Jove’s name let him die.
Who for his country suffers death, sustains no shameful thing,
[tr. Chapman (1611), l. 452ff]

Death is the worst; a fate which all must try;
And for our country 'tis a bliss to die.
The gallant man, though slain in fight he be,
Yet leaves his nation safe, his children free;
Entails a debt on all the grateful state;
His own brave friends shall glory in his fate.
[tr. Pope (1715-20)]

Therefore stand fast, and whosoever gall’d
By arrow or by spear, dies -- let him die;
It shall not shame him that he died to serve
His country.
[tr. Cowper (1791), l. 599ff]

Whichever of you, wounded or stricken, shall draw on his death and fate, let him die; it is not inglorious to him to die fighting for his country.
[tr. Buckley (1860)]

And if there be among you, who this day
Shall meet his doom, by sword or arrow slain,
E’en let him die! a glorious death is his
Who for his country falls.
[tr. Derby (1864)]

If any of you is struck by spear or sword and loses his life, let him die; he dies with honour who dies fighting for his country.
[tr. Butler (1898)]

If so be any of you, smitten by dart or thrust, shall meet death and fate, let him lie in death. No unseemly thing is it for him to die while fighting for his country.
[tr. Murray (1924)]

And if one finds
his death, his end, in some spear-thrust or cast,
then that is that, and no ignoble death
for a man defending his own land.
[tr. Fitzgerald (1974)]

Hofstadter, Richard -- “The Paranoid Style in American Politics,” Herbert Spencer Lecture, Oxford (Nov 1963)

Dave — Wed, 06 Jan 2021 16:44:13 +0000

Any historian of warfare knows it is in good part a comedy of errors and a museum of incompetence; but if for every error and every act of incompetence one can substitute an act of treason, many points of fascinating interpretation are open to the paranoid imagination. In the end, the real mystery, for one who reads the primary works of paranoid scholarship, is not how the United States has been brought to its present dangerous position but how it has managed to survive at all.

Richard Hofstadter (1916-1970) American historian and intellectual
“The Paranoid Style in American Politics,” Herbert Spencer Lecture, Oxford (Nov 1963)
(Source)

Reprinted in Harpers (Nov 1964).

Pratchett, Terry -- Discworld No. 30, The Wee Free Men, ch. 5 (2003)

Dave — Fri, 07 Feb 2020 21:19:59 +0000

“We canna just rush in, ye ken.”
A big bearded Feegle raised his hand. “Point ‘o order, Big Man. Ye can just rush in. We always just rush in.”
“Aye, Big Yan, point well made. But ye gotta know where ye’re just gonna rush in. Ye cannae just rush in anywhere. It looks bad, havin’ to rush oout again straight awa’.”

Terry Pratchett (1948-2015) English author
Discworld No. 30, The Wee Free Men, ch. 5 (2003)
(Source)

Bailey, Philip James -- Festus, Sc. “A Metropolis – Public Place” [Lucifer] (1839)

Dave — Mon, 20 Nov 2017 17:34:37 +0000

Man is a military animal,
Glories in gunpowder, and loves parade;
Prefers them to all things.

Philip James Bailey (1816-1902) English poet, lawyer
Festus, Sc. “A Metropolis – Public Place” [Lucifer] (1839)
(Source)

Heinlein, Robert A. -- Revolt in 2100, ch. 10 (1953)

Dave — Sat, 26 Aug 2017 22:37:32 +0000

From the standpoint of a professional military man there is one good thing about revolutions: the opportunities for swift promotion are excellent . . . even if the pay is inclined to be irregular.

Robert A. Heinlein (1907-1988) American writer
Revolt in 2100, ch. 10 (1953)
(Source)

Key, Ellen -- War, Peace, and the Future, ch. 6 (1916) [tr. Norberg]

Dave — Tue, 18 Jul 2017 04:25:03 +0000

The worst barbarity of war is that it forces men collectively to commit acts against which individually they would revolt with their whole being.

