Quotations about:
    solution

We cannot learn what causes violence and how we could prevent it as long as we are thinking in the traditional moral and legal terms. The only questions that this way of thinking can ask take the form: “How evil (or heroic) was this particular act of violence, and how much punishment (or reward) does the person who did it deserve?” But even if it were possible to gain the knowledge that would be necessary to answer those questions (which it is not), answers would still not help us in the least to understand what causes violence or how we could prevent it — these are empirical not moral questions.

James Gilligan (b. c. 1936) American psychiatrist and author

Preventing Violence, Introduction (2001)
    (Source)

Like enough, you won’t be glad,
When they come to hang you, lad:
But bacon’s not the only thing
That’s cured by hanging from a string.

Hugh Kingsmill (1889-1949) English biographer, literary critic, man of letters [pen name of Hugh Kingsmill Lunn]

“Two Poems, After A. E. Housman”, No. 1, st. 2 (1925)
    (Source)

Houseman, writing to his brother, said of the parody: "It's the best I have seen, and indeed, the only good one."

Our remedies oft in ourselves do lie,
Which we ascribe to Heaven.

William Shakespeare (1564-1616) English dramatist and poet

All’s Well That Ends Well, Act 1, sc. 1, l. 222-23 [Helena] (1602?)
    (Source)

To be kind is more important than to be right. Many times, what people need is not a brilliant mind that speaks but a special heart that listens.

F. Scott Fitzgerald (1896-1940) American writer [Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald]

(Attributed)

No actual citation found. Also often attributed (also without citation) to Menachem Mendel Schneerson.

Thus, because we are rapidly advancing along this non-sustainable course, the world’s environmental problems will get resolved, in one way or another, within the lifetimes of the children and young adults alive today The only question is whether they will become resolved in pleasant ways of our own choice, or in unpleasant ways not of our choice, such as warfare, genocide, starvation, disease epidemics, and collapses of societies. While all of those grim phenomena have been endemic to humanity throughout our history, their frequency increases with environmental degradation, population pressure, and the resulting poverty and political instability.

Jared Diamond (b. 1937) American geographer, historian, ornithologist, author

Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed, Part 4, ch. 16 (2005)
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While we do our good works let us not forget that the real solution lies in a world in which charity will have become unnecessary.

Chinua Achebe (1930-2013) Nigerian novelist, poet, professor, critic [Albert Chinualumogu Achebe]

Anthills of the Savannah (1987)
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There comes a point where we need to stop just pulling people out of the river. We need to go upstream and find out why they’re falling in.

Desmond Tutu (1931-2021) South African cleric, Anglican Archbishop of Cape Town, Nobel Laureate

(Attributed)

The problem of drugs, of divorce, of race prejudice, of unmarried pregnancy, and so on — as if evil were a problem, something that an be solved, that has an answer, like a problem in fifth grade arithmetic. If you want the answer, you just look in the back of the book. That is escapism, that posing evil as a “problem,” instead of what it is: all the pain and suffering and waste and loss and injustice we will meet our loves long, and must face and cope with over and over and over, and admit, and live with, in order to live human lives at all.

Ursula K. Le Guin (b. 1929) American writer

“The Child and the Shadow,” Quarterly Journal of the Library of Congress (Apr 1975)
    (Source)

On the difficulty of "realistic fiction" for children to teach morality. First delivered as a speech; later reprinted in The Language of the Night (1979).

Artists and scientists realize that no solution is ever final, but that each new creative step points the way to the next artistic or scientific problem. In contrast, those who embrace religious revelations and delusional systems tend to see them as unshakeable and permanent.

Anthony Storr (1920-2001) English psychiatrist and author

Feet of Clay: Saints, Sinners and Madmen, Introduction (1996)
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Men have made an idol of luck as an excuse for their own thoughtlessness. Luck seldom measures swords with wisdom. Most things in life quick wit and sharp vision can set right.

Democritus (c. 460 BC - c. 370 BC) Greek philosopher

Frag. 119 (Diels) [tr. Bakewell (1907)]
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Bakewell lists this under "The Golden Sayings of Democritus." Freeman notes this as one of the Gnômae, from a collection called "Maxims of Democratês," but because Stobaeus quotes many of these as "Maxims of Democritus," they are generally attributed to the latter. Alternate translations:

• "Men have fashioned an image of Chance as an excuse for their own stupidity. For Chance rarely conflicts with intelligence, and most things in life can be set in order by an intelligent sharpsightedness." [tr. Freeman (1948)]
• "Men fashioned the image of chance as an excuse for their own thoughtlessness; for chance rarely fights with wisdom, and a man of intelligence will, by foresight, set straight most things in his life." [tr. Barnes (1987)]

The greatest skill in cards is to know when to discard; the smallest of current trumps is worth more than the ace of trumps of the last game.

