WIST Quotations

Mackay, Charles -- Poem (1846-01-22), “The Good Time Coming,” st. 1 , London Daily News

Dave — Wed, 05 Nov 2025 18:05:42 +0000

Cannon-balls may aid the truth,
But thought’s a weapon stronger;
We’ll win our battles by its aid; —
Wait a little longer.

Charles Mackay (1814-1889) Scottish poet, journalist, song writer
Poem (1846-01-22), “The Good Time Coming,” st. 1 , London Daily News
(Source)

Originally published under the title "Wait a Little Longer." First collected in Voices from the Crowd and Other Poems (1846).

Bujold, Lois McMaster -- The Vor Game, ch. 5 (1990)

Dave — Thu, 14 Aug 2025 18:18:19 +0000

A weapon is a device for making your enemy change his mind.

Lois McMaster Bujold (b. 1949) American author
The Vor Game, ch. 5 (1990)
(Source)

Protagonist Miles Vorkosigan recalling a saying of his father's.

Fuller, Thomas (1654) -- Introductio ad Prudentiam, Vol. 1, # 531 (1725)

Dave — Wed, 25 Sep 2024 22:26:52 +0000

Give not thy Enemy Despair; for it is a weapon more dangerous than Valour it self.

Thomas Fuller (1654-1734) English physician, preacher, aphorist, writer
Introductio ad Prudentiam, Vol. 1, # 531 (1725)
(Source)

Montesquieu -- Persian Letters [Lettres Persanes], Letter 106, Rhedi to Usbek (1721) [tr. Ozell (1760 ed.), # 105]

Dave — Mon, 17 Jun 2024 17:03:29 +0000

Thou knowest that since the invention of gun-powder, there is no place impregnable: that is to say, Usbek, there is no longer any asylum upon earth against injustice and violence. I always tremble for fear at last some invention will be found out of a shorter way to destroy mankind, and to depopulate whole nations and whole kingdoms.

[Tu sais que, depuis l’invention de la poudre, il n’y a plus de places imprenables ; c’est-à-dire, Usbek, qu’il n’y a plus d’asile sur la terre contre l’injustice et la violence. Je tremble toujours qu’on ne parvienne à la fin à découvrir quelque secret qui fournisse une voie plus abrégée pour faire périr les hommes, détruire les peuples et les nations entières.]

Charles-Lewis de Secondat, Baron de Montesquieu (1689-1755) French political philosopher
Persian Letters [Lettres Persanes], Letter 106, Rhedi to Usbek (1721) [tr. Ozell (1760 ed.), # 105]
(Source)

(Source (French)). Alternate translations:

Thou knowest, that since the Invention of gun-powder, there is no place impregnable; that is to say, Ushek, that there is not any longer an asylum upon earth against injustice and violence. I always tremble, left they should at arrive at last, at the discovery of some secret, which may furnish them with a shorter way to destroy mankind, and to depopulate whole nations and whole kingdoms.
[tr. Floyd (1762), # 105]

You know that since the invention of gunpowder no place is impregnable; that is to say, Usbek, that there is no longer upon the earth a refuge from injustice and violence. I dread always lest they should at last discover some secret which will furnish them with a briefer method of destroying men, by killing them off wholesale in tribes and nations.
[tr. Davidson (1891)]

You know that, since the invention of gunpowder, no fortress is impregnable; that is to say, Usbek, that there is no longer upon earth an asylum against injustice and violence. I am always in terror lest some secret or other should be at length discovered that will not only kill men, but destroy entire tribes and nations.
[tr. Betts (1897)]

You know that since the invention of gunpowder there have been no impregnable places; and this is to say, Usbek, that there is no longer an asylum from injustice and violence any¬ where on the earth. I am in constant terror that ultimately someone will succeed in discovering some secret which will furnish an even more efficient way to kill men, by destroying whole peoples and entire nations.
[tr. Healy (1964)]

You know, since the invention of gunpowder, no fortification is impregnable; in other words, Usbek, there no longer exists, anywhere on earth, any asylum from injustice and violence. I live in fear that men of science will eventually discover some secret which would offer a faster day to kill people, destroy races, and wipe out entire nations.
[tr. Mauldon (2008)]