Ellen Key (1849-1926) Swedish feminist and writer
War, Peace, and the Future, ch. 6 (1916) [tr. Norberg]
(Source)

Kipling, Rudyard -- “Gentlemen-Rankers,” (1892)

Dave — Mon, 12 Jun 2017 17:15:40 +0000

We’re poor little lambs who’ve lost our way,
Baa! Baa! Baa!
We’re little black sheep who’ve gone astray,
Baa-aa-aa!
Gentlemen rankers out on a spree,
Damned from here to Eternity.
God ha’ mercy on such as we,
Baa! Yah! Bah!

Rudyard Kipling (1865-1936) English writer
“Gentlemen-Rankers,” (1892)
(Source)

Bacon, Francis -- Essays or Counsels Civil and Moral, No. 29 “Of the True Greatness of Kingdoms and Estates” (1612)

Dave — Thu, 14 Jul 2016 18:50:01 +0000

Nay, number (itself) in armies importeth not much, where the people is of weak courage; for (as Virgil saith) It never troubles a wolf how many the sheep be.

Francis Bacon (1561-1626) English philosopher, scientist, author, statesman
Essays or Counsels Civil and Moral, No. 29 “Of the True Greatness of Kingdoms and Estates” (1612)
(Source)

The wolf reference is actually a common Latin proverb: "Non curat numerum lupus [The wolf doesn't care about the number]," or its longer form "Lupus non curat numerum ovium" [The wolf does not care about the number of sheep.].

Though Bacon explicitly notes the phrase in Virgil's Eclogues, the Latin saying is often attributed to Bacon.

Maher, Bill -- Politically Incorrect (17 Sep 2001)

Dave — Wed, 06 Jul 2016 21:15:22 +0000

We have been the cowards, lobbing cruise missiles from 2,000 miles away. That’s cowardly. Staying in the airplane when it hits the building, say what you want about it, that’s not cowardly. Stupid maybe, but not cowardly.

William "Bill" Maher (b. 1956) American comedian, political commentator, critic, television host.
Politically Incorrect (17 Sep 2001)

This controversy over this comment resulted in the series being cancelled.

Eisenhower, Dwight David -- Inaugural Address (20 Jan 1953)

Dave — Tue, 05 Apr 2016 18:57:32 +0000

Americans, indeed, all free men, remember that in the final choice a soldier’s pack is not so heavy a burden as a prisoner’s chains.

Dwight David Eisenhower (1890-1969) American general, US President (1953-61)
Inaugural Address (20 Jan 1953)

Eisenhower, Dwight David -- United War Fund appeal (11 Sep 1945)

Dave — Tue, 01 Mar 2016 14:42:05 +0000

War is a grim, cruel business, a business justified only as a means of sustaining the forces of good against those of evil.

Dwight David Eisenhower (1890-1969) American general, US President (1953-61)
United War Fund appeal (11 Sep 1945)
(Source)

De Weerd, H. A. -- “Strategic Surprise in the Korean War,” Orbis (1962)

Dave — Wed, 24 Feb 2016 14:41:48 +0000

It was not the absence of intelligence which led us into trouble but our unwillingness to draw unpleasant conclusions from it.

H. A. de Weerd (1902-1979) American military historian, author [Harvey Arthur de Weerd]
“Strategic Surprise in the Korean War,” Orbis (1962)

On the US decision in 1950 to call China's bluff by advancing above the 38th parallel.

Eisenhower, Dwight David -- Speech, Guildhall, London (12 Jun 1945)

Dave — Tue, 23 Feb 2016 16:15:13 +0000

Humility must always be the portion of any man who receives acclaim earned in blood of his followers and sacrifices of his friends.