Baltasar Gracián y Morales (1601-1658) Spanish Jesuit priest, writer, philosopher

The Art of Worldly Wisdom [Oráculo Manual y Arte de Prudencia], § 31 (1647) [tr. Jacobs (1892)]
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A correct answer is like an affectionate kiss.

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832) German poet, statesman, scientist

Proverbs in Prose (1819)

Life is not a problem to be solved, but a reality to be experienced.

Søren Kierkegaard (1813-1855) Danish philosopher, theologian

(Misattributed)

Misattributed to Kierkegaard by Cyril Connolly, Horizon, vol. 11 (1945). More properly attributed to Jacobus Johannes van der Leeuw (1893–1934), The Conquest of Illusion, ch. 1: "The mystery of life in not a problem to be solved, it is a reality to be experienced."

I doubt if there is in the world a single problem, whether social, political, or economic, which would not find ready solution if men and nations would rule their lives according to the plain teaching of the Sermon on the Mount.

Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1882-1945) US President (1933-1945)

“Greeting to the World’s Christian Endeavor Convention,” Melbourne (15 Jun 1938)

It doesn’t matter whether the cat is black or white, as long as it catches mice.

Deng Xiaoping (1904-1997) Chinese revolutionary, politician, statesman [Teng Hsiao-p'ing]

Speech, Communist Youth League conference (Jul 1962)

There are a variety of translations, and Deng used the phrase on numerous occasions.

In the crisis of this hour — as in all others that we have faced since our Nation began — there are plenty of recommendations on how to get out of trouble cheaply and fast. Most of them in the last analysis really come down to this: Deny your responsibilities.

Lyndon B. Johnson (1908-1973) American politician, educator, US President (1963-69)

Speech, Democratic Party Dinner, Washington (7 Oct 1967)
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Sometimes paraphrased "There are plenty of recommendations on how to get out of trouble cheaply and fast. Most of them come down to this: Deny your responsibility."

Often the fear of one evil leads us into a worse.

[Souvent la peur d’un mal nous conduit dans un pire.]

Nicolas Boileau-Despréaux (1636-1711) French poet and critic

The Art of Poetry [L’Art Poétique], Canto 1, l. 64 (1674)
    (Source)

(Source (French)).

Though this sounds like a profound philosophical comment, in reality it refers to writers overcompensating for problems in their work. Soame (1892) translates this and the following line thus:

A verse was weak, you turn it much too strong.
And grow obscure for fear you should be long.

Unless someone like you
cares a whole awful lot,
nothing is going to get better.
It’s not.

Dr. Seuss (1904-1991) American author, illustrator [pseud. of Theodor Geisel]

The Lorax (1971)

A problem well stated is a problem half-solved.

Charles F. Kettering (1876-1958) American inventor, engineer, researcher, businessman

(Attributed)

Sometimes attributed to John Dewey.

The only difference between a problem and a solution is that people understand the solution.

Charles F. Kettering (1876-1958) American inventor, engineer, researcher, businessman

(Attributed)

Quoted in Thomas Alvin Boyd, Charles F. Kettering: A Biography (1957)

This problem, when solved, will be simple.

Charles F. Kettering (1876-1958) American inventor, engineer, researcher, businessman

Sign at the General Motors research laboratories
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Quoted by Kettering in "Don't Be Afraid to Stumble," The Rotarian (Jan 1952)

Solutions nearly always come from the direction you least expect, which means there’s no point trying to look in that direction because it won’t be coming from there.

Douglas Adams (1952-2001) English writer

The Salmon of Doubt (2002)

The facts are indispensable; they are not sufficient. To solve a problem it is necessary to think.

Robert M. Hutchins (1899-1977) American educator and educational philosopher

Great Books: The Foundation of a Liberal Education (1954)

If this stone won’t budge at present and is wedged in, move some of the other stones around it first.

Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889-1951) Austrian-English philosopher

Culture and Value, 1940 (1977) [tr. Winch (1980)]

The older I get, the more wisdom I find in the ancient rule of taking first things first — a process which often reduces the most complex human problems to manageable proportions.

Dwight David Eisenhower (1890-1969) American general, US President (1953-61)

“Let’s Be Honest with Ourselves,” Reader’s Digest (Dec 1963)

The only problems that have simple solutions are simple problems. The only managers that have simple problems have simple minds. Problems that arise in organisations are almost always the product of interactions of parts, never the action of a single part. Complex problems do not have simple solutions.

Russell L. Ackoff (1919-2009) American organizational theorist, consultant, management scientist

“Case Histories Five Years after,” Operations Research 8.2 (1960)

If thy Business be perplexed, divide it, and look upon all its Parts and sides.

Thomas Fuller (1654-1734) English writer, physician

Introductio ad Prudentiam, # 583 (1725)
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At the bottom of every social problem we will find a social wrong.