You know that since the invention of gunpowder, no place is impregnable -- and that is to say, Usbek, that there is no place on earth where we are safe from injustice and violence. I tremble at the thought that eventually someone will discover some new secret that will lead to an even more efficient way to kill even more people, perhaps to destroy entire populations and nations.
[tr. MacKenzie (2014), # 105]

Monty Python -- Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975)

Dave — Thu, 17 Nov 2022 15:21:38 +0000

[Holding the Holy Hand Grenade of Antioch]

KING ARTHUR: How does it — um — how does it work?

SIR LANCELOT: I know not, my liege.

KING ARTHUR: Consult the Book of Armaments.

BROTHER MAYNARD: Armaments, chapter two, verses nine through twenty-one.

CLERIC: [reading] And Saint Attila raised the hand grenade up on high, saying, “O Lord, bless this thy hand grenade, that with it thou mayst blow thine enemies to tiny bits, in thy mercy.” And the Lord did grin. And the people did feast upon the lambs, and sloths, and carp, and anchovies, and orangutans, and breakfast cereals, and fruit bats, and large chu–“

BROTHER MAYNARD: Skip a bit, Brother.

CLERIC: And the Lord spake, saying, “First shalt thou take out the Holy Pin. Then shalt thou count to three, no more, no less. Three shall be the number thou shalt count, and the number of the counting shall be three. Four shalt thou not count, neither count thou two, excepting that thou then proceed to three. Five is right out. Once the number three, being the third number, be reached, then lobbest thou thy Holy Hand Grenade of Antioch towards thy foe, who, being naughty in My sight, shall snuff it.”

BROTHER MAYNARD: Amen.

ALL: Amen.

KING ARTHUR: Right. [pulls pin] One … two … five!

GALAHAD: Three, sir.

KING ARTHUR: Three! [throws grenade]

Monty Python (b. 1969) British comedy troupe [Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, Michael Palin]
Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975)
(Source)

(Video)

Lorde, Audre -- “Eye to Eye: Black Women, Hatred, and Anger,” Sister Outsider: Essays and Speeches (1984)

Dave — Wed, 06 Oct 2021 17:26:59 +0000

Nothing I accept about myself can be used against me to diminish me.

Audre Lorde (1934-1992) American writer, feminist, civil rights activist
“Eye to Eye: Black Women, Hatred, and Anger,” Sister Outsider: Essays and Speeches (1984)
(Source)

Homer -- The Odyssey [Ὀδύσσεια], Book 16, l. 294 (16.294) [Odysseus] (c. 700 BC) [tr. Rieu (1946)]

Dave — Wed, 08 Sep 2021 18:51:59 +0000

The very presence of a weapon provokes a man to use it.

[αὐτὸς γὰρ ἐφέλκεται ἄνδρα σίδηρος.]

Homer (fl. 7th-8th C. BC) Greek author
The Odyssey [Ὀδύσσεια], Book 16, l. 294 (16.294) [Odysseus] (c. 700 BC) [tr. Rieu (1946)]
(Source)

(Greek (Source)), repeated in 19.13.

In Book 16, Odysseus offers this as part of the argument Telemachus can use to the suitors to explain why he has stripped the hall of weapons -- that, should the weapons remain, they might tempt drunken people to violence. Book 19, back at the hall, Odysseus repeats almost the same instructions to Telemachus. The same Greek is used for this phrase in both passages; some translators use the same language, others make changes to it.

Epigram (and title inspiration) in Joe Abercrombie's The Blade Itself (2006) -- "The blade itself incites to deeds of violence." Abercrombie was a fan of the Rome: Total War game, which included in its load pages the translation, "The blade itself incites to violence.