Dwight David Eisenhower (1890-1969) American general, US President (1953-61)
Speech, Guildhall, London (12 Jun 1945)

Moore, Ronald D. -- Battlestar Galactica, 1×02 “Water” [Adama] (2004)

Dave — Tue, 08 Dec 2015 14:27:50 +0000

There is a reason you separate military and the police. One fights the enemies of the state, the other serves and protects the people. When the military becomes both, then the enemies of the state tend to become the people.

Ronald D. Moore (b. 1964) American screenwriter, television producer
Battlestar Galactica, 1×02 “Water” [Adama] (2004)

Tuchman, Barbara -- The Guns of August, ch. 2 (1962)

Dave — Tue, 21 Jul 2015 15:28:46 +0000

Dead battles, like dead generals, hold the military mind in their dead grip.

Barbara W. Tuchman (1912-1989) American historian and author
The Guns of August, ch. 2 (1962)

Eisenhower, Dwight David -- Commencement Address, US Naval Academy (4 Jun 1958)

Dave — Thu, 25 Jun 2015 16:44:59 +0000

But finally, there is one other quality I would mention among these that I believe will fit you for difficult and important posts. This is a healthy and lively sense of humor.

Dwight David Eisenhower (1890-1969) American general, US President (1953-61)
Commencement Address, US Naval Academy (4 Jun 1958)

Eisenhower, Dwight David -- Speech, Canadian Club, Ottawa (10 Jan 1946)

Dave — Mon, 16 Mar 2015 12:27:09 +0000

I hate war as only a soldier who has lived it can, only as one who has seen its brutality, its stupidity.

Dwight David Eisenhower (1890-1969) American general, US President (1953-61)
Speech, Canadian Club, Ottawa (10 Jan 1946)

Eisenhower, Dwight David -- “The Chance for Peace,” speech to American Society of Newspaper Editors, Washington (16 Apr 1953)

Dave — Thu, 05 Feb 2015 17:52:00 +0000

The way chosen by the United States was plainly marked by a few clear precepts, which govern its conduct in world affairs.

First: No people on earth can be held, as a people, to be enemy, for all humanity shares the common hunger for peace and fellowship and justice.

Second: No nation’s security and well-being can be lastingly achieved in isolation but only in effective cooperation with fellow-nations.

Third: Any nation’s right to form of government and an economic system of its own choosing is inalienable.

Fourth: Any nation’s attempt to dictate to other nations their form of government is indefensible.

And fifth: A nation’s hope of lasting peace cannot be firmly based upon any race in armaments but rather upon just relations and honest understanding with all other nations.

Dwight David Eisenhower (1890-1969) American general, US President (1953-61)
“The Chance for Peace,” speech to American Society of Newspaper Editors, Washington (16 Apr 1953)

Also known as the "Cross of Iron" speech.

Roosevelt, Eleanor -- Essay (1961-04), “What Has Happened to the American Dream?” Atlantic Monthly

Dave — Wed, 04 Feb 2015 14:35:45 +0000

The future will be determined by the young, and there is no more essential task today, it seems to me, than to bring before them once more, in all its brightness, in all its splendor and beauty, the American dream, lest we let it fade, too concerned with the ways of earning a living or impressing our neighbors or getting ahead or finding bigger and more potent ways of destroying the world and all that is in it.

Eleanor Roosevelt (1884–1962) First Lady of the US (1933–1945), politician, diplomat, activist
Essay (1961-04), “What Has Happened to the American Dream?” Atlantic Monthly
(Source)

(Source (Alternate))

Lee, Robert E. -- (Attributed)

Dave — Tue, 30 Sep 2014 13:08:51 +0000

It appears we have appointed our worst generals to command forces, and our most gifted and brilliant to edit newspapers! In fact, I discovered by reading newspapers that these editor/geniuses plainly saw all my strategic defects from the start, yet failed to inform me until it was too late. Accordingly, I’m readily willing to yield my command to these obviously superior intellects, and I’ll, in turn, do my best for the cause by writing editorials — after the fact.