Henry George (1839-1897) American economist

Social Problems, ch. 1 (1883)

When a mess, which is a system of problems, is taken apart, it loses its essential properties and so does each of its parts. The behavior of a mess depends more on how the treatment of its parts interact than how they act independently of each other. A partial solution to a whole system of problems is better than whole solutions of each of its parts taken separately.

Russell L. Ackoff (1919-2009) American organizational theorist, consultant, management scientist

“The future of operational research is past,” The Journal of the Operational Research Society, Vol 30 (1979)

To ask the right question is already half the solution of a problem.

Carl Jung (1875-1961) Swiss psychologist

Archetypes of the Collective Unconscious (1934) [tr. Hull (1959)]

In reactive problem solving we walk into the future facing the past — we move away from, rather than toward, something. This often results in unforeseen consequences that are more distasteful than the deficiencies removed.

Russell L. Ackoff (1919-2009) American organizational theorist, consultant, management scientist

The Art of Problem Solving (1978)

A problem never exists in isolation; it is surrounded by other problems in space and time. The more of the context of a problem that a scientist can comprehend, the greater are his chances of finding a truly adequate solution.

Russell L. Ackoff (1919-2009) American organizational theorist, consultant, management scientist

“The development of operations research as a science,” Operations Research (Jun 1956)

Successful problem solving requires finding the right solution to the right problem. We fail more often because we solve the wrong problem than because we get the wrong solution to the right problem.

Russell L. Ackoff (1919-2009) American organizational theorist, consultant, management scientist

Redesigning the Future (1974)

“So?” Bob said. “Hat up, go kill her. Problem solved.”
“Bob,” I said. “You can’t just go around killing people.”
“I know. That’s why you should do it.”
“No, no. I can’t go around killing people, either.”

Jim Butcher (b. 1971) American author

Grave Peril (2001)

In political institutions, almost everything we call an abuse was once a remedy.

Joseph Joubert (1754-1824) French moralist

Pensées (1838) [ed. Auster (1983)]

Questions show the mind’s range, and answers, its subtlety.

Joseph Joubert (1754-1824) French moralist

Pensées (1838) [ed. Auster (1983)]

If a problem has no solution, it may not be a problem, but a fact, not to be solved, but to be coped with over time.

Shimon Peres (1923-2016) Polish-Israeli politician, statesman

(Attributed)

Widely attributed to Peres in different sources. Quoted in the Wall Street Journal (7 Feb 2001). Donald Rumsfeld says that Peres made the observation to him.

There are some remedies worse than the disease.

Publilius Syrus (d. 42 BC) Assyrian slave, writer, philosopher [less correctly Publius Syrus]

Sententiae [Moral Sayings], # 301 [tr. Lyman (1862)]

Don’t make excuses — make good!

Elbert Hubbard (1856-1915) American writer, businessman, philosopher

A Thousand and One Epigrams (1911)

It is the greatest of all mistakes to do nothing because you can only do little. Do what you can.

Sydney Smith (1771-1845) English clergyman, essayist, wit

Elementary Sketches of Moral Philosophy, “Lectures at the Royal Institution” (1804-1806), Lecture 19 (1850)

Explanations exist; they have existed for all time; there is always a well-known solution to every human problem — neat, plausible, and wrong.

H.L. Mencken (1880-1956) American writer and journalist [Henry Lewis Mencken]

“The Divine Afflatus,” New York Evening Mail (16 Nov 1917)
    (Source)

Reprinted in Prejudices: Second Series (1920) and A Mencken Chrestomathy, ch. 25 (1949).

Variants:

• "There is always an easy solution to every human problem -- neat, plausible, and wrong."
• "For every complex problem, there is a solution that is simple, neat, and wrong."

I never, ever say, “I can’t,” about anything. I might say, “I don’t have the authority to make that decision,” or, “Building A is too heavy for me to lift,” or, “I will need training before I pilot that space shuttle.”

(Other Authors and Sources)

Mike Huber, Techwr-L

All things can be cured by salt water: sweat, tears, or the ocean.

Isak Dinesen (1885-1962) Danish writer [pseud. of Karen Christence, Countess Blixen]

(Attributed)

It is not always by plugging away at a difficulty and sticking at it that one overcomes it; but, rather, often by working on the one next to it. Certain people and certain things require to be approached on an angle.

André Gide (1869-1951) French author, Nobel laureate

Journal (26 Oct 1924) [tr. O’Brien (1951)]

A rain came along last night and gently wet San Diego. It cleaned off my car except for a stubborn bird blessing on the hood. I had been staring at it for several days and the rain cleaned everything except that single spot. (sigh) For the most part, things take care of themselves if we just let them, but every now and again we’ve got to get involved, and dirty our hands.

(Other Authors and Sources)

Jeff Shepherd, Jeff’s Weekly Quotations, #39 (1994)