BOOK 16, l. 294

"Steel itself, ready, draws a man to blows." [tr. Chapman (1616)]
"One drawn sword draws another." [tr. Hobbes (1675), l. 276]
"Oft ready swords in luckless hour incite / The hand of wrath, and arm it for the fight." [tr. Pope (1725)]
"For the view / Itself of arms incites to their abuse." [tr. Cowper (1792), l. 348]
"Steel itself oft lures a man to fight." [tr. Worsley (1861), st. 37]
"Steel itself wooes men to battle!" [tr. Bigge-Wither (1869)]
"For the steel blade itself lures men to blood." [tr. Musgrave (1869), l. 462]
"For iron of itself draws a man thereto." [tr. Butcher/Lang (1879)]
"For this is said aright, / That e'en of himself the iron draws on a man to smite." [tr. Morris (1887)]
"Steel itself draws men on." [tr. Palmer (1891)]
"For the sight of arms sometimes tempts people to use them." [tr. Butler (1898)]
"For of itself does the iron draw a man to it." [tr. Murray (1919)]
"Iron of itself tempts man's frailty." [tr. Lawrence (1932)]
"Tempered iron can magnetize a man." [tr. Fitzgerald (1961)]
"Iron all of itself works on a man and attracts him." [tr. Lattimore (1965)]
"For iron of itself can tempt a man." [tr. Mandelbaum (1990)]
"Iron has powers to draw a man to ruin." [tr. Fagles (1996)]
"There's a force in iron that lures men on." [tr. D. C. H. Rieu (2002)]
"For iron itself draws a man to employ it." [tr. Merrill (2002)]
"Iron of itself draws a man on." [tr. Verity (2016)]
"Weapons themselves can tempt a man to fight." [tr. Wilson (2017)]
"For iron of itself attracts a man." [tr. Green (2018)]
"Iron attracts a man all on its own." [tr. Johnston (2019)]
"And beckoning, the iron itself drags the man." [Source]

BOOK 19, l. 13 -- items in italics are the same as their Book 16 counterparts.

"As loadstones draw the steel, so steel draws man." [tr. Chapman (1616)]
"One drawn sword draws another." [tr. Hobbes (1675)]
"By sight of swords to fury fired." [tr. Pope (1725)]
"For the view / Itself of arms incites to their abuse." [tr. Cowper (1792)]
"Steel itself oft lures a man to fight." [tr. Worsley (1861), st. 2]
"The sight of iron tempts to use it!" [tr. Bigge-Wither (1869)]
"For the steel blade itself / Lures men to blood." [tr. Musgrave (1869)]
"For iron of itself draws a man thereto." [tr. Butcher/Lang (1879)]
"For e'en of himself the Iron to battle draweth men." [tr. Morris (1887)]
"Steel itself draws men on." [tr. Palmer (1891)]
"For the sight of arms sometimes tempts people to use them." [tr. Butler (1898)]
"For of itself does the iron draw a man towards it." [tr. Murray (1919)]
"Iron has that attraction for men." [tr. Lawrence (1932)]
"The very presence of a weapon provokes a man to use it." [tr. Rieu (1946)]
"Iron itself can draw men's hands." [tr. Fitzgerald (1961)]
"Iron all of itself works on a man and attracts him." [tr. Lattimore (1965)]
"For iron of itself can tempt a man." [tr. Mandelbaum (1990)]
"Iron has powers to draw a man to ruin." [tr. Fagles (1996)]
"Steel has a way of drawing a man to it." [tr. Lombardo (2000)]
"There's a force in iron that lures men on." [tr. D. C. H. Rieu (2002)]
"For iron itself draws a man to employ it." [tr. Merrill (2002)]
"For iron of itself draws a man on." [tr. Verity (2016)]
"For iron of itself attracts a man." [tr. Green (2018)]
"For iron by itself / can draw a man to use it." [tr. Johnston (2019)]

Herbert, George -- Jacula Prudentum, or Outlandish Proverbs, Sentences, &c. (compiler), # 838 (1640 ed.)

Dave — Wed, 08 Feb 2017 18:51:42 +0000

The tongue is not steele, yet it cuts.

George Herbert (1593-1633) Welsh priest, orator, poet.
Jacula Prudentum, or Outlandish Proverbs, Sentences, &c. (compiler), # 838 (1640 ed.)
(Source)

See Howell (1659).