Robert E. Lee (1807-1870) American military leader
(Attributed)

Variant: "We made a great mistake in the beginning of our struggle, and I fear, in spite of all we can do, it will prove to be a fatal mistake. We appointed all our worst generals to command our armies, and all our best generals to edit the newspapers."

Generally cited as an 1863 statement, there are a number of variants (dating to the 1870s) and no actual writing by Lee has been found. More information here.

Lee, Robert E. -- (Attributed)

Dave — Thu, 25 Sep 2014 12:49:48 +0000

I was too weak to defend, so I attacked.

Robert E. Lee (1807-1870) American military leader
(Attributed)

On his strategy at the Battle of Chancellorsville (1863).

Liddell Hart, B. H. -- Strategy, ch. 15 (1954)

Dave — Thu, 04 Sep 2014 10:44:04 +0000

A strategist should think in terms of paralyzing, not of killing. Even on the lower plane of warfare, a man killed is merely one man less, whereas a man unnerved is a highly infectious carrier of fear, capable of spreading an epidemic of panic. … The sword drops from a paralyzed hand.

B. H. Liddell Hart (1895-1970) English soldier, military historian (Basil Henry Liddell Hart)
Strategy, ch. 15 (1954)

Forrest, Nathan Bedford -- (Attributed)

Dave — Thu, 28 Aug 2014 13:00:46 +0000

I git thar fustest with the mostest.

Nathan Bedford Forrest (1821-1877) American / Confederate military leader
(Attributed)

Sometimes "corrected" as "I get there firstest with the mostest men," first found in print in a New York Tribune article about Civil War generals. The New York Times (28 May 1918) speculatively corrected this to "Ma'am, I get thar first with the most men." Elsewhere given as "I always make a rule to get there first with the most men."

Kennedy, John F. -- Speech, Amherst College (26 Oct 1963)

Dave — Mon, 12 May 2014 16:07:35 +0000

Our national strength matters, but the spirit which informs our strength matters just as much.

John F. Kennedy (1917-1963) American politician, author, journalist, US President (1961–63)
Speech, Amherst College (26 Oct 1963)

Schwarzkopf, Norman -- In New York Times (28 Jan 1991)

Dave — Wed, 30 Apr 2014 12:37:27 +0000

I don’t consider myself dovish and I certainly don’t consider myself hawkish. Maybe I would describe myself as owlish — that is, wise enough to understand that you want to do everything possible to avoid war.

Norman Schwarzkopf (1934-2012) American military leader
In New York Times (28 Jan 1991)

King, Martin Luther -- Strength to Love, ch. 7 “The Man Who Was a Fool,” sec. 3 (1963)

Dave — Fri, 25 Apr 2014 14:08:09 +0000

The means by which we live have outdistanced the ends for which we live. Our scientific power has outrun our spiritual power. We have guided missiles and misguided men.

Martin Luther King, Jr. (1929-1968) American clergyman, civil rights leader, social activist, preacher
Strength to Love, ch. 7 “The Man Who Was a Fool,” sec. 3 (1963)
(Source)

Rogers, Will -- Column (1933-05-16), “Daily Telegram”

Dave — Fri, 10 Jan 2014 15:09:30 +0000

If you want to know when a war is coming, you just watch the United States and see when they start cutting down on their defense. It’s the surest barometer in the world.

Will Rogers (1879-1935) American humorist
Column (1933-05-16), “Daily Telegram”
(Source)

Written while in Beverly Hills. Reprinted in his Autobiography, Donald Day ed. (1949), in a slightly different form:

If you want to know when a war is coming, just watch the U.S. and see when they start cutting down on their defense. It's the surest barometer in the world.

Another variant can be found in Bryan B. Sterling, ed., The Best of Will Rogers (1990):

If you want to know when a war might be coming, you just watch the U.S. and see when it starts cutting down on its defenses. It's the surest barometer in the world.

Johnson, Samuel -- Comment (10 Apr 1778)

Dave — Fri, 22 Nov 2013 14:30:17 +0000

Every man thinks meanly of himself for not having been a soldier, or not having been at sea.

Samuel Johnson (1709-1784) English writer, lexicographer, critic
Comment (10 Apr 1778)

In James Boswell, The Life of Samuel Johnson (1791)

Sallust -- Bellum Catilinae [The War of Catiline; The Conspiracy of Catiline], ch. 1, sent. 5-7 [tr. Rolfe (1931)]

Dave — Wed, 07 Aug 2013 15:33:00 +0000

Yet for a long time mortal men have discussed the question whether success in arms depends more on strength of body or excellence of mind; for before you begin, deliberation is necessary, when you have deliberated, prompt action. Thus each of these, being incomplete of itself, requires the other’s aid.

[Sed diu magnum inter mortalis certamen fuit vine corporis an virtute animi res militaris magis procederet. Nam et prius quam incipias, consulto, et ubi consulueris, mature facto opus est. Ita utrumque per se indigens alterum alterius auxilio eget.]

Sallust (c. 86-35 BC) Roman historian and politician [Gaius Sallustius Crispus]
Bellum Catilinae [The War of Catiline; The Conspiracy of Catiline], ch. 1, sent. 5-7 [tr. Rolfe (1931)]
(Source)

Original Latin. Alt. trans.:

"But a just estimate of our mental and bodily faculties was not easily made. Which of them was most conducive to the success of military operations, was in former times a question much agitated, and long undecided. It is evident, however, that before the undertaking of a warlike enterprise, judgment is required to concert and plan the necessary measures; vigor in execution is equally necessary. The powers of man, in their separate functions feeble and ineffectual, demand each other's aid, and flourish by mutual assistance." [tr. Murphy (1807)]

"It has, however, been a great and long debate, whether success in war is most owing to bodily strength or mental abilities: for, as counsel is necessary before we enter on action, after measures are duly concerted, speedy execution is equally necessary; so that neither of these being sufficient singly, they prevail only by the assistance of each other." [tr. Rose (1831)]

"But there has been for a long time a great debate amongst mortals, whether the science of war advanced more by the strength of body or by the abilities of the mind. For both before you begin there is need of counsel; and when you have counselled, there is need of vigorous execution. So whilst both by themselves are defective, the one is strengthened by the assistance of the other." [Source (1841)]

"Yet it was long a subject of dispute among mankind, whether military efforts were more advanced by strength of body, or by force of intellect. For, in affairs of war, it is necessary to plan before beginning to act, and, after planning, to act with promptitude and vigor. Thus, each being insufficient of itself, the one requires the assistance of the other." [tr. Watson (1867)]

"Not it was long hotly contested among men whether military success was more advanced by mental ability or by bodily strength, for what we need is deliberation before we begin, and after deliberation, then well-timed action; either of itself is deficient and lacks the other's help." [tr. Pollard (1882)]

"Yet for a long time there was considerable dispute amongst mortals as to whether it was through the power of the body or the prowess of the mind that military affairs made greater progress. For, before you begin, deliberation is necessary, and, when you have deliberated, speedy action: hence each element, deficient on its own, requires the help of the other." [tr. Woodman (2007)]

James, William -- “The Moral Equivalent of War” (1906)

Dave — Wed, 07 Nov 2012 15:53:57 +0000

At the present day, civilized opinion is a curious mental mixture. The military instincts and ideals are as strong as ever, but they are confronted by reflective criticisms which sorely curb their ancient freedom. Innumerable writers are showing up the bestial side of military service. Pure loot and mastery seem no longer morally allowable motives, and pretexts must be found for attributing them solely to the enemy.