Asimov, Isaac -- Foundation, Part 5 “The Merchant Princes,” Sec. 13 (1951)

Dave — Tue, 05 Jul 2016 21:45:47 +0000

Now any dogma, based primarily on faith and emotionalism, is a dangerous weapon to use on others, since it is almost impossible to guarantee that the weapon will never be turned on the user.

Isaac Asimov (1920-1992) Russian-American author, polymath, biochemist
Foundation, Part 5 “The Merchant Princes,” Sec. 13 (1951)

Nicoll, James -- “OTT: If ye break faith with us who die,” rec.arts.sf.written, Usenet (27 Apr 2006)

Dave — Mon, 14 Mar 2016 14:46:57 +0000

It demonstrated that old adage: never bring a gun to a fight where the other guy has a time-machine and tomorrow’s newspapers.

James Nicoll (b. 1961) Canadian reviewer, editor
“OTT: If ye break faith with us who die,” rec.arts.sf.written, Usenet (27 Apr 2006)
(Source)

Tolkien, J.R.R. -- The Lord of the Rings, Vol. 2: The Two Towers, Book 4, ch. 5, “The Window on the West” [Faramir] (1954)

Dave — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 12:37:35 +0000

I would not take this thing, if it lay by the highway. Not were Minas Tirith falling in ruin and I alone could save her, so, using the weapon of the Dark Lord for her good and my glory. No, I do not wish for such triumphs, Frodo son of Drogo.

J.R.R. Tolkien (1892-1973) English writer, fabulist, philologist, academic [John Ronald Reuel Tolkien]
The Lord of the Rings, Vol. 2: The Two Towers, Book 4, ch. 5, “The Window on the West” [Faramir] (1954)
(Source)

See follow-up.

Twain, Mark -- Story (1916), The Mysterious Stranger, ch. 10

Dave — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 14:11:51 +0000

For your race, in its poverty, has unquestionably one really effective weapon — laughter. Power, money, persuasion, supplication, persecution — these can lift at a colossal humbug — push it a little — weaken it a little, century by century; but only laughter can blow it to rags and atoms at a blast. Against the assault of laughter nothing can stand. You are always fussing and fighting with your other weapons. Do you ever use that one? No; you leave it lying rusting. As a race, do you ever use it at all? No; you lack sense and the courage.

Mark Twain (1835-1910) American writer [pseud. of Samuel Clemens]
Story (1916), The Mysterious Stranger, ch. 10
(Source)

Satan speaking. Often paraphrased: "The human race has one really effective weapon, and that is laughter."

The novella was published posthumously (and with significant alterations by Twain's executor).

The above is taken from the Paine-Duneka text. An earlier version (of this story and passage) appear in The Chronicle of Young Satan, ch. 10 (c. 1898-12):

For your race, in its poverty, has unquestionably one really effective weapon -- laughter. Power, Money, Persuasion, Supplication, Persecution -- these can lift at a colossal humbug, -- push it a little -- crowd it a little -- weaken it a little, century by century: but only Laughter can blow it to rags and atoms at a blast. Against the assault of Laughter nothing can stand. You are always fussing and fighting with your other weapons: do you ever use that one? No, you leave it lying rusting. As a race, do you ever use it at all? No -- you lack sense and the courage.

King, Martin Luther -- Nobel Prize acceptance speech, Stockholm, Sweden (11 Dec 1964)

Dave — Tue, 18 Jan 2005 09:57:42 +0000

Nonviolence is a powerful and just weapon. Indeed, it is a weapon unique in history, which cuts without wounding and ennobles the man who wields it.

Martin Luther King, Jr. (1929-1968) American clergyman, civil rights leader, social activist, preacher
Nobel Prize acceptance speech, Stockholm, Sweden (11 Dec 1964)

Adler, Alfred -- The Problems of Neurosis, ch. 2 (1929)

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

The truth is often a terrible weapon of aggression. It is possible to lie, and even to murder with the truth.

Alfred Adler (1870-1937) Austrian psychologist
The Problems of Neurosis, ch. 2 (1929)
(Source)