William James (1842-1910) American psychologist and philosopher
“The Moral Equivalent of War” (1906)
(Source)

King, Martin Luther -- “Beyond Vietnam,” speech, Clergy and Laity Concerned, Riverside Church, New York City (4 Apr 1967)

Dave — Fri, 27 Jul 2012 12:39:35 +0000

A nation that continues year after year to spend more on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual doom.

Martin Luther King, Jr. (1929-1968) American clergyman, civil rights leader, social activist, preacher
“Beyond Vietnam,” speech, Clergy and Laity Concerned, Riverside Church, New York City (4 Apr 1967)
(Source)

Reprinted (or the phrase repeated) in Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community? (1967) and The Trumpet of Conscience (1968). See also this.

Stevenson, Adlai -- Speech (1952-09-18), “The Atomic Future,” Bushnell Memorial Auditorium, Hartford, Connecticut

Dave — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 13:59:39 +0000

We must never delude ourselves into thinking that physical power is a substitute for moral power, which is the true sign of national greatness.

Adlai Stevenson II (1900–1965) American politician, diplomat, statesman
Speech (1952-09-18), “The Atomic Future,” Bushnell Memorial Auditorium, Hartford, Connecticut
(Source)

Dixon, Norman F. -- On the Psychology of Military Incompetence, Part 2, ch. 17 “Socialization and the Anal Character” (1976)

Dave — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 03:13:22 +0000

In other words, those very characteristics which are demanded by war — the ability to tolerate uncertainty, spontaneity of thought and action, having a mind open to the receipt of novel, and perhaps threatening, information — are the antitheses of those possessed by people attracted to the controls, and orderliness, of militarism. Here is the germ of a terrible paradox. Those very people who, because they have adopted attack rather than submission or flight as their preferred psychological defence against threat, are in theory the best suited to warring behaviour, may be the very ones least well equipped for other components of successful fighting.

Norman F. Dixon (1922-2013) British cognitive psychologist, author, military engineer
On the Psychology of Military Incompetence, Part 2, ch. 17 “Socialization and the Anal Character” (1976)
(Source)

Lynd, Robert Wilson -- Searchlights and Nightingales (1939)

Dave — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 13:00:50 +0000

The belief in the possibility of a short decisive war appears to be one of the most ancient and dangerous of human illusions.

Robert Wilson Lynd (1879–1949) Irish writer, literary essayist, journalist, nationalist (Robiard Ó Flionn; pseud. "Y. Y.")
Searchlights and Nightingales (1939)
(Source)

Montesquieu -- Considerations on the Causes of the Greatness of the Romans and Their Decline [Considérations sur les causes de la grandeur des Romains et de leur décadence], ch. 18 (1734, 1748 ed.) [tr. Baker (1882)]

Dave — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 17:25:27 +0000

An empire founded by arms needs to be sustained by arms.

[Un empire fondé par les armes a besoin de se soutenir par les armes.]

Charles-Lewis de Secondat, Baron de Montesquieu (1689-1755) French political philosopher
Considerations on the Causes of the Greatness of the Romans and Their Decline [Considérations sur les causes de la grandeur des Romains et de leur décadence], ch. 18 (1734, 1748 ed.) [tr. Baker (1882)]
(Source)

(Source (French)). Other translations:

An empire, founded by arms, must likewise have arms for its support.
[tr. B--- (1734)]

An Empire founded by Arms, must likewise have Arms for its Support.
[ed. Guterman (1963)]

An empire founded by war has to maintain itself by war.
[E.g. (1960)]

An empire founded by arms needs to be sustained by arms.
[tr. Lowenthal (1965)]

Stevenson, Adlai -- Speech (1952-08-27), “The Nature of Patriotism,” American Legion Convention, Madison Square Garden, New York City

Dave — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 12:34:25 +0000

Men who have offered their lives for their country know that patriotism is not the fear of something; it is the love of something. Patriotism with us is not the hatred of Russia; it is the love of this Republic and of the ideal of liberty of man and mind in which it was born, and to which this Republic is dedicated.

Adlai Stevenson II (1900–1965) American politician, diplomat, statesman
Speech (1952-08-27), “The Nature of Patriotism,” American Legion Convention, Madison Square Garden, New York City
(Source)

Kennedy, Robert F. -- Thirteen Days: A Memoir of the Cuban Missile Crisis, ch. 5 (1969)

Dave — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 13:17:10 +0000

The discussion, for the most part, was able and organized, although, like all meetings of this kind, certain statements were made as accepted truisms, which I, at least, thought were of questionable validity. One member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, for example, argued that we could use nuclear weapons, on basis that our adversaries would use theirs against us in an attack. I thought, as I listened, of the many times I had heard the military take positions which, if wrong, had the advantage that no one would be around at the end to know.

Robert Francis Kennedy (1925-1968) American politician
Thirteen Days: A Memoir of the Cuban Missile Crisis, ch. 5 (1969)
(Source)

Originally printed in "Thirteen Days: The Story about How the World Almost Ended," McCall's (Nov 1968)

Lincoln, Abraham -- Letter (1863-01-26) to Gen. Joseph Hooker

Dave — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 10:58:15 +0000

I have heard, in such a way as to believe it, of your recently saying that both the Army and the Government needed a Dictator. Of course it was not for this, but spite of it, that I have given you the command. Only those generals who gain successes, can set up dictators. What I now ask of you is military success, and I will risk the dictatorship.

Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865) American lawyer, politician, US President (1861–65)
Letter (1863-01-26) to Gen. Joseph Hooker
(Source)

Rickover, Hyman -- Speech (1954-03-16), “Administering a Large Military Development Project,” US Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, California

Dave — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 10:48:56 +0000

All men are by nature conservative but conservatism in the military profession is a source of danger to the country. One must be ready to change his line sharply and suddenly, with no concern for the prejudices and memories of what was yesterday. To rest upon formula is a slumber that, prolonged, means death.

Hyman Rickover (1900-1986) Polish-American naval engineer, admiral [b. Chaim Gdala Rykower]
Speech (1954-03-16), “Administering a Large Military Development Project,” US Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, California
(Source)

Voltaire -- Questions on the Encyclopedia [Questions sur l’Encyclopédie], “Charity [Charité]” (1770) [tr. Fleming]

Dave — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 10:07:25 +0000

Money is always to be found when men are to be sent to the frontiers to be destroyed: when the object is to preserve them, it is no longer so.

[On en trouve [l’argent] toujours quand il s’agit d’aller faire tuer des hommes sur la frontière: il n’y en a plus quand il faut les sauver.]

Voltaire (1694-1778) French writer [pseud. of Francois-Marie Arouet]
Questions on the Encyclopedia [Questions sur l’Encyclopédie], “Charity [Charité]” (1770) [tr. Fleming]
(Source)

Referring to the scandalous conditions at the Hôtel Dieu charity hospital in Paris.

(Source (French)). Subsequently folded into later editions of the Philosophical Dictionary [Dictionnaire Philosophique].

Lincoln, Abraham -- Letter (1848-02-15) to William H. Herndon

Dave — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 14:13:41 +0000

Allow the President to invade a neighboring nation whenever he shall deem it necessary to repel an invasion, and you shall allow him to do so whenever he may choose to say he deems it necessary for such purpose, and you allow him to make war at pleasure. Study to see if you can fix any limit to his power in this respect. If to-day he should choose to say he thinks it necessary to invade Canada to prevent the British from invading us, how could you stop him? You may say to him, “I see no probability of the British invading us”; but he will say to you, “Be silent: I see it if you don’t.”

Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865) American lawyer, politician, US President (1861–65)
Letter (1848-02-15) to William H. Herndon
(Source)

Rogers, Will -- Column (1925-02-15), “Weekly Article: Monuments Are All Right But Even Heroes Must Eat” [No. 114]

Dave — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 09:45:02 +0000

You know that’s the tough part about a hero. He has to eat. We take care of them with too much newspaper space and not enough permanent endowment. We have great fellows back from the War that can show you two medals for every sack of flour they have in the house. They’ve got a foreign decoration for every American dollar they have. Heroing is one of the shortest-lifed professions there is.

Will Rogers (1879-1935) American humorist
Column (1925-02-15), “Weekly Article: Monuments Are All Right But Even Heroes Must Eat” [No. 114]
(Source)

Collected in a shorter version in The Autobiography of Will Rogers, ch. 10 (1926) [ed. Donald Day].

Goldwater, Barry -- Washington Post, opinion piece (Jun 1993)

Dave — Sun, 01 Feb 2004 16:00:00 +0000

You don’t need to be “straight” to fight and die for your country. You just need to shoot straight.

Barry Goldwater (1909-1998) American politician
Washington Post, opinion piece (Jun 1993)
(Source)

Defoe, Daniel -- (Attributed)

Dave — Sun, 01 Feb 2004 16:00:00 +0000

But the Nature of the War is now alter’d,
`tis the longest Purse
Conquers the longest Sword.

Daniel Defoe (1660?-1731) English journalist and novelist
(Attributed)

Einstein, Albert -- “What I Believe,” Forum and Century (Oct 1930)

Dave — Sun, 01 Feb 2004 16:00:00 +0000

This subject brings me to that vilest offspring of the herd mind — the odious militia. The man who enjoys marching in line and file to the strains of music falls below my contempt; he received his great brain by mistake — the spinal cord would have been amply sufficient. This heroism at command, this senseless violence, this accursed bombast of patriotism — how intensely I despise them! War is low and despicable, and I had rather be smitten to shreds than participate in such doings.

Albert Einstein (1879-1955) German-American physicist
“What I Believe,” Forum and Century (Oct 1930)
(Source)

Einstein crafted and recrafted his credo multiple times in this period, and specifics are often muddled by differing translations and by his reuse of certain phrases in later writing. The Forum and Century entry appears to be the earliest. Some important variants:

This topic brings me to that worst outcrop of herd life, the military system, which I abhor. That a man cant take pleasure in marching in fours to the strains of a band is enough to make me despise him. He has only been given his big brain by mistake; unprotected spinal marrow was all he needed. This plague-spot of civilization ought to be abolished with all possible speed. Heroism on command, senseless violence, and all the loathsome nonsense that goes by the name of patriotism -- how passionately I hate them! How vile and despicable seems war to me! I would rather be hacked in pieces than take part in such an abominable business.

— "The World As I See It [Mein Weltbild] [tr. Bargmann (1954)]

This topic brings me to that worst outcrop of the herd nature, the military system, which I abjor. That a man can take pleasure in marching in formation to the strains of a band is enough to make me despise him. He has only been given his big brain by mistake; a backbone was all he needed. This plague-spot of civilization ought to be abolished with all possible speed. Heroism by order, senseless violence, and all the pestilent nonsense that does by the name of patriotism -- how I hate them! War seems to me a mean, contemptible thing: I would rather be hacked in pieces than take part in such an abominable business.

— "The World As I See It [Mein Weltbild] [tr. Harris (1934)]

Washington, George -- Fifth Annual Message, Philadelphia (3 Dec 1793)

Dave — Sun, 01 Feb 2004 18:00:00 +0000

There is a rank due to the United States, among nations, which will be withheld, if not absolutely lost, by the reputation of weakness. If we desire to avoid insult, we must be able to repel it; if we desire to secure peace, one of the most powerful instruments of our rising prosperity, it must be known that we are at all times ready for war.

George Washington (1732–1799) American military leader, Founding Father, US President (1789–1797)
Fifth Annual Message, Philadelphia (3 Dec 1793)
(Source)